Isle of Wight · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Bonchurch, Isle of Wight
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching in Bonchurch, with drones and thermal imaging where they help. Get in touch for a price.
- Staining on walls around the chimney
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Cracked or missing flaunching
What we do, step by step
Photos are taken throughout the visit, so the report shows exactly what we saw. Close-ups come from the safest viewpoint available. Most surveys take between one and two hours at most homes, or half a day or so for a commercial building. Somewhere as small as Bonchurch, access is often the only tricky part. Let us know about outbuildings, past repairs and any leaks you’ve noticed. Weekday and weekend visits are available.
- First we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- We photograph and record the pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings.
- We look for damp on chimney breasts and in the loft space.
- You get a written report with photos and recommendations by email.
Getting ready for the survey
- Have keys ready for side gates, garages or roof access doors
- If it is not your property yet, arrange access through the agent
- Let us know where we can park nearby
Getting a price
We confirm the price for your roof before you book, so you know the cost up front. Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT. To book, ring 07833 053749 or send us an email.
Advice
Chimney survey in Bonchurch: what you get
Chimney stacks take more weather than almost any other part of a house. In time, flaunching cracks, mortar washes out and flashings come loose. Water then gets into the stack and can show as damp on a chimney breast or a stain in the loft. A survey finds these problems and records them with photos. If you’ve noticed unused flues sealed without airflow and damp on a chimney breast inside, we can find out what’s behind it, whatever the roof.
Older buildings in small places like Bonchurch may be listed or in a conservation area. That can affect what materials can be used when work is done, so check with the council before planning anything. Knowing the roof’s condition helps you plan ahead with that in mind. Where a building is listed, matching the existing roof materials is frequently expected.
Pictures do a lot of the work in our reports, because a photo of a cracked flashing says more than a paragraph. If something couldn’t be seen safely, the report is clear about it.
- Location
- Bonchurch (PO38)
- Region
- Isle of Wight
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insured
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Practical tips
Over many surveys, some simple habits stand out:
- Use the report as a baseline for future checks
- Have brackets on the chimney checked
- Ask for ventilated caps on redundant stacks
- Don’t use a ladder to reach the stack yourself
If anything in the report is not clear, just ask us. Standard Surveys come with a follow-up consultation, and Premium Surveys with an in-person one.
Check redundant flues are capped with ventilation. Ventilation helps keep the stack dry.
Local roofs in Bonchurch
The coast is about 1 mile or less from Bonchurch, and places near the sea get more salt in the air and more wind than inland. Salt corrodes metal fixings and flashings, and wind lifts loose slates, tiles and ridge pieces, and driving rain gets into whatever gap is left. Historic houses such as Rylstone Manor, about 1.8 miles north, show how far back building in the area around Bonchurch goes. On older houses around here, roofs often carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead.
If you let a flat or house near Shanklin station, the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at. Take a building like St Catherine's School: long gutter runs and wide roofs on a building that size are worth checking on a regular cycle. The streets around a church such as Old St. Boniface Church are often among the oldest in a place, and if your home is one of the older ones nearby, corroded nails, tired lead and weathered chimney pointing are the things to watch on older roofs.
Bonchurch is about 2 miles south of Shanklin, in the Isle of Wight. Bookings from Bonchurch are handled just like any other: a call or an email, a price, then a date. We cover towns and villages across the Isle of Wight, large and small. For surveys nearby, see our Portsmouth page.
Chimney surveys in PO38 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. Local streets include Shore Road, Leeson Road and Bonchurch Village Road, all of which we cover. We also cover the places around Bonchurch: Luccombe Village (1 mile north), Ventnor (1 mile west), Steephill (2 miles west), Wroxall (2 miles north-west) and Shanklin (2 miles north). Further out, we also cover Newport (9 miles north-west), Ryde (9 miles north), Cowes (12 miles north-west), Sandown (4 miles north), East Cowes (12 miles north-west) and Oakfield (8 miles north). If you are somewhere remote, a little more planning is needed, so mention it when booking.
Landmarks near Bonchurch
Typical jobs here are in homes near Bonchurch Inn, among other places. For rail, the closest station is Shanklin station, roughly 2.4 miles north of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Sandown Castle (4.3 miles north) and Arthur Webster Memorial Hospital for Children (2.5 miles north). Not far away are Alverstone Mead and St Boniface Down.
Nearby places to Bonchurch
More services for Bonchurch
FAQs for Bonchurch
I let a flat near Shanklin station. Can you check the roof?
Of course. Let us know whether a tenant or an agent will let us in, and the report can go straight to you or your agent.
Does being near the coast affect roofs in Bonchurch?
Near the coast, roofs face more wind and more salt than further inland. Salt corrodes metal fixings and flashings, and wind lifts loose slates, tiles and ridge pieces.
How soon will I get the report?
Report times are set by the package. Basic: within 48 hours. Standard: 24 to 48 hours. Premium: the same day. Mention any deadline when you book.
Do you survey roofs on blocks of flats?
Yes, as long as access is agreed. Roofs over flats are often shared, so we need permission from the building owner or managing agent. We can only inspect what we’re given access to.
Why is my chimney breast damp?
Damp on a chimney breast usually means water is getting into the stack, or moisture is trapped inside it. The survey looks at the stack, the flashings and the capping and records the likely cause.
Our stack is shared. Can you still survey it?
Yes. Shared stacks are common on terraced and semi-detached houses. We survey what we can see safely, and note anything that seems to involve next door.
Is it the same as a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey?
No. Our survey looks at the roof, not the whole building. If you need a full building survey, you will need a RICS survey as well.
What affects the cost of chimney surveys
Prices vary from roof to roof, for these reasons:
- Building height and the viewpoints available
- Chimneys, valleys, parapets and other details
- The size of the roof
- The type of building, from a house to a block or an office
There are three survey packages: the Basic Survey from £150, the Standard Survey from £250 and the Premium Survey from £400, all including VAT. The price for your roof depends on its size, access and what you need to know.
Getting in touch
To price your survey accurately, we will ask about:
- Photos of the roof, taken safely from the ground or a window
- When you need the report by
- What’s prompted the survey
- Anything about access we should know
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Pictures from ground level or a window are fine; never climb up to get a better view. To get started, call 07833 053749 or use the contact form.
What we look for on each type of roof
Rendered stacks
Water can get in through cracks and then struggle to dry out. We record any cracking and where it is.
Flaunching
Flaunching is the mortar on top of a stack that holds the pots and sheds water. Cracks in it let water into the stack.
What we cannot see
In fairness, a roof survey has limits:
- Whether a stack needs rebuilding on structural grounds
- Whether the flue is safe to use
- Parts of the stack that cannot be seen safely or belong to a neighbour we cannot access
If you’re not sure which survey you need, phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and we’ll give you a straight answer before booking. What a survey covers and does not.
Roof types and parts we check
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Flaunching
- Chimney breasts
- Lead flashings
- Shared and party-wall stacks
Why act early in Bonchurch
Loose pots and bricks on a stack are a safety concern. A survey picks them out so they can be made safe by a suitable contractor. For an older or listed building in a place like Bonchurch, repairs may need matching materials and consent, so a defect found early gives time to plan the work properly.
Larger roofs, taller buildings and commercial roofs take longer, so they’re priced to match. You will know the figure before booking.
What you get with us
- An independent look at the roof
- 5,000+ surveys completed
- Drone flown under a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- Covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance