Conflicting advice from roofers!

ajmnewma

We have an issue with a flat roof on a 1970s extension. We had a new GRP roof put on the extension in winter 2015 by a general builder as part of a general renovation project.

The grp was installed over ply boards and has delaminated from the boards in multiple areas. The roof has also developed leaks in multiple places. I've inspected the roof myself and there appear to be pinholes in multiple areas of the GRP, which I assume are causing the leaks.

We've had two local reputable (almost 10/10 on checkatrade) roofers come in to survey the roof and quote for remedial works.

The first roofer is suggesting we overboard the existing roof with 8mm OSB and install a new GRP roof over the top.

The second roofer is advising we use a liquid membrane roof on top of the existing GRP, as that won't add significant additional weight to the roof and will last as long as a new GRP covering.

Are either of these suggestions sensible? Both? Neither?!

martinthebandit

New roof in 2015? Go back to whoever did it and ask him how he's going to fix it or for his insurance details

ajmnewma

We don't want the builder anywhere near the roof, but will be demanding that he pays... Let's see how that goes!

Grenage

ajmnewma wrote: »

We don't want the builder anywhere near the roof, but will be demanding that he pays... Let's see how that goes!

Unfortunately that's not how it works, you'd need to give them a chance to correct the issue.

ajmnewma

We have. The issue first presented seven months ago, and he's still not visited to fix it!

Grenage

If you're not getting anywhere, I'd consider small claims to recover the cost, then get it redone completely.

gardner1

ajmnewma wrote: »

We have an issue with a flat roof on a 1970s extension. We had a new GRP roof put on the extension in winter 2015 by a general builder as part of a general renovation project.

The grp was installed over ply boards and has delaminated from the boards in multiple areas. The roof has also developed leaks in multiple places. I've inspected the roof myself and there appear to be pinholes in multiple areas of the GRP, which I assume are causing the leaks.

We've had two local reputable (almost 10/10 on checkatrade) roofers come in to survey the roof and quote for remedial works.

The first roofer is suggesting we overboard the existing roof with 8mm OSB and install a new GRP roof over the top.

The second roofer is advising we use a liquid membrane roof on top of the existing GRP, as that won't add significant additional weight to the roof and will last as long as a new GRP covering.

Are either of these suggestions sensible? Both? Neither?!

Your first mistake was using checkatrade...........have you ever seen a tradesman on it with a bad score......it's a bit like the good garage scheme

ajmnewma

OK, so a related question then. Anyone have a roofer they can recommend in SE London?!

SWB

I am not a roofer but I would use the new rubber roofing with a 50 year guarantee.

Niv

gardner1 wrote: »

Your first mistake was using checkatrade...........have you ever seen a tradesman on it with a bad score......it's a bit like the good garage scheme

I understand where you are coming from, but what is your solution to that?


I have been in the situation recently where I needed a plumber, none of my local friends or family have used a plumber for a number of years. I had one suggestion from a family member that used a plumber approx. 10years ago so gave them a try. They let me down so I was back to square one. In the end I used rated people and the job was completed within a month of the initial enquiry.


The only other thing I could think of for looking for a tradesman is to random google search, most of these guys are small companies with poor websites and very rarely can you find any kind of review of them.

wantonnoodle

I would suggest if you don't know anyone who can recommend a tradesman to do a job, that you consider using social media channels for this. We have used both Facebook and Nextdoor to get recommendations for tradespeople to do work on our house, with a good amount of success. We actually had our main roof recovered and found that several people recommended the guys we used in the end. Having said that, we really can see why people were so positive about them - they were great. And, strangely enough, they do very little advertising, so would have been tricky to find out about, as they get more than enough business through word of mouth recommendations.

So, ironically, I would say that you probably need to find the guys that don't advertise. If a tradesman needs a flashy website or loads of advertising (flyers and in local papers), I would say that they are struggling to get business, and the first question I would ask myself is why - there will be a reason for it. A good local tradesman will in my experience most likely have a full diary and not need to go looking for work as work will come to them.