A full roof replacement in Sudbury is a straightforward process when each stage is done in the right order - here is exactly what to expect, from the first inspection to the day we drive away.
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A proper roof replacement begins on the ground and in the loft, not on the scaffold. Before any price is agreed or any work is booked, a roofer should get eyes on the actual condition of your roof: the tile or slate surface, the gutters and fascias, and the structure visible from inside the loft.
From the ground, binoculars or a drone camera can reveal slipped tiles, cracked ridges, moss build-up and obvious flashing failures. But the loft inspection is just as important. Looking up from inside shows the condition of the felt, whether daylight is coming through gaps, whether rafters are bowed or split, and whether there are signs of long-term water ingress in the timbers. Any roofer who quotes without this information is guessing at what the job involves.
At this stage, the roofer should also establish what material the existing roof is covered in, what pitch the slopes are, and whether any flat sections are attached to the main roof. These factors affect the material options and the scaffolding required.
Once the job is agreed, scaffold goes up before any roofing work begins. On a standard two-storey property, a full scaffold will typically enclose the perimeter of the roof with working platforms and toe boards at eaves level, with additional lifts where the ridge height requires it.
Scaffold is one of the largest single costs in a roof replacement. It needs to be erected by a competent scaffolding contractor, and it stays in place for the full duration of the roofing work. If you are in Sudbury and have close neighbours or a boundary wall close to the house, the scaffolding design needs to account for this from the start. Never let a roofer work from ladders on a full replacement job - it is unsafe and means they cannot move materials around the roof efficiently.
The first job on the roof itself is a full strip. Every tile or slate is removed by hand and lowered safely to the skip or disposal point. Ridge tiles, hip tiles and verge mortar come off too. The old felt and battens are stripped from the rafters.
This stage takes roughly a day on a typical semi-detached house, longer on larger or more complex roof shapes. A large skip will be needed on site, or several loads taken away by the roofing team. The scaffold makes it possible to work safely and move material down in a controlled way rather than dropping it from height.
With the old covering off, every part of the timber structure is accessible and every rafter, purlin, ridge board and hip rafter can be inspected properly. This is the most important part of the whole job and it cannot be rushed.
Common problems found at this stage include:
Any timber that is rotten, structurally compromised or missing needs to be repaired or replaced before the new covering goes on. This is non-negotiable. A new roof laid over failed timbers will develop the same problems within a few years.
The cost of timber repairs is impossible to predict exactly until the stripping is done, which is why any honest quote will state a day rate or a per-item rate for structural repairs discovered during the strip. A fixed price should cover the agreed work, and any extra work found during the strip that could not be seen at the survey should be shown to you and agreed before it is done.
Once the structure is sound, the new breathable underlay goes on. This is a modern vapour-permeable membrane that acts as a secondary barrier if any water gets past the tiles or slates above. It is laid horizontally across the rafters, starting at the eaves and working upward, with each course lapping over the one below by at least 150 mm.
At the eaves, the membrane is turned in to direct any water into the gutter rather than onto the top of the fascia board. At abutments and around any chimney stacks or skylights, the membrane is dressed up the vertical surface and taped. Gaps or short laps here are a common cause of leaks within a few years of an otherwise well-done replacement job.
New treated timber battens are fixed horizontally across the rafters on top of the membrane. The gauge - the spacing between battens - is determined by the tile or slate being used and the pitch of the roof. Get the gauge wrong and tiles will not sit correctly, water will not shed as designed, and tiles at the ridge or eaves will be cut to the wrong dimensions.
Battens should be graded timber, free of large knots at fixing points, and long enough to span at least three rafter spacings so that joins between lengths never fall on the same rafter in consecutive rows. Counter-battens, which run vertically down the rafter line under the horizontal battens, create a drainage and ventilation space between the membrane and the batten, and are used with some tile systems and steeper pitches.
Tiling or slating starts at the eaves and works upward. An eaves course is typically laid first, sometimes as a double course, to ensure the first full course sits at the correct angle. From there, each row of tiles or slates is fixed to the battens, with every tile clipped or nailed as the fixing specification for that product requires.
Valleys, where two roof slopes meet, are formed in lead or with valley tiles depending on the roof design. Hip rafters are covered with either a lead soaker system or hip tiles bedded and pointed at the ridge line. Ridge tiles are fixed last, bedded in mortar or mechanically fixed using a dry-fix system - dry-fix ridges are generally more durable as mortar can crack and lift over time.
Verges - the edges of the roof at the gable ends - are either bedded in mortar on a creasing tile or finished with a proprietary dry verge system. Dry verge systems are preferred by most roofers now as they eliminate the cracking and lifting that eventually affects mortar verges.
All flashings at chimney stacks, abutments, skylights and any parapet walls are done in lead. Step flashings are cut and dressed into horizontal joints in the brickwork, and soakers go under each individual slate or tile course where it meets the vertical surface. This junction, done correctly in lead, is watertight for decades. Done poorly, or in substitute materials, it is the first place the roof leaks.
If any chimney stacks are redundant, a roof replacement is the right moment to cap them properly or reduce them. An unused stack is a maintenance liability with no benefit, and capping it at roof level removes the need to maintain the pointing and flashing indefinitely.
With the scaffold in place and the roof nearly complete, the eaves are inspected for fascia and soffit condition. Timber boards that are soft, split or heavily painted should be replaced now. Gutters are rehung on the new fascia or, if the existing gutter system is sound, inspected and cleared. Downpipes are checked for blockages and correct fall. Doing this while the scaffold is standing is the sensible moment - returning to it later means a separate access cost.
Before scaffold comes down, the completed roof should be walked and inspected - every ridge, every flashing, every valley and every verge checked against the original specification. Any mortar bedding should be checked for coverage and adhesion. Any cracked or chipped tiles from handling should be swapped out. The gutters are cleared of any tile dust or offcuts.
On the ground, all tile waste, old felt and batten offcuts are loaded and removed. The garden and driveway are swept. Scaffold comes down once the roof has been signed off.
If your roof is due for replacement and you want a clear explanation of what is involved before any commitment, call Bury St Edmunds Roofers to arrange a roof survey. We cover Sudbury and the surrounding area and will walk you through the process and the options that suit your property.
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