All About Panama Thatch Roofs (Pajas)

My roof is Paja Palm

A Tale of Two Pajas   (plus a ringer)

There are basically two types of thatched roofs (pajas) here in Panama. One uses the long frond of the Paja Palm, split in two and tied or nailed horizontally across the vertical beams, with orientation changing with every other frond. 

Inside the Paja roof

The Paja Palm tree

Latonia roof in Pueblo Nuevo

The other use the fan shaped Latonia Palm frond, tied vertically along the vertical beams or wedged between metal rebar or smaller, supple wood. The Paja palm yields a thicker and more durable roof, while the Latonia is faster and easier to build. 

The Latonia Palm

The fan shaped Latonia frond is nailed directly to the vertical bems

Now, there is a third option – artificial thatch. I met the distributor of Palmex in Portobello, who reported that sales are good.