How to Choose the Right Thatch for a Cabana Roof
Cabana
A cabana by the pool is part shade, part changing room, part getaway. Topped with thatch, it can make a backyard feel like a resort.
Choosing the right thatch comes down to two questions: how your cabana is built, and what look you want.
Start With How Your Cabana Is Built
Open-sided, with exposed rafters overhead. Choose a Palm product. Basics Palm and Performance Palm install over open battens and are waterproof on their own, so you don’t need a roof deck. Look up and you see the thatch itself, with an inside pattern designed to be the finished ceiling. Palm products need a roof pitch of 4:12 or steeper.
Built with a solid roof deck. Any Endureed line works, including the Reed, Grass and Premium profiles, which install over plywood with a self-adhered underlayment. These need a pitch of 3:12 or steeper. Ceiling shingles are available for several profiles if you want thatch on the underside too.
Choose Your Line
| Line | Warranty | Fire rating | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basics | 10 years | Not stated | Backyard cabanas; DIY friendly and always in stock |
| Performance | 20 years | Class A | Hotel and resort pool decks, and higher-end homes |
| Premium | 30 years | Class A | Signature residential and resort projects; made to order |
All three are pest and rot proof and need no maintenance.
Choose Your Look
Palm: the classic island cabana
The relaxed, layered look most people picture on a pool cabana. Basics Palm comes in Golden Sisal and Rustic Jute; Performance Palm comes in New Palm and Weathered Palm.
Reed and Grass: neater and more structured
Basics Reed, Performance Reed and Performance Grass give a trimmed, architectural profile that suits a more tailored backyard.
Premium: a cabana inspired by a place
- Bali: layered depth and shadow, drawn from the temples and resorts of Bali
- Capetown: the loose trim and expressive texture of South African yellow grass thatch
- Dominica: dense, organic Caribbean thatch with natural movement
- Kilimanjaro: the bold texture of East African lodges and savanna architecture
- Kona: Pacific island warmth with a clean, composed roofline
- Somerset: the classic silhouette of a European cottage, at home in an English garden
Bespoke: a blend of your own
Want something no catalog has? Bespoke lets you work with our team on custom colors and blends.
Cabana Tips
- Near a fire pit or grill? Choose Performance or Premium for a Class A fire rating.
- Near the coast? Ask about stainless steel binders. Somerset, for example, offers stainless for any setting and galvanized steel only for sites more than 2 miles inland.
- Want more shade? Performance Palm offers an extended eave that increases the standard overhang from 18″ to 30″.
- Low roof? Check your pitch before you choose. [LINK: pitch post]
- Doing it yourself? Basics installs much like asphalt shingles. [LINK: install post]
See It on Your Cabana
Try each style on a photo of your own space with the Endureed Visualizer, request a sample, or get a quote. For more backyard ideas, see our residential projects.
