Oast cowl styles
Whether you are from Kent, Sussex, Hereford, Worcestershire or beyond, if your oast cowl needs to be replaced, it’s important to ensure that it is in keeping with the original style. Here is a quick guide of British oast cowl styles:
Kentish oast cowls
Kentish cowls are the traditional cowls you find on most oast houses. Their cap gives the appearance of a flat roof to the cowl, which can also be found in Sussex cowls. Kent cowls are not bound by their location; we often see Sussex cowls in Kent, and vice versa.
We have generations of experience in constructing kent oast cowls with traditional techniques as you can see in these technical drawings.
To learn more about Kentish oast cowls, why not have a look at the work we did for The Hop Farm in Paddock Wood, Kent.You can also visit our blog for heritage-related articles, insights on oast house maintenance projects or more oast cowl insights!
Sussex oast cowls
From a distance Sussex cowls can easily be mistaken for Kentish cowls, thanks to their flattened tops, however, their elongated top plate and front wings differentiate them. These front panels are often known as ‘blinkers’.
See the details of Sussex oast cowls here in our technical drawings.
Mid Kent oast cowls
The Mid Kent cowls can usually be found on the border of Kent and Sussex. Their design reminds us of Kentish cowls with their flat caps and also they resemble Sussex cowls with smaller ‘blinkers’.
Hereford & Worcestershire oast cowls
Hereford & Worcestershire cowls have a very different appearance from both Sussex and Kentish cowls. They do not carry the cap and instead have a pointed tip.
We pride ourselves in being oast cowl experts across the UK, as you can see here in our technical drawings for Hereford & Worcestershire Cowls.
If you aren’t sure which cowl your oast house has, we are happy to take a look during our free consultation, and advise you on the next steps to repairing or replacing your oast cowl. We can also discuss the addition of your own decoration to the cowl. Call us on 01622 725 898 or visit our Contact Us page for more information.
Excellent servicing of the cowls of our oast house.
Darren, Brandon and the team manually removed all three cowls (we have no access for a cherry picker/crane), meticulously restored them to their full glory, then reinstalled them using just manpower and ropes. Very impressive to watch and amazing to have such a friendly team of guys still skilled in the Victorian methods of cowl lifting and removal! Excellent new animal motifs as well.