malaysia travell guide - malaysia tourism packages & point of interest

As a research organization in forestry, wood technology and timber properties a part of our research at FRIM. In relation t to that, we have reconstructed several timber structures on our grounds with special purposes, i.e. to appreciate and study the arts of traditional usage of forest resources. The Terengganu House was the first traditional structure reconstructed followed by the Melaka House.

The former was fully transferred to FRIM in 1987, were the structures were reconstructed piece by piece close to the football field. Another structure we have collected is the bullock cart from Melaka. Since 1992, the cart has been relocated beside the pond close to the Administration Building . In that area, you may also find other wood products such as the laminated timber bridge and the

Rumah Melaka

Origin: Kampung Padang Sebang, Alor Gajah
Age: About eighty years (build in 1917)

The design of the house was based on the " Bumbung Panjang"type for the main house (Rumah Ibu). Parallel to the main house is a verandah (Serambi) in the front. At the back, an identical house is often added as a kitchen with a side entrance and an adjacent fenced working area. For this particular house, these additions were in a desolate state and could not be reconstructed.

The small structure near the house is a rice-storage shed.

Natural Building Materials : Functional and Inexpensives.

Natural building materials are superior to modern ones in terms of cost and their suitability for keeping the house cool. They are also much more attractive and 'warm' in the figurative sense of the word. These advantages make up for the disadvantage of lower durability. Unfortunately, with forests giving way to plantation agriculture, some of these materials are no longer freely available in many places.

Attap, wooden shingles and clay-rooftiles do not absorb heat and radiate it into the house, like corrugate iron. They will absorb some water evaporates.

Bamboo, palm trunks, and timber have a low thermal capacity, They do not store the heat of the day and release it at night, like bricks and concrete walls.

Rumah Terengganu

Origin : Pulau Rusa, Kuala Terengganu
Age : About 100 years (exact year not known)

This Terengganu house belongs to the "Rumah Tiang Dua Belas" type named after the 12 posts (3 rows of four) which extend from the foundations to the roof.

The main house (Rumah Ibu) is reserved for social ceremonies and served as a sleeping area for the unmarried members of the house. Guests are often entertained in an open verandah at the front of the house ( Serambi or Selasar).

An elaborate process is needed to get suitable materials, especially timber, from the dense jungle of the old days. It is also difficult to transport timber. Thus a house may take up to five years to complete.

The owner may later decide to make additions to the house whenever the need arises and when he has enough money to pay for building materials and labour. The additions for the Terengganu house, the kitchen (Dapur) in the middle house (Rumah Tengah), previously had been move to another location in the village of Pulau Rusa where they are still in use.

The house is built entirely from chengal ( Neobalanocarpus heimii ), one of our best hardwoods which is durable even without treatment. The roof of this house is made of clay tiles known as Singgora , originating from South Thailand . Clay tiles allow for rain water to be absorbed, thus, cooling the inside of the house.

In the cooking area, the inside of the roof is usually covered with soot. The Malays believe that the tiles can be made stronger by the soot. Thus, they would not bother to clean up the blackened tiles

Bulding Materials

Traditional Malay houses are made from light weight materials of low thermal capacity. These materials hold little heat and cool adequately at night. The attap roof is an excellent thermal insulator.

Modern houses use bricks, tiles, concrete and other materials of high thermal capacity. These materials store up heat and reradiate it into the house, causing considerable discomfort.

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