Roof Repairs

GET YOUR ROOF CHECKED BY AN EXPERT ROOFER ; EVERY 5 TO  10 YEARS , 12.08.24

ROOF REPAIRS:

I have incuded this section for my colleagues because roof repairs are one of the most             expensive costs of maintaning a building. This applies to one's home and GP Practice building. 

It is important to have an A4 paper lever arch folder  for “ROOF REPAIRS” and keep this for 50 years.  Keep all roofing estimates and roofing bills in this A4 folder.

You can get a Building Maintenance Log Book from Amazon.co.uk and keep a log of all Building(Premises) repairs over 30 years e.g. colours of paint used. Roof repairs; Plumbing repairs etc. 

A whole new roof is the most expensive house repair / Practice repair that you will ever need to pay for.

A brand new roof in 2005 cost £9,000.

A brand new roof in 2024 cost £40,000.

In 2034 this will cost around £80,000. This is a huge cost all at one time.

So the cost doubles every 10 years.

A whole brand new roof will last 60 to 70 years if well maintained and cared for.

The red concrete tiles turn brown in colour over 20 years but most roofers will colour match new tiles to match the tile  colour. They keep spare good old tiles for reuse.

If a roof have not been checked for 40 years the the wooden battens rot, plants grow on the roof, hundreds of  tiles crack, and  water leaks through. This is an emergency situation that is best avoided.

I have discussed this with my friends in North London and we have decided to get our roofs checked every 5 to 10 years; by expert roofers. This means that we may need a small repairs costing £5,000 to £10,000 at one time; but not the huge cost of a whole new roof.

If one roofer says that the roof is in a bad state  then one can be cynical; but if 2 or 3 roofers say this the one needs to take this problem seriously. In every case in the past 20 years the second roofer has agreed with the first roofer so they were not lying to me !

Always get written estimates from 2 or 3 Roofers from My Builder.com or Check -a- trade or other approved Trade Association  ; not just one opinion or estimate. Ask your friends for phone numbers of good Roofers and Builders that they recommend. A proper written estimate should include the Company Name  and Address on the estimate. A Whats App. Message is not good enough. Check their written supportive References .You need a proper written and signed receipt for the money paid. Keep the records for 50 years. If you are unhappy with the work done you may need to threaten and report the Company to the local Council Trading Standards Department online.

In my experience General Builders will do good work but they are not excellent. They often give a 5 year guarantee but not a 15 year guarantee for roofing work.  A roofing expert will advice better quality red concrete roof tiles that have a greater tile overlap;   so that water will not leak through. They have greater skills and expertise and recommend even thicker roofing felt overlay for flat roofs, but this costs more money and give  a 15 year guarantee.

You can also pay a Builder to paint the roof tiles with ALGO-CLEAR fungicide paint to kill moss on the roof tiles; every 7 years. The moss infiltrates the tiles and cracks them. A Builder is cheaper that a Roofer but get 2 or 3 estimates.