Roof Repairs in Liverpool and Fairfield

Where the water is really getting in

A stain on the ceiling is almost never directly under the hole. Water enters at one point, runs along a batten or a sarking fold, and drops somewhere else entirely. So the first job is not patching. It is finding the actual entry point.

In Liverpool and Fairfield the entry point is usually one of a short list:

• The flashing at an added roof. Patio, carport, pergola, rear extension or granny flat. The new roof was flashed into the old tiles and the flashing is too short, badly dressed or has lifted away from the brickwork.
• A valley that has rusted or silted up. Old galvanised valley trays rust through at the bottom end. Leaf litter builds up, water backs up past the tile edge and into the roof.
• Failed ridge and hip pointing. The mortar cracks, the caps loosen, and wind-driven rain goes straight under them.
• Broken or slipped tiles. Often caused by someone walking the roof to install an aerial, air conditioning or solar.
• Chimney and wall flashings. Where the roof meets a brick wall or chimney, the flashing has to be cut into the mortar joint. If it was only sealed on with silicone, it has a short life in this heat.
• Box gutters and gutter joins behind parapets and between additions.

Call (02) 4601 3500 if your ceiling is wet now. We can usually get a cover over the area the same day and come back to do the repair properly.

How we find the fault

We start inside. Where is the stain, how big is it, is it growing, and which way does the roof run above it? That tells us where to look first.

Then on the roof. We lift tiles around the suspect area and look at the sarking, the battens and the timber. Wet timber and water tracks point back to the entry. We check every junction, every flashing and both ends of every valley.

Where a roof is steep, brittle or two storeys, we use a drone to photograph it rather than walking across tiles that will break under foot. You get the photos either way, so you can see the fault for yourself instead of taking our word for it.

What the repair involves

It depends on the fault, but the common ones run like this.

Flashing at an added roof. Strip back the old flashing and any silicone. Cut a proper chase into the mortar joint where the roof meets brickwork, or fit a new apron flashing under the tile course where it meets a tiled roof. Dress the metal down onto the sheet, fix and seal. Water now runs over the top of the join instead of into it.

Valley replacement. Lift the tiles either side, remove the old tray, fit a new Colorbond valley with the correct fall and the right overlap, then re-cut and re-lay the tiles. Valley clips hold the tiles instead of mortar, which is what fails in the old method.

Ridge and hip repointing. Remove the loose pointing, re-bed any caps that have moved, then point with a flexible pointing compound. Flexible pointing moves with the roof instead of cracking the first hot summer, which matters a lot in this part of Sydney.

Broken tiles. Replaced with matching second-hand tiles, bedded in where needed.

Rusted or split gutters. Repaired or replaced in the section that has failed, with the brackets and falls corrected so water actually reaches the downpipe.

Repair, or is it time for something bigger?

A repair is the right answer when the roof is basically sound and one part has failed. That covers most of the work we do.

It stops being the right answer when:

• You have had three or four separate leaks in two years
• Tiles crumble or flake at the edges when handled
• There is no sarking and the battens are soft
• The pointing has failed along most of the ridge and hip lines, not one run
• Rust has gone through more than one valley

At that point the money is better spent on a roof restoration if the tiles themselves are still good, or a roof replacement if they are not. We will say which, and we will say it before you spend money on a patch that buys you a year.

What it costs

We do not publish a single price, because the same leak costs different amounts on different houses. What moves it:

• Roof size and pitch — steeper roofs need more safety equipment and take longer
• Material — terracotta, concrete tile and metal each behave differently
• Access — single or double storey, side path width, power lines, where a scaffold or platform has to go
• How far the damage has spread — timber, insulation and ceiling repairs sit behind some leaks
• Whether there is asbestos cement sheeting on an older patio or garage roof, which has to be handled under the SafeWork NSW rules

You get a written, itemised quote after the inspection. Both are free and there is no obligation.

Booked in across the area

We repair roofs from Liverpool and Casula through the Green Valley estate suburbs to Fairfield, Cabramatta and Smithfield. The full list is on the service areas page.

Call (02) 4601 3500 or send us the details and we will book an inspection.