Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Original poster

New roof

15 replies

peetieswie · 16/03/2023 15:14

We've had someone round to fix the roof as we have been having guttering issues and some slates coming off. The roofer (who seems genuine and has good reviews on one of those sites) has said the slates are crumbling and the batons are wrecked and we need a whole new roof. He's recommended fibre cement tiles as they're a similar weight to slate. Our house is a 1905 detached and I don't think much has been done to the roof since it was built. They're quoting about £15,000 plus scaffolding cost. We're a bit gutted they can't save the slate as online everyone seems to suggest they last forever but he did show us that a lot were crumbling. Does this seem reasonable for a new roof and something we should go ahead with?

OP posts:
SupermarketMum · 16/03/2023 15:24

We found a proper scientific article showing that actually natural slate does start losing its durability after decades, and that whilst new man made slate won’t last as many years, if you’re not intending on being there for another 50 years you’re better off with man made slate cost-wise

SupermarketMum · 16/03/2023 15:26

Just to clarify, so it’s not correct to say that new man made slate won’t be as good as your old crumbly natural slate. But obviously it won’t be as good as new Welsh or Spanish slate

instantpotnoodle · 16/03/2023 15:35

Cement tiles can alter the weight of the roof and impact on roof joists etc. it’s also butt ugly. I’d get a quote to replace slate with slate.

instantpotnoodle · 16/03/2023 15:36

Sorry just seen what your roofer said re:weight. I’d get a second quote from a roofer and one for slate too.

Daftasabroom · 16/03/2023 15:37

Go on to ebay and look for reclaimed slates. There are slates roofs 100s of years old. Reclaimed slates go to £1 to £3 each.

DidyouNO · 16/03/2023 15:48

While he may be right always, always get three opinions and quotes. our house is 1890, Scottish slate roofed and we're constantly having repairs. I imagine in the next two years of so it'll be a whole new roof. Good luck!

OatcakeCravings · 16/03/2023 15:52

We have a bog standard 1970's 3 bed semi and got a new roof with man made tiles 6 months ago - 9K all in. So 15K for an old property that is detached....slightly on the high side as you have to pay scaffolding on top but not massively so?

CellophaneFlower · 16/03/2023 15:59

You definitely need to get more quotes. Roofers are up there with the most untrustworthy tradesmen (I know there are honest ones!). I recently had about 6 quotes and only chose ones with loads of good reviews, but their quotes varied massively. 1 said I needed a complete new flat roof, the other 4 just said it just needed repairing and new guttering. I went with the cheapest quote of those 4, which was almost half the most expensive. Happy with the work and all leaks have ceased.

The men that did it were quite old and had been doing it for decades. The younger ones were the most expensive quotes but had the gift of the gab.

Newusername21 · 16/03/2023 16:10

I dont know anything about slate - but I've just recently had my 3 bed semi - new roof done - full insulation - scaffolding for £9k... so 15 sounds a bit steep to me unless your house is huge. I've got a fairly large roof as it's like a chalet style bungalow.
Agree with others you need to try and get another quote or two.

Original poster
peetieswie · 16/03/2023 16:59

Thanks for responses so far. I think we'll get some more quotes just to check but these guys are pretty old and experienced which does suggest they know what they're talking about. Did those who said they got new roofs include replacing wood as well? We'd need wooden batons replacing too. It's a three storey house and it's long and thin so quite a big roof really. They said if we want slate that would be more like £20,000. A lot of the victorian houses near us seem to have the fibre cement they're talking about us having.

OP posts:
unsync · 16/03/2023 17:24

If they are stripping the roof & replacing battens, think about renewing the waterproof membrane and vapour barrier at the same time.

Newusername21 · 17/03/2023 08:48

@peetieswie for mine - no I didn't have to replace any of the wood or main structure of the roof at all. -So agree that would of been more expensive. If any of the batons or particularly structural supports need replacing that would bump up the cost a fair bit due to manual labour involved.

Oddbutnotodd · 17/03/2023 08:55

For the extra £5k I would use slate. Get some more quotes as well.

Drywhitefruitycidergin · 17/03/2023 08:56

I just had mine done new waterproof membrane thing, new wooden batons & replacement tiles for anything damaged/cracked (the ridge bit at the top between the 2 sideswas all cracked and mossy - so replaced in full)
It was £9k. Fairly sure it could have been less. Couldn't get anyone else round to quote & had water coming in so went with it.

VeryLowTum · 17/03/2023 09:05

From this thread it seems the only reasonable price is £9kb exactly 😂

New posts on this thread. Refresh page