Greater London · London and the South East
Bromley Common Chimney Survey
Wondering about the chimney stack at a property in Bromley Common? You can book a chimney survey in Bromley Common and across Greater London.
- Spalled or crumbling bricks
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
Chimney survey in Bromley Common
A chimney survey is about the outside of the stack and the roof around it. It is not a flue inspection, a chimney sweep or a gas safety inspection. If you use a fire or a gas appliance, the flue should be checked by a sweep or a Gas Safe registered engineer as appropriate. We’ll tell you if we see anything that suggests they should take a look. Typical surveys look at staining on walls around the chimney and frost-damaged brickwork on the stack, across shared and party-wall stacks, chimney breasts and flaunching.
Many London terraces have a butterfly roof, with two slopes meeting in a central valley gutter that drains to the rear. Hidden behind the parapet, that gutter can block or split without anyone seeing it. If your home in Bromley Common has one, it needs checking from somewhere that can actually see it.
Where we cannot see part of the chimney stack, the report says so. You’ll know exactly what was inspected and what wasn’t, and what we’d suggest next.
- Where
- Bromley Common (BR2, BR1)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Weekdays and weekends
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
For landlords and managing agents
Buyers’ agents can book surveys on behalf of their clients. The report is emailed, so it can go straight to your client, photos included.
If the property is let, the agent or a tenant can let us in, at a time agreed beforehand. Surveys run seven days a week, which can make access easier.
Places near Bromley Common
What else we do in Bromley Common
Can I check my roof myself?
You can learn a lot from the ground. Binoculars help you spot slipped slates or tiles, gaps along the ridge and a leaning stack. Please do not climb up for a closer look.
A DIY look is useful, but it isn’t a survey. From the ground, valleys, flashings and the backs of chimneys are often out of sight, and those are details a survey looks at closely.
What happens on the day
You don’t need to do much on the day. Show us any stains, drips or problem areas you know about, and we will get on with the inspection. A typical survey takes about 1–2 hours at most homes, rising to roughly 3–4 hours on a commercial building. For a visit in Bromley Common, parking and access are the things to plan: let us know about parking, the floor the property is on, any shared entrance and loft access. We then look at what can be seen safely from the ground, windows, the loft and, where it’s safe, the roof itself.
- We go through the chimneys, any damp and any work done on them.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- We photograph and record the pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings.
- Inside, the chimney breasts and the loft are checked for damp where there is access.
- The report, with photos and recommendations, is emailed to you.
Before we arrive
- Show us where any leaks or stains appear
- Buyers: confirm access with the estate agent or seller
- Move anything stored under the loft hatch
Book a survey
A quick phone call is usually the easiest start: call 07833 053749 or email us, and we will ask about the building and what you need. The price is agreed before a date is set.
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When you need someone else
Some things cannot be seen without opening up the roof, and that sets some limits:
- Hidden damage within the stack
- Whether a stack needs rebuilding on structural grounds
- Hidden sides of a shared stack
If you are not sure which survey you need, ring 07833 053749 or email us and we will give you a straight answer before booking. What a survey covers and does not.
What this survey covers
- Flaunching
- Chimney breasts
- Brick chimney stacks
- Lead flashings
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Chimney pots and cowls
Your questions about chimney surveys in Bromley Common
Will parking be an issue for a roof survey in Bromley Common?
It can be, so it helps to tell us about permits, visitor bays or off-street space when you book. That way the visit can be planned around it.
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Bromley Common?
The council and Historic England’s list are the places to check. It’s worth checking before planning roof work, as both can affect what’s allowed.
What will the report tell me?
It works through the roof part by part, in writing and with photos, finishing with recommendations. The most urgent items are made clear.
How long is the visit?
Most surveys take about 1–2 hours on an ordinary house, though large, tall or awkward roofs take more time. We will confirm the timing as you book.
Do you inspect the flue?
No. It isn’t a flue, sweep or gas safety inspection. We check the structure and weathering of the stack and any damp and flag anything that suggests the flue needs a look.
Is a leaning chimney dangerous?
Have it checked rather than leaving it. Leaning often comes from mortar breaking down unevenly. The survey records what we can see, and a structural engineer can assess whether it needs work.
Does this replace a RICS home survey?
No. This is a survey of the roof only, and it is not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey. It can sit alongside a RICS survey if you want both.
Useful tips for Bromley Common property owners
Getting the most from a chimney survey starts before we arrive and carries on afterwards. Some tips:
- Check fixings on the stack are secure
- Check your stacks from ground level after strong winds
- File photos of the stacks with your home records
- Leave close inspection to people with safe access
The report is emailed to you, ready to share with a roofer or builder. We use plain English and a photo for each defect so anyone reading it can see what we saw.
Check fixings on the stack are sound, and moved if they’re working it loose. Removing unused fixings takes strain off the brickwork.
Local roofs in Bromley Common
Bromley Palace, about 1.5 miles north-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Bromley Common. Older homes in the wider area often have features worth a closer look, such as lead valleys, tall stacks and roofs that have been patched over the years, and the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. In outer London, interwar semis with hipped, tiled roofs sit alongside older slate-roofed terraces. On a semi of that age, the small roofs over the bays, the hip tiles and any later dormer each need their own look. Whichever you have, the details that tend to fail before the covering itself get the closest look.
Landlords with a home close to Bickley station may find that the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at. Living close to Norman Park is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn, and blocked gutters overflow and soak walls.
Bromley Common is about 2 miles south-east of Bromley, in Greater London. Bromley Common is one of many places we visit across Greater London, for houses, flats and commercial buildings. Our area takes in places right across Greater London, from the larger towns to small villages. For surveys nearby, see our London page.
Postcode districts we cover here for chimney surveys: BR2 and BR1. That includes homes and businesses on Pope Road, Crown Lane and Church Lane. If you’re just outside Bromley Common, we cover Southborough (1 mile north-east), Hayes (1 mile south-west), Locksbottom (1 mile south-east), Shortlands (2 miles north-west) and Keston (2 miles south). Further out, we also cover London (10 miles north-west), City of Westminster (12 miles north-west), Marylebone (12 miles north-west), Kensington (13 miles north-west), St Pancras (12 miles north-west) and Shoreditch (11 miles north-west).
Local landmarks in Bromley Common
Around Bromley Common, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Norman Park, The Chequers Public House and Bishop Justus CofE School, among other places. The nearest railway station is Bickley station, roughly 1.2 miles north. Well-known places in the area include Bridgeways Day Hospital (within half a mile east) and Bethlem Museum of the Mind (under half a mile south-west). Open spaces near Bromley Common include Summer Hill and Downham Woodland Walk.
Signs you need a chimney survey in Bromley Common
Removing a chimney breast inside can leave questions about how the stack is supported. We record what we can see in the loft and outside, and the report recommends a structural engineer if support is a concern.
Most people get in touch when they’ve noticed one of these:
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Redundant stacks capped without ventilation
- Signs that a stack is leaning
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
Anyone responsible for a site like Trinity Church of England Primary School will know that a written record of a large roof helps plan work for the holidays rather than in term time.
What to check before booking
- Are they insured for the work?
- How much experience they have with roofs like yours
- Whether any drone flown is registered with the CAA
- Which parts of the roof they’ll actually see