Roof Repairs & Emergencies
Leadwork formed properly, to the right code
Most roof leaks happen at junctions, and most junction leaks come from lead that was the wrong code, the wrong length, or replaced with sealant. Lead done properly is the cheapest long-term detail on a roof.
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Emergency roofing response across Cumbria and the Borders, answered day and night.
Leadwork & Lead Flashings: the short answer
Roofing leadwork covers flashings, soakers, aprons, back gutters, lead valleys and bay roofs. Lead is used at every junction where a roof meets something else, and correctly formed lead detailing is the difference between a junction that lasts fifty years and one that leaks in five.
Who this is for
- Properties with chimney, abutment or valley leaks
- Anyone who has had sealant or mortar used where lead belongs
- Bay roofs, dormers and porch roofs needing recovering
- Heritage and listed buildings requiring traditional detailing
Signs you need this work
Splits along a fold
Lead expands and contracts; sheets that are too long crack at the fixing point. This is a specification failure, not a material failure.
Lifted or unclipped edges
Wind gets under an unclipped edge and rolls it back.
Mortar fillets instead of lead
A cheap substitute at abutments that always cracks and always leaks.
Sealant repairs
Sealant over a lead defect is a two-year fix at best and often hides worsening damage.
Your options
Flashing renewal
New apron, stepped flashing, soakers and back gutter in the correct lead code with proper laps.
Lead valley renewal
Valley linings formed with the right drips and expansion joints for the length of run.
Bay and dormer roofs
Recovering small flat areas in lead with welted seams and correct falls.
Heritage leadwork
Traditional bossed detailing and lead sheet work on listed and historic buildings.
Materials and specification
Milled lead sheet
Code selected for the detail — heavier codes for valleys and gutters, lighter for soakers.
Lead clips and fixings
Stainless or lead clips at the correct spacing to resist wind uplift.
Patination oil
Applied to new lead to prevent the white carbonate staining that runs onto masonry.
Helpful roofing advice
Independent guidance from our advice centre — what the symptoms may mean and what your options are, before you commit to any work.
How it works
Our process, step by step
Assess the junction
Detail type, exposure and the length of run determine the code and jointing.
Specify code and joints
Sheet lengths kept within tolerance and expansion joints designed in.
Strip and prepare
Old material removed, substrate checked and made good.
Form and fix
Lead dressed, welted, clipped and pointed where the detail requires it.
Why it matters
What you get from doing it properly
Junctions that stop leaking
Correct lead detailing solves the majority of persistent junction leaks.
No staining on your stonework
Patination oil applied as standard on new lead.
Heritage-appropriate
Traditional techniques where the building or its listing requires them.
Common questions
Related
Work that often goes with this
Chimney Repairs & Repointing
Chimney repair covers repointing, rebuilding, flaunching, pot and cowl work and the lead flashings that seal the stack to the roof. Chimneys are the most weather-exposed masonry on a building and a very common source of damp attributed to the roof.
Heritage & Traditional Roofing
Heritage roofing is the repair and renewal of roofs on listed, historic and traditionally built properties using materials and techniques appropriate to the original construction — natural slate and stone slate, lime mortar, traditional leadwork and hand-formed detailing — and carried out within the consents the building's status requires.
Roof Repairs
Planned roof repair fixes an identified defect — slipped slates, cracked tiles, failed flashings, valley or ridge problems — before it becomes water ingress. Repairs are appropriate where the covering and structure are otherwise sound and the fault is localised.
Slate Roofing
Slate roofing covers the installation and repair of natural and fibre-cement slate roofs. Natural slate is the traditional covering across much of Cumbria and the Borders, has an exceptionally long service life, and is usually limited by its fixings rather than the slate itself.
Coverage
Leadwork & Lead Flashings across our patch
Carlisle and north Cumbria are our core area. We work regularly across the rest of Cumbria and southern Scotland, and take planned projects further afield.
Not sure what your roof needs?
Tell us what you are seeing and we will tell you honestly whether it is a repair, a maintenance job or something that needs replacing. Consultations and written quotations are free.