JamieK

Hi There, Has anyone used Franvisa Blue/Black slates 600mm x 300mm by Premium Slates (7/9mm)? Apparently these have a 100 year quarry guarantee and comply with W1, S1 and T1 If yes, what's your opinion? Thanks Jamie

Hi All, Has anyone used the Windsor Grade 1, 24” x 12” (7mm - 9mm) Slate by roofslates.com? These are a Chinese slate with the suppliers claiming a 100 year life. If yes, what are your thoughts about this slate? Thanks

Hi All, We’re currently planning to reroof our house. The house is 100 years old and currently has Westmorland Green Slate. The slate seems quite porous and is delaminating in places. We were thinking of replacing with new slates. Someone has suggested Rivius Antique Clay Tiles. Can anyone let us know the pros and cons of these tiles? The house has a large roof, with two gable ends and four valleys, so there may need to be a lot of cutting. Some of the roof areas have a steep incline. Thanks 👍

Hi There, We're currently looking to have our house re-roofed. It was built in 1923 and has Westmorland Green Slate on the roof. We were thinking of using a good quality chinese slate 24 x 12 (7mm - 9mm; supposedly 100 year guarantee). One of the roofing contractors that we've contacted for a quote has noted the following: We don’t install Chinese slate ever, they are prone to discolour and fail regardless of what suppliers will tell you. You are better off with a full batch of good quality Welsh reclaimed slate over new Chinese or Spanish without doubt. Or a Cassius / Rivius clay slate (Sandtoft) which make for a much better job than any new slate currently on the market, they are more economical to purchase and install plus they are guaranteed. These new Chinese slates they are selling are advertised with a 75 year guarantee etc. It’s nonsense, if one breaks all they say is here is another one or another 5, but they don't cover the cost of the replacement: scaffold may be required plus labour time etc etc. My advice is to avoid any new slate and look at either reclaimed or the Cassius / Rivius tile. Other peoples opinion would also be appreciated. Cheers Jamie

Hi All, We're soon to have the roof replaced on our house. The roof is slate 24" x 12" (current slate roof is 100 years old) We'll be using the existing hip and ridge tiles. We live in Manchester so it rains a lot! Is Flexim Roof Putty a good alternative to cement mortar for bedding the ridge / hip tiles (especially if there's issues with rain)? What are the pros and cons of Flexim Roof Putty? How long does it last on the roof? It would be good to know. Jamie

Hi There, We're soon to have our slate roof replaced. The current slate roof is 100 years old. House was built in 1923. The old slates are being removed and replaced with new slates (300mm x 600mm, 7-9mm thick) Our roofer has suggested using stainless steel slate hooks (grade 316, black coated). He feels they're easier to install, hold the slate more firmly and slates can replaced more easily. Our roof has numerous valleys and quite steep pitches down the gable. Which would be the best option to hold the slates firmly in place for another 100 years? Slate hooks or copper slate nails? Are any of the above more prone to corrosion or other issues? The slates have pre-drilled holes. Thanks Jamie

Hi There, We're soon to have our slate roof replaced. The current slate roof is 100 years old. House was built in 1923. The old slates are being removed and replaced with new slates (300mm x 600mm, 7-9mm thick) Our roofer has suggested using stainless steel slate hooks (grade 316, black coated). He feels they're easier to install, hold the slate more firmly and slates can replaced more easily. Our roof has numerous valleys and quite steep pitches down the gable. Which would be the best option to hold the slates firmly in place for another 100 years? Slate hooks or copper slate nails? Are any of the above more prone to corrosion or other issues? The slates have pre-drilled holes. Thanks Jamie

Hi There, We have a house that was built in 1923. We plan to have the roof slates replaced, as currently the house has the original slates and no damp proof membrane under the tiles. The house is very tall. There's a garage with a pitched roof built closely next to one side of the house, so access to the roof from that side of the house is very difficult. The previous owners should have built a garage with a flat roof (not thought through properly). The current fascia boards and soffits are the original in timber. When we have the roof slates replaced, we plan to have some composite fascias and soffits installed so these are low maintenance and don't need regularly painting, as this would cost money (may need scaffolding every time its done. If the current timber fascias are sound, we can use composite capping board. Our questions are as follows: Which are the best quality brands of composite fascia / capping boards and composite soffit boards? My parents have used Eurocell before on their garage, which seem good quality. I've also heard of PRP Roofline products. I visited our local Eurocell depot recently. They were very helpful. One thing I was told was the coloured fascia boards are foil covered. The white fascia's aren't foil covered. It seems Eurocell offers a 20 year guarantee on the white fascia, but its not clear what the guarantee is for the coloured fascias (that are foil covered). I was told that the foil covered coloured fascias could be prone to blistering if fully exposed to extreme weather conditions, such as strong sunlight, cold weather etc. Obviously these composite fascias are exposed to stronger sunlight during summer months (its a tall house), but they will have a guttering system fixed to them so this will provide some protection. What is the possibility that the coloured, foil covered fascias might blister in the weather conditions experienced in Manchester? We'd probably prefer to use coloured (black or anthracite) as the white would look dirty in time and not easy to clean. Regarding the composite soffit boards, we feel that solid boards may be best. The hollow ones look a little cheap and fragile. The other option is vented soffit boards. Are these really necessary? We're concerned that this could allow wasps to nest; we've had issues with this in our current loft. Which is the best quality roof membrane to use? Our roofer has suggested that it may be better to use stainless steel clips rather than nails to fix the roof tiles to the battens. It seems these are quite new on the market. We obviously want the slates to stay in place for another 100 years. Are these proven to be better than nails to achieve a firm fix over a period of many years? I appreciate these aren't tested over a long period. If not, what type of slate nails are best? Stainless steel, hot-dipped galvanised, zinc plated etc? Finally, our roofer has suggested to use bedding compound (Flexim Roof Putty) rather than sand-cem mortar to bed the ridge and hip tiles. The weather is not predictable in Manchester, so using sand-cement mortar may be difficult (it might rain during application). I can see the benefit in using Roof Putty, but this is a newer material so there are risks. What's the predicted life of Roof Putty for bedding / pointing ridge and hip tiles? Any help with the above questions would be appreciated. Cheers Jamie

Hi There, I'm located in Manchester, not far from Old Trafford. We have a house that was built in 1923, so is now 100 years old. We plan to have the roof replaced (as this is the original slate roof) and I have some questions I'd like to place on the forum, under the roofing section. Hopefully your members will be able to help. Cheers Jamie