Once we have taken a look at your roof we can provide a detailed quotation for the work needed. We will give you :
An honest assessment of the state of your roof
The options for repair or a new roof covering
Details of any possible additional work that we can see, such as replacement timbers
We will also give you a detailed breakdown of the work and materials involved. This is designed to show you that we will cover everything, there will be no nasty surprises and extra costs half way through the job. You can also see exactly what you are getting for your money.
Costs and Payment
For many people, one of the most daunting things about
considering roof work is the potential cost.
The first thing to bear in mind is that it may not cost as much as you think. We may be able to put a few simple repairs in place that will fix the problem. If you do need a new roof, you may be able to delay the work, with the running repairs in place, until you have sorted out finances.
To help you spread the cost, we can often replace or repair roof elevations one at a time. We can identify the sections in most need of work, fix those and come back later to finish the rest of the job.
If your roof is leaking it will almost certainly cost you
more in the long run if you don't sort out the problem.
Our local authority - Penwith District Council - do not
offer grants anymore towards roof replacement, but they will
arrange an interest free loan through them, if you are over
60, disabled or on income support and have enough equity in your
property. The loan is paid back when you either move
house or move on (in the more final sense!)
There is also a very good organisation called
West Cornwall Care & Repair (WCCR) who are a 'not for
profit' organisation that is one of a nationwide network of
home improvement agencies. They receive funding from
the government via Supporting People and from Social
Services and Local Authorities. They can assist people
over the age of 60 OR disabled people of any age.
They can help to find funding through charities if possible
- if a member of the family has ever been in the services
for example they may be eligible for help from The Royal
British Legion. WCCR can obtain quotes within
their own network of approved tradesmen. They can
oversee the work, make sure it is carried out correctly, on
time and for a reasonable cost. The team at Care &
Repair are very friendly and have no gain to make from you
(not for profit), which is a nice commodity and you know
they have your best interests at heart . For more
information you can contact
Colin Wilson at
West Cornwall Care and Repair.
Whatever happens, we will agree all costs and payment terms with you before starting work.
We will never ask for any payment up-front to cover cost of materials,
nobody should ever need to do that, though depending on the size
of the project we may request a staged payment half-way through, with the balance due on completion.
You would always pay less than the value of the work already
carried out for your own peace of mind.
Unlike some companies, we do not provide finance as we feel that
this is best left to specialists. The best way to finance this
sort of work is often through your mortgage provider. They are
usually happy to lend for this sort of work, because you are
adding value to your property and protecting your investment -
your home.
You may be able to extend your mortgage and borrow against the
equity in your property. You will probably find that this is far
cheaper than taking out a separate loan. Be wary of companies
that offer credit, they will usually be farming out the credit
agreement to a third party and at a premium interest rate.
The
detailed quotation that you get from us will help you to show
exactly what you need the money for and what the cost will be.
Roofing Terms
We deliberately provide you with a detailed quote so that you can see exactly what you are getting. Inevitably we have to use some technical terms to describe the work and materials, although some items are self-explanatory.
Below is an explanation to help you understand your quote
better.
Scaffold - We will arrange all
scaffolding. Extensive work should never be
done with just ladders (except in an emergency), as
this would contravene health and safety regulations.
Existing roof covering - This will
be stripped
and removed from your property.
Roofing felt - this as a layer that sits underneath
the slates or tiles to provide additional protection. It
keeps out wind-driven rain/snow/dust and acts as a
temporary barrier in the event of any broken tiles
or slates letting water through the main covering.
Breathable or non breathable felt can be used, on new
builds this is usually specified by the architect.
We only use felt certified to British Standard.
Ventilation -
With the advent of
roofing felts it was noticed around the 1980's that
houses were getting major problems with rot in the
timbers of the loft space caused by condensation from
every day living - Tumble dryers, chip pans, hair
dryers, etc caused a lot of condensation to rise to
the loft space where it couldn't escape. It
would hit the first cold surface - the underside of
the roofing felt - and turn back to water, soaking
into the timbers. The biggest culprit was the
habit of drying washing on radiators!
Ventilation is installed as a matter of course these
days.
Tanalised Roof Battens - imported wooden battens
pressure treated
to prevent damage from water, fungus or insects.
Verge - Where tiles or slates overhang a gable,
the underside is bedded in mortar and finished with slates or an inert board.
Code 3 Lead Soakers - this is a sheet of lead
placed between the slate and an abutment, such as a
chimney or wall, for weathering at junctions
Code 4 Lead Flashings - lead sheets cut into the
brickwork and then dressed over a surface below. Used
to deflect water from a joint between two adjacent
materials, such as chimney brickwork and tiles.
Code 5, 6, 7 or 8 lead
- Used as a
flat roofing material on
bays or behind chimneys etc. The bigger the area
you need to cover the thicker the lead you need to
use.
The
Lead Sheet Association (LSA) can give guidelines
about measurements, size of lead etc, or you can
contact us and we can advise you.
GRP Valley Liners - where two sloping roofs meet the valley is the line between.
This can be lined with a glass fibre material
(Glass Re-inforced Plastic) or lead to make it watertight.
GRP Bonding Gutter - this is used to make a clean
join between your roof and any neighbouring roofs.
Roof elevation
- one side of a roof
Hip detail
- Where one side of a roof
meets another. There are various ways to weather
a hip, please see below -
Mitred Hip -Slates are cut to the rake of the hip
and have hidden lead soakers at every course
Lead hip - Laid on top of a mop stick at the
hip junction.
Ridged hip
- The most
common and easiest way to weather a hip. Clay or
concrete ridge tiles laid on a mortar bed
Mortared hip - Old style way of weathering a
hip, okay for matching in with other old work
especially on listed buildings, but are prone to
cracking. If this detail is asked for it is best
to do this for aesthetics only, and do a mitred hip
with lead soakers as the primary water-seal.
A Bit About Slates -
(A more in depth view can be seen on the 'roof
coverings' page)
We only
use top quality materials. Our slates come direct from sources carefully checked and selected by us.
You can choose between natural and artificial slates.
Natural slate is slightly more expensive, but looks
better for longer and will last for up to 80 years.
We offer a multitude of continental slate or the
very popular pre-used scantle (Cornish) slate.
Artificial slate is somewhat cheaper, is just as
weather-proof and probably the best to cope with severe
storm conditions. These do not wear as well as natural
slate though and would be expected to last around
40 years plus.
