A shingle roof will last for 35 to 40 years, which more or less corresponds to the length of a career in tavillonnage. This is why it is rare for a shingle-maker to still be working when one of their roofs needs to be re-laid. Tristan Ropraz ing them on roofs up in the mountains. “We nail them non-stop during the warmer months.” A shingle-maker will knock in between 150 and 200 kg of nails every year, or around 1,000 nails on every three square metres of roof. “But I would go crazy if I kept count.” One out of every thousand The shingle-maker’s year begins in autumn, when they select the trees that they need to make the tavillons. They only chop spruces in the canton of Fribourg. “This is the best moment, when the whole process begins.” The search for suitable trees starts at 1,000 metres. “At higher altitudes, there are fewer nutrients available to the trees – and the trees grow more slowly. This provides shinOnce Ropraz has split a log, he ties the shingles together in the order in which he cut them. That way, there are no irregularities on the roof. 15
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