If your roof is showing signs of serious trouble, Newmarket Roofers can assess whether a full re-roof is the right call and handle the whole job from strip-off to ridge.
Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
Most roofs don't fail overnight. The warning signs build up over months or years, and by the time water appears on a bedroom ceiling, the problem has usually been developing for a while. Knowing what to look for early - and understanding what actually causes the damage - saves you money and protects the structure of your home.
A new roof is a significant piece of work, and it isn't always the first recommendation. But there are situations where re-roofing is the more honest and cost-effective answer than patching a roof that is close to the end of its life.
A handful of slipped or broken tiles is a repair job. What points towards a full re-roof is a pattern - tiles slipping repeatedly across several areas, mortar that keeps cracking back around the ridge and hips, or an underlay that is visibly degraded whenever a tile is lifted. If a roof has been patched more than two or three times in the last decade and the problems keep returning, the material itself has usually reached the end of its useful life.
Inside the loft, look for daylight coming through the roof deck, staining on the rafters or sarking boards, or felt that has become brittle and is sagging between the timbers. Felt that breaks apart when touched has lost its weatherproofing entirely. No amount of new tiles will fix a failed underlay beneath them.
On the outside, a roof that looks uneven or wavy when viewed from the ground could point to rafter movement or decayed battens. The battens - the horizontal timber strips the tiles hang from - rot from the underside when moisture gets trapped. When battens fail, tiles don't sit flat and rain can drive in along the laps between them. Replacing battens is part of a full re-roof; they cannot be replaced without removing the tiles first.
Moss and lichen growth on their own are not an emergency, but they hold moisture against the tile surface and accelerate freeze-thaw damage in cold winters. Heavy moss on an older concrete tile roof is often a sign that the tile surface itself is beginning to break down.
The most common cause of a roof reaching the end of its life is simply age combined with material choice. Concrete tiles, which were fitted on a very large number of homes from the 1960s onwards, have a typical lifespan of around 50 to 60 years - some last longer, some less, depending on exposure and maintenance. As they age, the surface coating wears away, the tile becomes porous and frost damage accelerates. At that point the tile itself is the problem, not just the pointing or the flashings.
Natural slate lasts considerably longer when it is sound and correctly fixed - good quality Welsh slate can last well over a century. The failure point with slate roofs is usually the fixing nails, which corrode and let the slates slip, or the underlay beneath them. A roof with good slate but failed fixings is worth stripping and relaying on new battens with new underlay rather than replacing the material altogether.
Clay tiles sit between the two in longevity. They don't degrade in the same way concrete does, but they are more brittle and can crack under impact or heavy frost. Old clay roofs sometimes fail because the nibs - the small lugs that hook over the batten - break off, causing widespread slippage.
Leadwork and flashings are a separate issue but directly connected. A flashing that has lifted or cracked at a chimney stack or a roof-to-wall junction lets water into the structure even when the tiles above it are perfectly sound. Failed flashings cause a high proportion of internal water damage, and they are often misdiagnosed as a tile problem. When we're called to a property with persistent leaks, the flashing is one of the first things to check.
Poor original workmanship is another cause that shows up years later. Inadequate lap on the tiles, battens fixed at the wrong gauge, or underlay draped without proper drip edges at the eaves - these faults may not cause problems in the first few years but will shorten the roof's life and make leaks more likely as the structure settles and the material ages.
A re-roof starts with removing everything - tiles or slates, battens and old underlay - back to the bare rafters. That lets us inspect the timber structure properly. Any rafters or boards showing signs of rot or insect damage are repaired or replaced at this stage, before anything goes back on top.
New underlay goes on first. Modern breathable membranes are the current standard; they allow moisture vapour to escape from the loft while keeping wind-driven rain out, which reduces the risk of condensation buildup in the roof space. New treated timber battens are fixed at the correct gauge for the tile or slate being used. Getting the batten gauge right is essential - it determines the headlap of each course and controls how effectively the roof sheds water.
Tiles or slates are then fixed from eaves to ridge. Ridge tiles and hip tiles are bedded and pointed, and all leadwork at chimneys, valleys and abutments is dressed and sealed. A well-finished re-roof should look clean and consistent from the ground, with straight courses and neat detailing at every junction.
If your existing roof uses concrete tiles and they've reached the end of their life, you have a genuine choice about what goes back on. Concrete tiles remain the most cost-effective option - current re-roofing costs using concrete tiles typically fall in the region of £5,000 to £10,000 for an average semi-detached property, depending on roof size and complexity, with larger or more complex roofs running higher. Clay tiles cost more but offer better longevity and a different appearance. Slate - whether natural or good quality fibre cement - costs more again but suits older or period properties and tends to be thinner and lighter on the roof structure.
Matching existing materials on a partial re-roof, or on a house in a conservation-sensitive area, sometimes limits the choice. In those cases we can advise on what is likely to be acceptable and source appropriate materials.
Before agreeing to a re-roof, it is worth asking any contractor these questions directly:
Any roofer confident in their work will answer these without hesitation. Be cautious of quotes that are vague about materials or process - the cheapest price sometimes means corners cut on underlay quality, batten fixing or lead specification.
A new roof on a self-build or a single-storey extension follows the same principles as a re-roof but without the strip-off stage. The structural work - wall plates, rafters, ridge board - is usually carried out by the builder, and we take over once the structure is ready to receive the weatherproofing. Co-ordinating the handover point between building and roofing is important; the structure should be square and level before roofing begins.
For extensions, matching the tile or slate to the existing house roof is usually the goal. This is straightforward with current production tiles but can take more sourcing effort if the main roof uses a discontinued profile or an older clay pantile.
An accurate quote for a new roof requires someone to actually look at the roof - its size, pitch, complexity, the number of hips and valleys, the condition of any existing timber, and what access will be needed. A figure given over the phone without a site visit is a guess. We visit the property, measure up and provide a written breakdown so you can see exactly what is included.
We cover Chippenham and the surrounding villages, as well as Newmarket, Ely, Bury St Edmunds, Haverhill, and nearby towns. Call us to arrange a roof survey at a time that suits you.
Newmarket Roofers is based in Newmarket, Suffolk, and we work across the local area including Chippenham, Ely, Bury St Edmunds, Haverhill, and the villages in between. To get a straight answer about whether your roof needs replacing or can be repaired, call us and we'll arrange a visit to take a proper look.
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Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
