Haverhill Roofers covers flat roof repairs and replacements for homeowners in Finchingfield, working on garages, extensions and dormers with EPDM rubber and felt systems.
Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
A leaking flat roof tends to become an emergency at the worst possible moment - a wet weekend, after hours, or during a run of bad weather that is not about to stop. While you wait for a roofer, there is a period in between where what you do (and what you avoid doing) makes a genuine difference to how much damage occurs and how straightforward the repair will be. This page covers what flat roofing involves, and then walks through the practical steps to take while you wait.
We serve Finchingfield and the surrounding area from our base in Haverhill.
A domestic flat roof has three main components: a timber deck sitting on joists, an insulation layer, and a surface membrane that keeps water out. The membrane is the vulnerable part. On older roofs it is almost always mineral felt, which degrades over time through UV exposure, thermal movement, and simple age. Newer and replacement roofs are increasingly fitted with EPDM rubber, a single-ply membrane that handles temperature fluctuations better and generally lasts longer.
When a flat roof leaks, the failure is usually at one of three points: the field of the membrane itself (a crack, blister or open seam), an upstand where the membrane meets a wall, or a flashing at the junction between the roof and the brickwork. Each fails in a slightly different way and presents differently from below. A centralised drip on a ceiling suggests a field failure; staining near a wall below a parapet or extension roof often points to an upstand or flashing problem.
The priority is limiting water damage to the rooms or structure below. Place containers to catch any active drip. If water is spreading across a ceiling or it starts to bulge, keep everyone out of the room and do not poke, prod or pierce it - a waterlogged ceiling can come down without warning.
Move furniture, electrics and stored items out of the affected area. Water finding its way to a light fitting or junction box is a hazard - if you have any concern that water is near electrical fittings, switch off the relevant circuit at the consumer unit and keep it off until the roof is repaired and the area has dried out.
If water is sitting on the flat roof surface itself and the outlet is blocked, clearing the blockage will allow the water to drain and immediately reduce the pressure on the membrane. You can usually reach a roof outlet from a ladder at the eaves - clear leaves, debris and any matted moss that is covering it. Do not step onto the roof surface itself. More on that below.
Take photos of the water ingress inside, the ceiling staining, and anything visible on the roof surface from a safe vantage point such as a first-floor window or a ladder at the eaves. These photos are useful for two reasons: they help the roofer understand what happened before any temporary measures were taken, and they provide a record if you need to make an insurance claim for any internal damage.
A temporary cover can limit further ingress while you wait for a repair, but only if it can be secured without someone walking on a potentially compromised roof. If the leak is on a low extension or garage roof that is accessible from a ladder without setting foot on the membrane, a weighted tarpaulin secured at the edges is a reasonable interim measure. The key word is temporary - a tarpaulin is not a repair and should not be left for weeks.
Roof repair tape, sometimes sold as flash tape or self-adhesive bitumen strip, can be applied over a crack or open seam as a short-term fix. It is not a permanent solution and a professional repair will still be needed, but it can slow active water ingress in dry conditions while you wait.
This section matters as much as anything above. Well-intentioned DIY on a flat roof in poor condition frequently makes the repair more complicated and more expensive.
An ageing felt roof may look solid but the deck beneath may be soft or partially rotten. Walking on a compromised deck can push through the membrane, widen existing cracks, or cause a section of boarding to give way. EPDM rubber roofs are more resilient underfoot, but even a sound roof can be damaged by someone walking in the wrong place. Unless you have been specifically told by a roofer that the roof will take foot traffic safely, stay off it.
Torch-on felt repairs require specific knowledge and equipment. Attempting this with consumer-grade tools on a roof with unknown deck condition is a fire risk. Felt, timber decking and insulation materials can all ignite. This is a repair for a qualified roofer with the right equipment, not a DIY task.
Bitumen paint and liquid membrane products are sometimes reached for in an emergency. They need a dry, clean surface to bond properly - applying them to wet felt or over moss and algae produces a short-lived, peeling result that the roofer then has to remove before the proper repair can go on. If in doubt, keep the water out from above with a cover and leave the membrane alone.
Tape, tarps and makeshift patches buy time, not solutions. A flat roof that is actively leaking is also allowing moisture into the deck beneath, and the longer that continues the more likely it is that a straightforward membrane repair becomes a membrane-plus-deck replacement. Getting a roofer out to properly assess and repair the roof as soon as conditions allow is always the cheaper outcome.
When we arrive, the first step is always a proper inspection of the surface, the deck condition and the flashings. We identify whether the failure is localised (pointing to a repair) or widespread (pointing to a full replacement). We check the deck for soft spots, and we look at every upstand and flashing junction, not just the obvious failure point.
A good repair patches the membrane, addresses the root cause, and leaves the flashings sound. A replacement strips the old material back, replaces damaged decking, and lays the new membrane with properly formed upstands and new flashing. We give you a clear explanation of what we found and what we are proposing before any work starts.
A localised repair on a flat roof - patching a crack or resealing a lifted upstand - typically costs £150-£400 depending on the extent of the work and access. A full replacement on a garage or extension roof of around 15-20 square metres is likely to fall between £900 and £2,000, depending on the system used and whether the deck needs attention. EPDM rubber replacement sits toward the upper end of that range versus felt but tends to last longer without requiring further work.
We cover Finchingfield, Haverhill, Thaxted, Great Sampford, Saffron Walden, Steeple Bumpstead, Sturmer and the surrounding villages. Storm damage, leak investigations, garage roof replacements and full flat roof renewals are all work we can help with.
If you have a leaking flat roof, call us to arrange a survey as soon as conditions allow. We will inspect the roof properly, explain what has happened and what needs doing, and give you a written quote before any work begins. In the meantime, take the steps above to protect the inside of your property and leave the membrane itself to us.
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Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
