Lead work and roof junctions.
Wherever the roof meets something else, there is lead. At the chimney, along the wall, around a roof window. That is where leaks most often start.
Four simple steps
Request a quoteMeasuring and inspecting
I come out, measure your roof and look at exactly what it needs.
A keen quote
You get a clear quote with no obligation. No surprises afterwards.
We build your roof
Once you agree, we schedule the work for a time that suits you.
Handed over watertight
The roof is handed over fully watertight, with a 10-year guarantee.
Damp patch beside the chimney?
Nine times out of ten that is the lead work rather than the roof surface. Give me a call and I will look at it before the brickwork soaks up any more.
What this work includes
- Lead flashing at chimney and wall
- Junction between extension and house
- Lead around roof windows and skylights
- Valley gutters and corner junctions
- Lead substitute where that is wiser
- Repairing cracked or slipped lead
Lead work, and what you notice of it
Lead work
Lead flashing cracks, slips out of its joint or gets blown away. Putting it right is precision work: the lead has to sit deep enough into the joint, run far enough over the roofing, and be able to move without tearing. I work with sheet lead and, where it suits better, with a lead substitute.
The signs
A damp patch on the wall beside the chimney, or water exactly where an extension meets the house. Nine times out of ten that is the lead work and not the roof surface itself.
Why lead tears
Lead expands in the sun and contracts at night, every single day. If a flashing is fitted too tightly or run too long in one piece, that movement has to go somewhere and the material tears exactly where it was meant to be watertight. So I work in limited lengths, with overlaps, and make sure each piece can move. Where sheet lead becomes too heavy or works too much, I use a lead substitute. Which of the two it will be, I see on site.
What people ask about this
Because the transition from roof to wall is the weakest point. The roof surface itself is one continuous whole; at a junction two materials meet that both move.
Yes. A hairline crack or a flashing that has slipped out of the joint is invisible from below. That is why I always look close up rather than from the ground.
In the right place, yes. It is lighter and moves more easily, which is an advantage on long junctions. At a chimney I usually just use sheet lead.
What kind of roof is it?
The most common place. The lead has to go deep enough into the joint and far enough over the roofing.
Where a flat roof meets rising brickwork. Here the lead has to be able to move without tearing.
The junction with the rebate. Often the cause of water running in along the edge.
Two parts of a building that both move. That is exactly where lead fitted too tightly tears.
Where two surfaces meet and all the water has to pass.
Where sheet lead is too heavy or moves too much I use a substitute, which is lighter and gives with the movement.
Request a quote for lead work, no obligation.
Fill in the form or give me a call. I come out, measure it up and tell you what is needed. A 10-year guarantee on watertightness, and you are tied to nothing.
Roof leaks
Tracing the leak is part of the job. Urgent work is scheduled as soon as possible.
Zinc work
Zinc gutters, rainwater downpipes and wall copings, new or repaired.
Skylights and roof windows
Fitting and replacing, with an upstand that keeps the water out.