Slate Roof Repairs Sydney

A good quality slate roofing will outlast most other roof coverings. If they don’t suffer any physical damage, they will typically last for over 100 years. However, time and weather will leave their mark on a slate roof and tiles can become damaged or loose. This is why your slate roof will need to be repaired.

Why Slate Roof Repairs or Replacements are Needed?

Slates are damaged by roof settling, frost or wind, or falling objects such as tree branches. Usually such damage is isolated to one tile, or possibly to a relatively small area of the roof.

When our team carry out a repair, the damaged tile is removed and the replacement is fixed using a copper clip nailed by copper clout. Using copper clip is beneficial as they are not affected by the sun as a lead clip would be and copper will last as long as the slate will. Through time the copper clip will darken and blend into the colour of the roof.

The two main reasons why tiles become loose are:

  • The fixing nails fail due to rust (known as ‘nail sickness’)
  • The slates themselves disintegrate around the nail holes

Slate Roof Repairs for Nail Sickness

Older slate roofs in Australia often weren’t fixed with copper clouts.  So, while they are still in good condition, nail deterioration or ‘nail sickness’ affects the integrity of the roof to such a degree that it needs to be replaced.

The first indication of ‘nail sickness’ is usually when the lower edge of a row is out of line – one fixing will fail on a number of slates and these will then twist. A repair replacing a single slipped slate on a roof suffering from ‘nail sickness’ can only be a temporary solution and the entire roof covering will need to be replaced at some time.

When roofs begin to suffer from ‘nail sickness’ or breakdown of the actual tiles, it usually means the roof is approaching the age when complete re-roofing will be required, since the fixing nails and slates are probably all the same age.

We deal with this by doing a ‘re-nail’. The tiles are removed along with any battens that have deteriorated. Rotted battens are then replaced and the original slates repositioned and re-nailed. Good quality matching second-hand tiles can be used if any of the original tiles need replacing.

The benefits of using second hand slate for re-roofing:

  • Increase the life span of the roof by at least 30 years
  • Your property retains the traditional slate look
  • The battens and roof sarking will be new
  • No more maintenance costs every year
  • All slates will be fixed with copper nails
  • All new flashings and ridge coverings
  • Backed with a First Class Slate warranty
  • No more slipping slates
  • The cost is lower

Other repair work that you might need can include:

  • Ridge-capping, re-bedding and pointing
  • Velux window installation
  • Gutter repair or renewal
  • Possum proofing
  • Gutter cleaning
  • Lead roofing or valley repairs
  • Heritage tiles repair

See some of our first class work here or contact us for our no obligation free quote, or to get more information on how we can help you with your slate roof repairs.