New roof going on - weird slates among other queries.

[underclassy]

Hello all, newbie here... any advice?
Original 100yo roof giving out to coincide with loft conversion. Have patched it for a few years but can't wait any longer - ridges are all blown, leadwork slipped, fascias rotten etc and i'd break so many trying to replace . Just had my scaffold put up and I appear to have purple welsh slates, not flaky and sound looking but to my surprise they are 9" by 9". No one I have rung so far has heard of them. I guess they were cheap to buy in 1900 as labour wasn't an issue and they were just workers houses. It has to come off and it's not worth putting back on (I estimate 5-6000 slates!). Anything I can do with these except skip them? It seems a shame.
Also - anyone got any experience of recycled (80%) slates. They look good and I wanted to put them with lead free flashings to recover the rainwater safely.
Cheers!

 

[palaceray]

hello are you sure the slates are 9x9. are you measuring the face of the slate or have you stripped one out and measured it properly. If the face of the slate is 9x9 aprox then it is probably a 20x10 slate as most of the slate is under the 2 courses above.

 

[underclassy]

no really, I kid you not, i've got 12x20 or something similar on the bonnets to the front but the main roof is covered in about 5-6ooo 9x9" inch purple welsh slates, triple lapped so about 3" showing of each, nailed to 2x1/2" battens at 3" centres. Weird eh?

 

[palaceray]

Well that is really unusual, If you after a reasonably priced slate i would recomend Canadian Glendyne slates.

 

[SASroofer]

I'd second the Glendyns, beautiful slate to cut and lay.

As for the 9x9's, I've seen them around, usually on heritage sites and museums/theatres in London. If I were you I'd ring around some reclaim companies and try to recoup some funds to spend on your new slates.

Dont chuck them, someone out there, somewhere, need those slates!

 

[catlad]

how would you say they performed Im guessing you have a steep pitch the smallest I have used is 14 by 9 and that was in nottingham

 

[underclassy]

Thanks for the info.
Well i've got a month to find someone who might use them. Then they've got to go down the chute. Everybody i've spoken to so far has never heard of this particular size and i'm sure there's little demand because these houses were cheaply built 100 years ago and i'm not in a conservation area. I'll keep ringing round and maybe put a link on EBAY.
BTW, i should say that without felt, despite the exposed eave tiles rotting a bit, it's been a very effective roof, only every leaking around the increasingly bodged flashings.

 

[Nige F]

Have you got a freecycle site for your area ? . If you were`nt so far I`d have them - have you seen the price of decorative slate chips for the garden

 

[underclassy]

Yes there is a freecycle for the area - Sarfeast Landon. I'll give it a go.
Cheers!

 

[BethesdaSlate]

For the new roof, would you consider using new Welsh Penrhyn 12x8s ? these would be the same type of slate as the original therefore more in keeping and although it would take longer, it would be cheaper than using Glendyne 20x10s per m2.

 

[underclassy]

Ah no - it's a lovely thought but i'm in SE london and all around me are concrete replacement roofs and missing ridges, tatty lloking felt and dodgy box dormers. T'would be guilding the lilly to replace welsh slate. It's only a top floor flat and I don't wish to reward the extremely difficult owner downstairs whose freehold I share with a new welsh slate roof. It's going to be recycled slate interlocking tiles from Santoft or Marley - 1000 instead of 6000.
I just put the sizes up in case anyone wants them.
Cheers for the suggestion though!