Roof advice for Llanelli homes
Checking your roof after a gale, without leaving the ground
Llanelli faces the estuary and the weather that comes up it. Gales are most frequent in winter, and autumn is often the stormiest season of the British year. After a rough night it is worth ten minutes to see how the roof came through.
You do not need a ladder, and you should not use one. Everything below can be done from the pavement, the garden and inside the house.
Wait for daylight and calm
Do not go out to look while it is still blowing. Slates travel a long way in a strong gust. Wait until the wind has dropped and it is light.
Take your phone. Its camera zoom is the best tool you have, and the photos are useful later for a roofer or an insurer.
Outside: five places to look
- Down at ground level. Walk round the house and the yard. Bits of slate, tile, mortar or lead on the ground came from somewhere. Check the back lane and next door's side too.
- The ridge. Stand across the road and look along the top of the roof. Every ridge tile should sit in a straight, even line. A gap or one sitting askew means it has lifted.
- The slopes. Look for dark rectangles where a slate is missing, and for slates that have slid down out of line. Check the side that faces the wind hardest first. In this town that is usually the south-west.
- The chimney stack. Is the pot still there and upright? Is the aerial still fixed? Is there fresh mortar or brick on the slates below the stack?
- The edges. Check the gable ends for missing mortar and loose end tiles. Look at the gutters for sections hanging down or pulled away from the wall.
If you live in a terrace, look at the roofs either side as well. Damage next door near the party wall can let water into your house.
Inside: the loft and the ceilings
If you have a loft hatch and a safe way up, take a torch. Switch it off for a moment once you are in. Daylight showing through the roof marks a gap. A little light at the very edges by the eaves is normal on an older roof.
Switch the torch back on and look at the underside of the felt and the timbers. Fresh damp shows as dark patches or shining drops. Feel the insulation under any spot that looks suspect.
Then go round the upstairs rooms. Look at each ceiling, the tops of the walls and the chimney breast. New stains are often faint and yellow at first. Take a photo so you can tell in a week if it has grown.
What you found, and what to do
Water coming in, or something loose that could fall
That is urgent. Keep people away from the spot, catch the water and ask for an emergency roofer in Llanelli with the urgent switch turned on.
Missing or slipped slates, but dry indoors
Not an emergency tonight, but do not leave it. The felt under a gap is the only thing keeping rain out, and old felt does not hold for long. Ask about roof repairs this week.
Nothing obvious
Good. Look again after the next heavy rain, because some storm damage only shows when water finds it. If the roof is old and you have not had it checked in years, a survey is worth thinking about. Checkatrade's roof inspection guide gives an average of about £260 for an inspection and £300 to £500 for a fuller survey.
Storm damage and insurance
Home insurance can cover roof damage caused by an insured event such as a storm. It will not usually pay for a roof that has failed through age or lack of upkeep. Checkatrade's roof replacement guide gives the same advice: take photos, make temporary repairs where it is safe, and contact your insurer before arranging lasting work.
Write down the date and rough time of the storm. Keep any broken pieces you can pick up safely. When a roofer has looked, ask for a short dated note of what was found and what caused it.
Common questions
A slate came off but nothing is leaking. Can it wait until spring?
It is a risk. The felt beneath may keep rain out for a while, but felt on an old roof is brittle and winter is when the heaviest rain and strongest winds come. One missing slate also lets the wind get under its neighbours. A single slate is one of the cheapest roofing jobs there is, so have it done.
Should I check the roof even if the storm did not seem that bad?
A quick look costs nothing. Roofs with old fixings can lose slates in winds that leave newer roofs untouched. Make a habit of looking up after any night when the bins have blown over.
The second storm does the real damage
A roof that has lost a slate or a ridge tile has a way in for the wind. The next gale works at that edge and takes more. Damage found and fixed between storms is small. Damage found after two or three is not.
Tell us what you spotted and where in Llanelli you are. If it is urgent, say so on the form.