11.0 Construction Materials

11.0 Construction Materials

Kayu (Wood)

Malay traditional houses are made of wood materials that can be found in the environment as well as forest areas. Wood is an element that is very convenient, because it has the properties inherent in establishing a framework for a good home.

Wood also has elastic properties or malleable elasticity that is useful in the process of construction of the house. The type of trees that is usually used in building a house are those like kayu mentaling [gelegar tiang (joists pillar) and bendul (sill)], serai [gelegar (joists), alang (overhead beams), rasuk (beam) and jejenang], merbau [tiang (columns), rasuk (beams) and tangga (stairs)], cengal [tiang (columns) and rasuk (beams)] , bakau kurap [tiang (columns), rasuk(beams), alang (overhead beams) and kasau (rafters)], bakau minyak [tiang (columns), rasuk (beams) and kasau (rafters)], lengadai [tiang (pole)] and Kulim [gulung-gulung (rolls), kasau (rafters), tunjuk langit and tulang bumbung (roof frame)]. For materials sourced bamboo is like buluh lentik (bamboo tapering) or buluh kasap (bamboo coarse) [lantai (floors), dinding (walls) and kasau betina (rafters)], buluh temi [lantai (floor) and dinding (wall)], buluh akar [lantai (floor) and dinding (wall)], buluh beting [tiang (columns), gelegar (joists), rasuk (beam) and bendul (girder)] and buluh minyak [lantai (floor), dinding (walls), gelegar (joists), kasau (rafters) and rasuk (beams)]. Other materials are as batang pinang, bayas, Rengas, Keruing, balau and so on.

Before such facilities today, in ancient times, the wood for building the house’s frame is difficult to obtain. Usually certain people, especially home builders, had to go into the woods for months to find a suitable tree. Looking for forest’s wood is a harder task than building a house because there are many risks and hindrance.

Because of that, those who were assigned to find wood are more than five people. This causes the process of the house takes a long time and many years to be prepared depending on the financial of those who want to own a home.

The reason for such a long time needed to build a house is not due to weakness or Malay house’s skilled artisans craftsmen. But is due to other factors such as long hours to find wood, the process of making home appliances as well as financial problems by the house.

Woods or house’s wood-frame such as columns, beams, joists, overhead beams and so on are soaked in the river until many months so that the wood is not easily eaten by bubuk or other insect pests. Therefore, the type of wood used must be of the types of wood that are good and hard.

Atap (Roof)

On the roof there is atap(roof) of building materials located on top of a house. There are various types of roofs are used as roof coverings such as atap cucuh, atap bertam, atap nipah, atap ijuk, atap rumbia, atap genting (tiles roofing), atap simen (cement roofing), atap zink (corrugated roofing) and atap kayu (wooden roofing).

Roofs of leafs like atap cucuh, atap rumbia (thatched roofing), atap nipah and atap bertam is the roof that originally used in traditional Malay houses and are still being used till now. Atap cucuh and kajang-shaped atap bertam awning which is greater than the atap cucuh.

Both roof contrasts with thatched roofs was aged between three to five years, in which the individuals leafs is still low and can be hacked easily.

The leaves of rumbia can be harvested by using a bamboo-made ladder. The process of making thatched roofs just like making atap nipah, it requires mengkawan roofing materials and rope for implies. Most of the time, these manufacturers are usually women, they are generally called 'pengatap'.

Men tasks are to harvest these materials in places such as in swamps, on the banks of the river and so on. The roof is made of capillary fibers of the nau or kabung trees, a type of tree that grows in the forest.

Bertam’s trees are of the same type of tree as cucuh trees, they generally found in bushes and forest.

The wooden roof is commonly used in king palace or any with high enough importance, especially in Kelantan and Terengganu. Zinc roof was first introduced in peninsular Malaysia about the 19th century by outside influences.

In the years 1900 to 1941, is one of the proudest moments to be one of the Malays if they use corrugated zinc roofing for their houses. In Kelantan and Terengganu, roof tiles made of clay especially genting singgora has long been used. Until now this type of roof is still used in old homes that are on the mainland.