If you are facing a roof replacement in Attleborough, knowing exactly what will happen and when helps you plan, ask the right questions and avoid being caught out by hidden extras.
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A roof replacement should never be quoted from the pavement. Before any price is given, a competent roofer needs to look at the roof surface and the loft space. These are two separate inspections and both matter.
On the roof, we look at the condition of the tiles or slates, the state of the mortar on ridges, hips and verges, the flashings around chimneys and any other penetrations, and the gutters and fascias. In the loft, we check the rafters, the ridge board, the condition of the old underlayer and any signs of previous water ingress - staining, rot, damp insulation.
That inspection gives us everything we need to give you an accurate price - including what timber work might be needed. A quote given without going into the loft is a guess, and it is likely to come with extras added later once the roof is stripped and problems become visible.
Once you have accepted a quote and a start date is agreed, the first thing that happens on site is scaffolding. There are no shortcuts here - working safely on a pitched roof requires a full scaffold with toe boards and guard rails on all working sides. Expect scaffolding to go up one to two days before the roofing work begins.
Scaffolding costs vary with the size of the roof and the complexity of the site, but on a standard three-bedroom house it typically adds £500 to £1,500 to the overall project cost. This should be included in a proper all-in quote, not added as a surprise at the end.
The existing covering comes off completely - tiles or slates, battens and the old felt underlayer. Nothing is left behind. This is non-negotiable for a proper replacement. Re-roofing over an existing covering hides problems, adds structural load and prevents a proper inspection of the timbers.
As materials come off, they go into a skip or are sorted for disposal. Concrete tiles go to waste; salvageable natural slate or reclaimed clay tiles may be set aside if you want to keep them. The skip should be positioned and organised before stripping starts so the roof is not left uncovered while waste is being dealt with.
With the roof bare, every rafter, the ridge board and any hip or valley boards are examined. This is the most important stage of the job and the one that is easiest to skip dishonestly if the price is too low. Soft, spongy or split timber is cut out and replaced with new treated timber. Existing timbers that are sound are left in place.
The extent of timber work is something that cannot always be known in advance from the loft inspection alone - sometimes damage is worse than it appeared. A good quote should include a day rate or a per-metre rate for additional timber work so you know what to expect if more is found than anticipated. Ask for this before work starts.
New breathable membrane underlayer goes down over the bare rafters, starting at the eaves and working up. Each course overlaps the one below by the amount specified by the manufacturer - usually 150mm as a minimum. The underlayer is the secondary line of defence against wind-driven rain and should be lapped correctly at every join, including at hips, valleys and around any penetrations. Cutting corners here is one of the most common causes of future problems.
Once the underlayer is fixed, new treated timber battens are nailed across the rafters. The batten gauge - the distance between each one - is calculated from the tile or slate being used and the roof pitch, so that the correct lap (the amount each course overlaps the one below) is achieved.
Tiling or slating starts at the eaves and works upward. Each tile or slate is fixed according to the manufacturer's fixing specification - on most pitches and exposures this means every tile nailed rather than every other course. Skipping fixings to save time is a false economy; in a strong wind, unfixed tiles lift and break.
Hip and valley details are cut and dressed as the work progresses. Valleys can be either open lead valleys or close-cut tile valleys, depending on the design of the roof and the material being used. Lead valleys and soakers are cut from new lead rather than reused from the old roof.
Verge edges are finished with dry-fix systems or mortar bedded, depending on the tile and the style of the property. Ridge tiles are bedded and pointed, or a dry-fix ridge system is used. Dry-fix systems have become standard practice because they do not rely on mortar that can crack and fail over time.
Every junction between the roof covering and a vertical surface - chimney stack, parapet wall, dormer cheek, soil pipe - needs a flashing. New lead flashings are cut, dressed and fixed into the masonry with lead wedges and sealed. A chimney stack also needs a back gutter behind it and step flashings up each side. This is skilled work; poorly detailed flashings are one of the leading causes of roof leaks on otherwise sound roofs.
With the covering complete, gutters and downpipes are checked and rehung level where needed. If fascias or soffit boards are rotten, this is the right time to replace them while the scaffold is still up - doing it separately later means paying for scaffold access twice. This should be discussed and priced before work starts rather than added on at the end.
A final walk-round of the finished roof checks that all ridge, hip and verge details are complete, all flashings are dressed properly and there is no debris left on the covering or in the gutters.
All waste material is removed and the site is left clean. The scaffold comes down once the work is signed off. Any lead offcuts, broken tiles and used underlay should leave the site - not be left in the garden or dumped.
A straightforward replacement on a standard three-bedroom semi with no significant timber work typically takes three to five working days for the roofing itself, plus scaffold erection and strike. More complex roofs - hipped designs, multiple chimneys, large areas - take longer. Ask for a realistic time estimate before work starts so you can plan around it.
We carry out roof replacements in Attleborough and across the surrounding area, including Wymondham, Norwich, Diss, Watton, Long Stratton, New Buckenham, Pulham St Mary and other parts of Norfolk. Call us to arrange an inspection and a detailed quote.
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Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
