Ely Roofers installs new roofs for homeowners in Willingham, handling every stage from the first inspection through to clearing the site on completion.
A new roof is not a single task but a sequence of stages, each one affecting the next. Understanding the process helps you know what to expect, what questions to ask at each point, and how to spot whether a job is being done properly. This page walks through a full re-roof from start to finish.
We install new roofs for homeowners in Willingham and the surrounding villages. Whether it is a pitched tiled roof, a slate roof, or a flat roof on an extension or outbuilding, the process follows the same broad pattern.
A proper new roof job starts with a thorough look at what is already there. This is not a glance from the garden. The roofer needs to get onto the roof and, where possible, into the roof space from inside.
From the roof surface, the aim is to assess the condition of the existing tiles or slates, the ridge and verge details, any leadwork and flashings around chimneys and junctions, and the state of the underlying felt. From inside the roof space, it is possible to check for daylight coming through, any signs of past water ingress, and the condition of the structural timbers, including rafters, wall plates, and any purlins.
A common problem identified at this stage is rotten timber, particularly at the eaves where blocked gutters have allowed water to sit against the fascia and soak back into the wall plate over many years. Another is felt underlay that has broken down: tiles can look presentable from the ground while the felt beneath has completely failed, meaning the next rainstorm will find its way in. These findings shape the scope of work and should be explained to you clearly before any quote is agreed.
Once the inspection is complete, the roofer should give you a clear written breakdown of what the job involves, what materials will be used, and what the total cost covers. A full re-roof quote should always specify:
If a quote does not specify these items individually, ask. Omissions in a quote often become additions to the final invoice. A typical full re-roof on a three-bedroom semi-detached house in concrete or clay tile runs from roughly £5,000 to £10,000 installed, depending on size, pitch, and materials. Natural slate adds to that figure. These are honest typical UK ranges, not guarantees of a specific price for your property.
This is also the stage to discuss whether any timber repairs are likely and how additional costs for those will be handled once the roof is stripped and the full extent of any damage becomes clear.
Before any roofing work starts, scaffold is erected. This is not optional on a re-roof. Working from a roof ladder on an un-scaffolded house is not safe for operatives and risks damage to gutters and fascias.
A standard scaffold for a typical pitched roof will include a platform at eaves level on the working elevations, with toe boards and guard rails. For a property in a terrace or with close neighbours, the scaffold company will need access to neighbouring land, which is worth notifying neighbours about in advance.
Scaffold is usually hired for the duration of the job and collected once the work is signed off. On a straightforward re-roof this is typically one to two weeks, though larger or more complex properties take longer. Do not allow scaffold to be struck before you have had a chance to inspect the finished roof from the platform, because once it is gone, close access to the roof surface goes with it.
The existing tiles or slates are stripped off first. Everything comes off: tiles, battens, and the old felt underlay. The timbers underneath are then inspected properly, in a way that was not fully possible before stripping. Rotten sections of rafter, damaged wall plates, or defective noggins are identified at this point and the roofer should report back to you before making any structural repairs, so there are no surprises on cost.
Old tiles and rubble are loaded to a skip or taken away by the roofing team. The scaffold should be netted to protect the property below from falling debris. If tiling is being carried out in stages, a temporary waterproof covering should be put over any stripped sections left open overnight to protect the inside of the property.
With the old materials removed, new breathable felt underlay is laid across the rafters. Modern underlay is vapour-permeable, which allows moisture from inside the house to escape through the roof structure rather than condensing on the underside of the felt. This is important for the long-term health of the timbers. The underlay is lapped correctly at each row and secured before battening.
New treated timber battens are then fixed across the rafters at the correct gauge, meaning the spacing that gives the right overlap for the chosen tile. Gauge matters: too wide and tiles do not overlap enough to shed water properly; too close and the courses do not align. The correct gauge is determined by the tile manufacturer's specification for the specific tile being used, combined with the pitch of the roof.
Tiles are loaded onto the scaffold and passed up to the roof in manageable quantities to avoid overloading. Tiling works from the eaves upward. The first course sits on a tilting fillet or eaves course to give the correct angle, and tiles are nailed or clipped at the required intervals, which varies by pitch, exposure, and manufacturer specification. For a roof with significant wind exposure, every tile may need to be fixed rather than relying on the mechanical interlocking profile alone.
At the verges, tiles are cut or a half-tile profile used to maintain the bond across the full width. Hips and valleys require careful cutting and fitting. Ridge tiles are bedded or, increasingly, mechanically fixed using a dry-fix system that avoids the cracking problems that mortar bedding eventually causes. Dry-fix ridge systems are now the standard on most new installations and are worth specifying rather than accepting mortar as the default.
For slate roofs, whether natural Welsh or Spanish slate or fibre cement slate, the principles are similar but slates are double-lapped with a broken bond pattern. Natural slate is fixed with copper or stainless nails to avoid the nail sickness, a rust-driven failure, that causes so many old roofs to need replacing.
Once the main field of tiles is laid, leadwork is installed at all junctions. This includes the flashing where the roof meets a parapet wall or chimney breast, step flashings up the sides of a chimney stack, the back gutter behind any chimney, and soakers under slate or tile at abutments.
Lead is the correct material for flashings. It is soft enough to dress into irregular masonry, durable enough to outlast the tiles, and straightforward to repair if it ever becomes necessary. Code 4 lead is standard for most flashing applications; code 5 is used for wider gutter applications. A common failure point on older roofs is where mortar has been used instead of lead at abutments, or where existing lead flashings have not been properly secured and have lifted in the wind, allowing water to run behind them.
Chimney repairs or repointing of the stack are often carried out at the same time, since the scaffold is already in place and the chimney is accessible. It makes sense to deal with any loose or eroded pointing on the stack while access is easy.
For extensions, garages, or outbuildings with flat roofs, the process is similar in structure. The existing covering is stripped, the deck is inspected for rot or delamination, and any defective sections are replaced before the new membrane goes on. EPDM rubber membrane is the system we use for flat roofs: it is laid in a single sheet where possible, bonded to the deck, and dressed down at the edges and into any outlets. Falls are checked before the new surface is laid, because poor drainage is the most common reason flat roofs fail early. Standing water accelerates the breakdown of any membrane, so getting the fall right at installation is not optional. EPDM flat roofs installed correctly typically last 30 years or more. Typical installed costs run from roughly £70 to £120 per square metre, depending on deck condition and the size of the roof.
With the main roof complete, the roofline is addressed. Fascias, soffits, and guttering are best dealt with during a re-roof, because the scaffold is already in place. Timber fascias that have been soaked by blocked gutters often need replacing with uPVC. Ventilated soffits allow the roof space to breathe, which protects the timbers from condensation. New guttering is re-hung with the correct fall toward the downpipes and checked that outlets are clear before the scaffold comes down.
The final check before scaffold is struck should include inspection of all ridge and verge details, all flashing dressed correctly, gutters hanging at the right gradient, and any mortar work cleaned off the tile faces. The site should be cleared of all offcuts, old tiles, and packaging before the job is considered finished.
Repairs are the right answer for isolated problems, but a full replacement makes more sense when:
If you are unsure whether your roof needs repair or full replacement, the right first step is a proper inspection from the roof itself, not an estimate from ground level. We cover Willingham and the surrounding villages, including Over, and the wider area towards Ely, Sutton, and Cambridge. Call us to arrange a survey and we will give you a straight assessment of what is needed and what it is likely to cost.
No obligation · We usually respond within 2 hours
Storm damage, active leak, damaged ridge - we aim to be on-site within 24 hours.
