Leaking flat roof, bungalow/garage

sevenhills

A relative owns a tiled bungalow with an adjoined flat-roofed garage. She has had problems with a leaking garage roof for around ten years.

She had someone patch it up, but it still leaked. One summer, I sealed it, but it still leaked.

She had a new garage roof last year, but it still leaks.

Now she has been told it's not the garage roof that is leaking, but the roof on the bungalow.

She has been told it now may need new roof joists, someone is going to give her a quote next week.

I didn't think about looking for leaks on the tiled bungalow roof, but surely the person that reroofed the garage should have checked to see where the leak was?

MultiFuelBurner

I suspect the person re roofing the garage was only concerned about the garage and not the bungalow roof.

Why do you think they are responsible?

youth_leader

I am very sorry for your relative, it is difficult to find someone who understands the 'angles' needed on a flat roof. 

I downsized and bought this bungalow in March 2021, in Storm Arwen the 'resin' flat roof on the extension was blown off.  

When the roofing company came they said the flat roof had not been fitted properly, it was nailed down not screwed, and had not been fitted correctly against the concrete tiled roof. 

Apparently I was lucky the ceiling hadn't come down in the back bedroom,  as the join was wrong the wooden structure was sopping wet through years of water ingress.

sevenhills

MultiFuelBurner said:

I suspect the person re roofing the garage was only concerned about the garage and not the bungalow roof.

Why do you think they are responsible?

I am not saying they were responsible, I am asking if such an issue would/should be spotted by a professional roofer. I didn't spot it, but I am not a roofer. I don't believe that the garage roof was leaking, but it was replaced anyway.

FreeBear

youth_leader said: When the roofing company came they said the flat roof had not been fitted properly, it was nailed down not screwed, and had not been fitted correctly against the concrete tiled roof.

Nailing down roofs is old school, and they used to do the same when putting up plasterboard. It is only relatively recently that stuff is screwed down. So I wouldn't be too hasty in condemning a roof just because of the fixings.

@sevenhills - Do you have any photos of this roof, in particular, the junction between the flat & tiled parts ?

sevenhills

No photos, I see my relative weekly.

youth_leader

Thanks @FreeBear, I haven't had a flat roof before, I had no idea.  The vendor had given me the invoice for the roof and I saw the man's van, he was cruising around the village after the storm as many people had damage .... I did tell two people not to use him!