Choosing The Right Roof For A Property.

Choosing the right roof for your property in not as simple as selecting a new kitchen or bathroom.
You can’t just think “I like these tiles or slates”, it is not that straight forward.

Do you need to replace your existing roof?

For example, a slate roof will have to have a slate roof reinstalled due to weight reasons. An original slate roof is not built for heavy concrete or clay tiles. Slate is a much lighter product, however, existing roofs can be reinforced to take the extra weight but it does tend to make the job a lot more costly. Tiled roofs can go to a slate roof but, but you do have to be careful that it still matches with other houses in the local area. In a conservation area or on listed buildings this will very rarely be allowed. Tiled roofs do come with a lot more variety of shapes, colours, and sizes than their slate counterparts.

Did you know that the angle of a roof is important?

The pitch or angle of the roof also dictates which type of slate or tile you can have installed. The lowest pitch any tile can go down to is 12.5 degrees and the lowest slate is 15 degrees. The low pitch slates are hooked on rather than nailed in most cases. We see it all too often when the wrong tile or slate has been used on a property and ends up having to be replaced again.

Think about the cost.

The cost is a huge factor and needs consideration when choosing the right roof. Prices vary quite wildly from a Spanish slate costing around £1.20 a slate to a welsh slate that can cost up to £5.00 per slate. A good roofing contractor will always advise on the best product for your property needs.

New housing sites are designed by professionals

The design of a new build is normally set by an architect. An architect will look at a number of things when choosing the roofs for individual projects.  There are many things that the architect will take into consideration:- The location of the project is thought through thoroughly before deciding on a roofing style and product. Flat roofs that will have rain intensity test so they know the amount of rain falling in a particular area. An architect will also design the new build development to an agreed budget which will influence the design. An architect will also try to make the roof aesthetically pleasing so you may find a selection of roof types on a new build development to make the site more attractive.

Bespoke houses are exciting to work with.

Bespoke and unique houses that are being built directly for the client are fun projects, An architect will work closely with the client to design the property to the clients needs. Usually, the client will be fully involved in the design of the roof and the architect then draws up plans and sends them to a contractor like ourselves.

An experienced contractor will then review the drawings and sometimes offer input to change tiles, slates, or flat roofs to a different product that has the same look, feel, and warranty but is more cost-effective. It’s always important for the architect to liaise with a roofing contractor on these projects to help them run smoothly. When a bespoke building is being built from the ground up and the client sees the roof complete they begin to see their vision nearing completion. It's great for us to witness this transformation as it’s what the client imagined at the beginning of the project.

Heritage, Conservation and listed buildings

Heritage, conservation and listed buildings have very strict procedures, and in most cases, it’s on a like for like basis. If you can not find a match of a product it’s a case of salvaging and reusing what you can on the property and only a planning officer can authorize a product to be used on these types of buildings. As you can imagine, these types of buildings can be challenging for a roofing contractor. Historic buildings of importance such as churches, cathedrals, and schools have slates and plain tiles which tend to be the most common types of roofs. You may not be aware, but many housing estates are also often protected if they are in a conservation area. While the “rules” are less strict in these areas it still has to be a very similar product that is used on the project otherwise.

In conclusion

As you can see there are lots of factors that come into play when choosing the right roof for your property. It is extremely important to use an experienced roofing contractor when undertaking any works. Whether that be on a domestic, commercial, new build site or a listed building, always check out previous works, and reviews where possible so that you can be sure you are getting the right roof for your property.