Here, he was among the first in Danish archaeology who recognized that the ancient houses were not destroyed by fire which he recognized after excavating the areas between the houses, and not just the individual house sites, which was previously the custom.
Hatt var blandt de første inden for dansk arkæologi, som det lykkedes at erkende oldtidshuse, der ikke var ødelagt af ild, idet han begyndte at udgrave områderne mellem husene og ikke kun de enkelte hustomter, som det tidligere havde været kutyme.