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Should I have my slate roof inspected, even if it’s not leaking?

This is a common question that many homeowners ignore, as they believe if ‘it is not broken why fix it’? Fair enough. Why should you start spending money on your slate roof when there are no issues, cracks, broken tiles or leaks? Most people will never have their roof inspected unless there is a real issue such as a water leak. Then and only then will the panic set in and action taken to stop any further damage from occurring.

In short, getting your roof inspected depends on a couple of factors but probably the most important variable is the age of the slate roof.

If the roof was installed by a professional slate roof company, with quality slate tiles and is less than 10 years old, then you really don’t have to worry about getting your roof inspected. That is, unless there has been some recent damage or you can visibly see some dislodged tiles.

If your roof is from the Victorian or Edwardian period and has never had any type of restoration work carried out on the roof, then it’s a good idea to get a roofing expert to cast their eyes over the roof and have a detailed inspection. There might not be anything wrong at the moment but you only need one really bad storm for water damage to occur. Ideally, you should be getting your roofed checked every year or at least once every 18 months. This will prevent any serious damage happening in the unlikely event of a storm dislodging or cracking your slate tiles.

Most Sydney owners of Victorian period homes should really take note of the above as the cost to inspect a slate roof is far less than repairing any water damage that may occur.

Repair options for homeowners of slate roofs:

1) Minor repairs of the slate roof every year or so depending on the age of the roof

2) If you are planning to sell the house and there are major slate roofing repairs to be carried out you may want to just keep the roof watertight for the moment and not go through the expense of a complete roof restoration.

3) If you are unclear about the age of your roof and are unsure about what to do about maintenance; prevention is always best, especially if your house is 20 years or older.

If you are still unsure about the state of your slate roof and want a thorough audit it’s best to call in the experts like the team at First Class Slate. We can immediately identify and issues with your roof and advise you on the best course of action depending on your circumstances. Call Scott today on (02) 9695 1451.