Cambridge Roofers carries out roof repairs across Saffron Walden and the surrounding villages, from a single broken tile to a failed flashing that has been leaking for years.
Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
A roof repair is not always a quick patch. The visible damage - a damp patch on a bedroom ceiling, a missing tile spotted from the garden - is rarely the full picture. Water travels before it drops, so the entry point and the damage point are often in different places. A proper repair starts with understanding what is actually wrong, not just what looks wrong from the ground.
This page takes you through the process of a roof repair from the first look to the final tidy-up, so you know what to expect at each stage and what questions to ask any roofer you speak to.
Before anyone goes onto your roof, a visual inspection from the ground tells us a great deal. Binoculars help. We are looking at the ridge tiles, the slope of the main planes, the condition of any chimney stacks, the flashings where the roof meets a wall or dormer, and whether any tiles are visibly cracked, slipped or missing.
We also look at the guttering and fascias, because blocked or damaged gutters are a common cause of water getting behind the eaves rather than into the downpipe. A leak in a top-floor room near the eaves is sometimes a gutter problem, not a tile problem.
At this stage we can often give you a realistic early view of what the repair is likely to involve. We do not speculate about additional work that cannot be seen - if we cannot confirm it from the ground, we say so before going up.
Working safely on a roof means setting up access properly. For most two-storey homes that means a ladder, roof ladder or crawl board, depending on the pitch and the location of the work. For work near a chimney, on a flat roof parapet or on a difficult valley, scaffolding is sometimes the right call. We will tell you at the outset if scaffolding is needed, because it affects the cost and the timing.
A roof ladder hooks over the ridge and lets us move across the slope without putting direct pressure on individual tiles. On older concrete or clay tiles this matters, because tiles that look intact can crack if walked on without care. We always use appropriate access for the roof type.
Once on the roof, the real assessment begins. What looks like a single missing tile from the ground is sometimes the result of a failed batten underneath - the tile was sitting on rotted timber and eventually worked loose. Replacing the tile without fixing the batten means it will slip again within a year or two.
Common problems found during a close-up inspection include:
We check the area around the reported problem carefully, and we also note any other areas that are close to failure and likely to cause a problem soon. We will point these out to you and you can decide whether to include them in this visit or leave them for another time. We do not push additional work - if a targeted fix will do the job, that is what we quote.
Once we have a clear picture of what needs doing, we explain it to you plainly. What is wrong, why it has happened, what we propose to do, and what materials we will use. If there is more than one option - for example, repointing the ridge versus re-bedding it with a flexible compound - we explain the difference and let you choose.
A common situation is a chimney that has several different problems at once: loose capping mortar, failed lead flashing at the base, and a cracked back gutter. Each one can cause a leak on its own, and if only one is fixed the others will cause problems again quickly. We explain this so you can make a decision based on the full picture, not just the symptom that prompted the call.
For most straightforward repairs - replacing a handful of tiles, repointing a ridge section, relaying a flashing - the work is agreed and done in a single visit. Larger jobs, or anything that needs scaffolding or materials ordered in, will need a return visit.
What happens during the repair depends entirely on what is being fixed. Here is what each common repair type actually involves:
Tiles are held in place by nibs that hook over the batten, and on lower courses or exposed positions they are also nailed. Removing a cracked tile means carefully lifting the tiles above it, releasing the nib and any nails, and sliding the damaged tile out. The replacement goes back in, re-nailed where needed, and the tiles above are re-seated.
Matching the tile matters. Clay plain tiles, concrete interlocking tiles, handmade clay pantiles and slate all have different profiles and sizes. A mis-matched tile lets in water at the joints. If an exact match is not available new, we look at reclaimed sources. We will tell you if a perfect match cannot be found.
Ridge tiles sit along the apex of the roof and are traditionally bedded and pointed in mortar. Over time the mortar cracks, shrinks and falls away, leaving the tiles loose. Loose ridge tiles rattle in wind and eventually fall - a safety risk as well as a leak risk.
Repointing means raking out the old mortar, cleaning the bedding surface, and re-pointing with a mix designed to flex slightly rather than go hard and crack again quickly. On some roofs we use a dry-fix system with mechanical clips and a ventilated ridge - this removes mortar from the equation entirely and the ridge does not need repointing again.
Lead is the standard material for flashings around chimneys, dormers and abutment walls. A well-dressed lead flashing, cut into the mortar joint (stepped or cover flashing) and lapped correctly, should last for many decades. Problems arise when the lead was poorly fitted originally, when the mortar joint it sits in has opened up, or when a previous repairer used mastic or tape as a shortcut.
Repairing lead flashing properly means removing the failed section, cleaning the chase or mortar joint, cutting and dressing new lead to the correct profile, and sealing the chase with an appropriate pointing mortar. Mastic applied over old lead is not a repair - it fails within a few years and usually makes the underlying problem harder to fix.
Once the external repair is done, we check it from above before coming down. If there is any doubt - for example, if a valley or an eaves detail was disturbed during the work - we check the loft space too, looking for daylight, damp felt or wet timbers. We also check that any tiles disturbed to gain access have been re-seated correctly.
Wet timbers in a roof space are worth noting even if they are not the cause of the current leak. If we see active rot or evidence of long-standing saturation we will mention it, because it may affect future repairs or mean a larger job is coming.
We remove old tiles, broken mortar, packaging and any other debris. If access equipment has been on your garden or drive we tidy that area too. Broken ridge tiles or old lead that has been removed can be heavy - we bring bags and do not leave material for you to deal with.
Repair costs vary widely depending on what is being fixed, how easy it is to access, and whether scaffolding is needed. As a general guide: replacing one to three slipped or broken tiles typically costs in the region of £150 to £300. Repointing a section of ridge might be £200 to £450 depending on length. A full lead flashing replacement at a chimney base can run from £350 to £700 or more if the stack has multiple problem areas. These figures assume ladder or roof-ladder access - scaffolding adds to the cost.
The single biggest variable is access. A simple tile replacement on a bungalow with easy ladder access costs considerably less than the same tile on a three-storey house where a full scaffold is required. We are straightforward about this at the outset.
We carry out roof repairs in Saffron Walden and in the surrounding villages. We also work regularly into Cambridge and the villages around it, including Histon, Impington, Girton, Trumpington, Fen Ditton and further out towards Royston, Comberton and Cambourne.
If you are not sure whether we cover your area, call us and ask - the answer is almost always yes.
A few questions worth asking before you agree to any roof repair:
A roofer who is not willing to answer these questions clearly is worth walking away from. Roof repairs are not complicated work, but they do need to be done correctly - a poor repair can make the underlying problem worse and mean more expense down the line.
A full roof replacement costs several thousand pounds. The vast majority of leaking roofs do not need one. Even an older roof with multiple areas of wear can usually be brought back to a sound, weathertight condition with targeted repairs at a fraction of the cost of stripping and re-tiling. We are honest about this: if a full replacement is genuinely needed we will say so and explain why, but we do not recommend it unless it is the right answer for the roof in front of us.
If you have noticed a damp patch, missing tiles, or anything on your roof that looks wrong, it is worth having a roofer take a proper look sooner rather than later. We will take a proper look, explain what we find, and give you a clear quote for the repair. No pressure, no unnecessary recommendations.
No obligation · We'll call you to arrange a free visit
Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
