Conservatory roof sagging

Amy87 · 4 Apr 2021

Hi all,
We rent a house out and they contacted us to say the conservatory roof is leaking, they’ve had someone out to look and they said it’s a big job as it’s basically falling in. Never noticed any issues previously. Not sure how this could happen, wondering if someone’s climbed on there (toys on the roof in one picture) and if it’s possible to fix.

thanks in advance.

Simon Vogt · 4 Apr 2021

I’m not an expert but that looks a bit of an issue. Doesn’t look like it would happen on its own

ronniecabers · 4 Apr 2021

Bit of a loss as to what has happened there. If that's a standard pvc conservatory with a polycarbonate roof , then they will be aluminium roof rafters , which should be bolted together, forming the valley. A picture from inside might show the issue better.
An Aluminium rafter system should take about 2 ton in weight, minimum ( as they are designed to take the weight of snow.). I have been up on plenty over the years and none have ever done that.
My suggestion would be to find a local upvc company to come and take a look. I just can't see how that has happened!

Amy87 · 4 Apr 2021

We bought the house 10 years ago with the conservatory already on, I think I have the plan somewhere in with the house deeds. But we’ve never had any issues in that time and I can’t see how its suddenly dropped, it was the toy on the roof that made me think.... it’s been thrown a fair distance up for a 3yr old, she should take up shot put. I’ve attached some internal photos, not sure what I’m looking for.

big-all · 4 Apr 2021

as that plastic trim just looks like its loosely in there not doing much can you easily remove it or take picture from the side at an angle to see what it covering ??

ronniecabers · 4 Apr 2021

Right,I may be wrong here, but looking at those pictures, it looks like the trim on the valley has come off , and then the polycarbonate sheet has moved, creating the leak. If I am right then it is very much fixable by lifting the roof bar capping piece on the other side of the polycarbonate, reseating the polycarbonate sheet, then , with a rubber headed hammer , knock the capping piece for the roof bar back on, and also the capping piece in the valley.
The main thing to try is to push up on each roof bar ( from inside ) , if they move there is a much bigger problem , if they don't then the structure itself should be sound.

I still suggest you get a upvc company in to look, if you can one that does repair work as well as new fit, then they shouldn't try and sell you a new roof ( as I'm not sure you need one)

crank39 · 4 Apr 2021

Common problem, the valley doesn't have anti slips because of the angle the ends of the rafters are cut, this allows the polycarb sheets to slip down, the sheet end closers usually fall off too allowing dirt up into the flutes but thats just cosmetic, its just a case of peeling up the white rafter top caps off to release compression on the sheet and then pushing the sheet back up into its slot in the wall plate and then knock the caps down, itll probably happen again in a year or 2 as the sheet slides down, for ref its a K2 roof in case you need parts but you should be ok with here

ronniecabers · 4 Apr 2021

Thanks for clarifying Crank, I suspected it was a K2 roof and that was the issue. I'd be intrigued to know who told the tenant it was a big job and it's falling in. It's actually a fairly straightforward forward job

crank39 · 4 Apr 2021

Straight forward, the sheets can only slide down a few inches, enough for daylight to come through at the top, rain and leaves too, the sheets directly either side of the diagonal valley i.e the ones with the ends cut at an angle are always susseptible to slipping because there's no anti slip fitted as I mentioned above, the straight ends have them like in this illustration, it's the square grey plate here behind the end cap

Amy87 · 5 Apr 2021

Thanks guys. Tenant reported this a couple of weeks ago, we rang a local guy gave him the tenants number but turned out he never made arrangements to go. So when they spotted next door having some work done on thier conservatory they asked them to look, they originally said slipped panel which has happened before over the other side. When they came back the following week they then said it was a much bigger job and couldn’t do it.
I got on to the original guy we rang who went round this week, he sent me those pictures and said the actual roofs dropped and he wasn’t sure if he could fix it or it would need replacing. He’s does windows/doors for a living, so I assume he’s seeing something that isn’t apparent from those pictures. I’m going to call up in person today and try and figure out what’s going on, it’s an odd one. Otherwise I’m in Gr Manchester if you can recommend anyone.

crank39 · 5 Apr 2021

Although this is a straightforward job it can be tricky getting someone in to repair roof leaks, unless they fitted it originally they just don't want to be fault finding or fixing some other companies problems and potentially having to keep coming back hence most DG companies and repair guys big the job up and get you believing its falling down and you need a new roof. I had the fortune of working for a warranty providor as a service engineer/repair guy a few years back who as part of a team of engineers nationwide would assess and repair these all day long, we wouldn't shy away from a repair if we thought a repair would sort it, sometimes it didn't and we'd be going back every few months but we'd ALWAYS go back even though subsequent visits could not be charged for as we'd already been paid once to fix it, however don't get me wrong - if you could see it was a total abortion and no amount of fettling and adjusting would solve the issue then we'd replace the roof even if it was thousands which nearly all are, yours having a valley is probably a 'P' shaped conservatory and the roof would have cost as much as the window frames. Good luck in finding someone

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Conservatory roof sagging

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