Repointing

Bexgrossman

I’ve moved in and I have a leak. Roofer has had a look and said the side wall needs repointing. £2830 - including scaffolding.

Obviously I will get other quotes but is there anything I need to know? Such as I need to get it down in dry weather and not in winter? Do they need scaffolding?

Damsel in distress haha.

stuart45

People often get their walls repointed when it isn't necessary. You need to know whether the original is lime or OPC cement mortar.

Bexgrossman

I have a leak in one room...

grumbler

stuart45 wrote: »

People often get their walls repointed when it isn't necessary.

Absolutely. It's one of the most common scams.

Especially if the roofer fixed the leak.

Bexgrossman

Ok. So get another person out?

grumbler

Start with having a look and using your common sense.

Bexgrossman

Oh wait I’ve just got home and the roof guy hasn’t been, what a liar! My entry is locked and the bin is in the way. Haha. Idiot me or him!

Ok back to the drawing board!

How do I fix a leak coming from the gable....

Fire_Fox

Welcome to MSE. Your information is quite vague.

You say you just moved in .... Did you have a structural survey?

Has the guttering all been cleaned out, are the downpipes in good order? Have you been in the loft? What is above the leak, what is the other side of the wall?

Borrow some binoculars and look from the other side of the road/ other end of the garden, or use a selfie stick to film out of an appropriate window. Any visibly damp brickwork, moss where it should not be, anything looks damaged?

Where are you finding tradespeople? Wherever possible get personal recommendations from relatives, friends, work colleagues, neighbours etc.

And be present when a tradesperson assesses a problem/ gives you an estimate or quote. They would need to see the internal leak, and should show you what the problem is on the exterior. The roofer may have looked at the wrong property, or the wrong side of your building!

Bexgrossman

Hi,

Just bought and structural survey completed four weeks before moving in but as soon as I moved in, there was evidence of water.

I’m looking on Google reviews, NextDoor app, guy who did plastering recommended someone, Which? recommended traders. Started looking this week as “my man” was waiting for dry weather and now he’s gone awol.

The roof looks ok inside - just one area of daylight. Smells ok. Need a taller ladder to go up as the ceilings are high.

I have two chimneys and they are newer bricks? There is an area where the the bricks meet the roof, I think it’s compromised there. I think it’s around the chimney breast it accumulates water - but there is also water on a connecting inside wall (just a little). The loft is also not boarded so I don’t want to get up.

DaftyDuck

Photos. OK, dark now, but we do well with photos.
In last post, you say you had a structural survey; is this correct? What does the survey say about the state of the roof, possible leaks, repair requirements...

I'm not keen on the compo bunch, but if a structural survey gave a shining clean bill of health, and you have a leak, you may have some recourse. Of course, as soon as a jobbing builder goes in (or, rather, doesn't ), you'll find any claim next to impossible.

But... More clear detail of exactly where, how leak is leaking, and photos inside and out.

As a new user, you won't be able to directly load to this site, or give links. Visit a site like https://imgbb.com/ and upload your photos. Come back here, and paste the links, but you will have to put a space in somewhere, to conceal the fact it's a link. Longwinded, but there are plenty of excellent builders and DIYers around.

Oh, my first house, back in the 90's.. Completed Dec 23rd, leaks in every single room, ground floor and first. Except bathroom. That just had a blocked drain! Chin up! It's never that bad.

grumbler

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Has the guttering all been cleaned out, are the downpipes in good order?

It's a gable wall apparently - no guttering.