1930's re roofed

I am looking at buying a 1930's 3 bed semi in north London. The survey has said roof is at end of life and the house is wet and damp. On inspection inside the loft there is no plastic membrane between the timber and tiles. You can just see the back of tiles and holes.

I am thinking all tiles need to come off, plastic down and then re tiled with same or similar tiles (in a conservation area so tiles have to be matched). The roof is a steep pitch with flat roofs over back two bedrooms.

Please can anyone give me advise on what I should be looking to pay roughly for this kind of job and in addition if this is the right way to go or patch up? Thanks - pics attached in album //www.diynot.com/network/James204/albums/ View media item 75542 View media item 75543 View media item 75544 View media item 75555 View media item 75556

Plenty of roofs out there without an underfelt/membrane.

The roof may be patched up to last another couple of years but only a proper inspection can decide that.

8k would get you a new roof that size with plain tiles in my area...dont know about london though.

probably double = 16k in the smoke what`s the house cost ? 450k+

And when interest rates go up to around 10% - will you be able to afford it?

joe-90 said:

And when interest rates go up to around 10% - will you be able to afford it?

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Looking at a fixed mortgage and trying to work out if I can afford it or if a step too far, hence seeking advice

Agree with Nige F re: approx 8K. I have a very similar house to the one you are thinking of buying and had the whole of my roof done plus small flat roof and I live in West London a couple of years ago for 6K. So glad I did as when I used to put things in the loft they would get dusty and dirty without the membrane and now that has all gone. Plus took opportunity to put lots of loft insulation in.

I would just point out that buyers surveys like to cover themselves.

Therefore if a roof is of a certain age they commonly say "roof at end of its life" regardless.

A clay tiled roof such as this has an expected life span of 80-100 years if not more however it is very dependant on exposure and how well it has been maintained in the past.

So the roof may be at the end of its "expected life" but still may be in very good condition and quite serviceable for another 20 years....however the surveyor will still cover themselves as it is an "old roof".

In addition, some surveys (as you noted yourself) see a roof without a membrane and again seem to think that this means a re-roof is required. This is a very common roof design for houses in the 30's and prior....there is nothing wrong with it at all. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise....

What you need to do, if you purchase the house, is get an independent inspection un-related to any "buyers survey". Or get a roofer who knows his stuff and you trust (in fact get more than one) to do an inspection and even photo the problem areas to show you.

Unless you have leaks and there are a lot of tiles blowing out/shaleing then there may not be an issue.....although in the pictures it looks as if there is quite a bit of moss up there...which is not good for tiles of this age..

I have a very similar property with the same roof construction. I have been looking into all the options for a while now...

get the tiles cleaned.
remove the moss.

every old roof has patchyness.

But becareful how they are cleaned!!!!!!

DO NOT! I repeat DO NOT Jet Wash them. It will destroy them in seconds.

Just read about how many times that mistake has been made on here....

I am not knowlegable about the best way of cleaning such a large area. You may want to get some mild moss killing solution and spray it on the roof first.

You also should be careful about the detergent you use. Nothing too acidic, again depending on concentration, this could damage already aged/worn tiles....

I search for somthing specific for this myself....this seemd to be the best thing I could find, but I have not tried it yet...was planning to buy some...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/FilaCleaner...50776&sr=8-1&keywords=ph+neutral+tile+cleaner

dishman said:

In addition, some surveys (as you noted yourself) see a roof without a membrane and again seem to think that this means a re-roof is required. This is a very common roof design for houses in the 30's and prior....there is nothing wrong with it at all. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise....

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Quite true; a draughty roof is a healthy roof.