Greater London · London and the South East
Chimney Survey in Colindale
Wondering about the chimney stack at a property in Colindale? We carry out chimney surveys in Colindale and across Greater London, with plain-English findings.
- Lifted or split lead flashings
- Gaps in the mortar around the pots
- Bricks with flaking faces
Chimney survey in Colindale: what you get
If you are buying a home with chimneys, it is worth knowing their condition before you exchange. On older stacks, we often find cracked flaunching, loose flashings and worn pointing. You get photographs and findings you can take back to the seller or agent. It complements a RICS home survey rather than replacing it. We survey brick chimney stacks, lead flashings and chimney breasts, and common reasons people get in touch are a stack that appears to lean and damp on a chimney breast inside.
A London butterfly roof slopes down to a central valley gutter that drains to the back of the house. From the street you see only a parapet wall, so blocked outlets and split linings go unnoticed until water comes through a ceiling. If your home in Colindale has one, it needs checking from somewhere that can actually see it.
You can share the report with anyone who needs it: your solicitor, the seller, your insurer, a roofer or the building’s managing agent, whichever applies.
- Place
- Colindale (NW9, NW4, HA8)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Colindale homes and their roofs
The wider area around Colindale has a long history of building, with Heath Hall about 3.5 miles east. Period homes nearby can have lead valleys, tall chimneys and a patchwork of past repairs, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material. In outer London, interwar semis with hipped, tiled roofs sit alongside older slate-roofed terraces. If your home in Colindale is one of them, bay roofs, hips and later dormers each have their own details. Whatever the covering, it is often the fixings, flashings, valleys and gutters that give out first.
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for example near Brent Cross Shopping Centre, a written record of the roof’s condition helps you plan maintenance rather than react to leaks. Living close to Sunny Hill Park is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn.
Colindale is about 1 mile south-east of Burnt Oak, in Greater London. We carry out chimney surveys in Colindale for houses, flats, blocks and commercial buildings, with a written report and photographs every time. Our Greater London coverage includes Colindale and the places around it. Our London page covers surveys nearby.
Here we cover the NW9, NW4 and HA8 postcode area for chimney surveys. That includes homes and businesses on Cecil Road, Booth Road and Ajax Avenue. Colindale sits on or near the A5150. We also cover West Hendon (1 mile south), The Hyde (1 mile south), The Burroughs (1 mile east), Hendon (1 mile south-east) and Kingsbury (1 mile south-west). Larger places within reach include London (9 miles south-east), City of Westminster (7 miles south-east), Marylebone (7 miles south-east), Kensington (7 miles south), St Pancras (7 miles south-east) and Shoreditch (9 miles south-east).
Around Colindale
Typical jobs here are in homes near Sunny Hill Park, Saracens High School and Kisharon College. The nearest railway station is Hendon station, about 1 mile south-east. Well-known places in the area include Edgware Community Hospital (1.3 miles north-west) and Brent Cross Shopping Centre (1.5 miles south-east). Open spaces near Colindale include Darland's Lake and Parliament Hill.
Leave it or get it looked at?
A damp chimney breast seldom dries out until the cause is found. It can stain walls and damage plaster. Finding the cause means the right work can be planned. London’s older roofs often have bitumen felt underlay or none at all, so a slipped slate can soon mean water inside. Left alone, that means wet timbers and plaster, which is a far bigger job than the roof fault itself.
Larger roofs, taller buildings and commercial roofs take longer, so they’re priced to match. You’ll know the figure before booking.
Why us?
- Insured for professional indemnity and public liability
- Drone and thermal imaging surveys available
- 98% customer satisfaction
- Drone flown under a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
Tips that help
Small things make a difference. Some pointers:
- Make sure fixings on the stack are secure
- Keep the report to compare against at the next survey
- Keep track of stains on chimney breasts
- Glance at the stacks from the street now and then
Once we have been, the findings are written up with photos. It explains the condition of each part of the stack and any damp inside. Turnaround is within 48 hours for Basic, 24 to 48 hours for Standard and the same day for Premium.
Check your stacks from the street or garden after a storm. Binoculars help you spot loose pots, missing mortar or lifted flashings.
When to book a survey in Colindale
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 recommend a structural engineer where support is in question.
People typically book a survey after spotting one of these:
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- Lifted or split lead flashings
- Worn or missing pointing
- Flaunching that has broken away
Take a building like Colindale Primary School: its roofs, gutters and any chimneys need the same checks as a house’s, just on a bigger scale.
Before you book anyone
- What they won’t be able to tell you
- What experience they bring
- What the report includes, and whether it has photographs
- Whether the loft space is looked at, where there is one
What we can’t see
Before you book, it’s worth knowing what a survey will not do:
- Structural calculations for a leaning stack
- Conditions inside walls
- Gas safety checks, which need a Gas Safe registered engineer
If you are not sure which survey you need, call 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we’ll give you a straight answer before booking. What a survey covers and does not.
What this survey covers
- Chimney breasts
- Flaunching
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Lead flashings
The survey, step by step
You do not need to do much on the day. Show us any stains, drips or problem areas you know about, and we will take it from there. A typical survey takes roughly 1–2 hours on an ordinary house, with bigger or more complicated roofs taking longer. In a London conversion, the way into the roof space is often from a communal landing or the top flat. If that applies to your building, it helps to agree access with the neighbours or the managing agent first. Otherwise, the visit in Colindale runs like any other.
- First we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- We look at every stack from wherever it can safely be seen.
- Pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing and flashings are checked and photographed.
- We look for damp on chimney breasts and in the roof space.
- You get a written report with photos and recommendations by email.
Preparing for the visit
- For a flat or shared roof, check access with whoever owns or manages the building
- Tell us about parking before the day
- Check we can get to the back of the property
Arrange a survey
A quick phone call is typically the easiest start: call 07833 053749 or email us. The price is agreed before a date is set.
Advice
Different roofs, different checks
Flaunching
Sitting at the very top, flaunching is fully exposed. We look for cracks, gaps around the pots and missing pieces.
Chimney pots and cowls
On redundant flues, we check how the pots are capped. Poor capping can lead to damp inside the stack.
Nearby places to Colindale
Also in Colindale
Colindale: your questions answered
Is parking a problem for a survey in Colindale?
London parking needs a little planning, so let us know about permits, bays or a driveway when you book. That way the visit can be planned around it.
Is my home in Colindale listed or in a conservation area?
We cannot confirm that for you, but Historic England’s list and your council can. Both listing and conservation areas can limit changes of roofing material.
Do you need to go on the roof to check the chimney?
We use safe viewpoints rather than climbing onto the stack. A drone inspection is part of the Premium Survey where applicable. Any area we couldn’t view is noted.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We do not carry out asbestos surveys or testing. If we see materials that could contain asbestos, like cement roof sheets or soffits on buildings from before 2000, we flag them, and recommend a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before they’re disturbed.
Does someone need to be in?
That depends on the survey. For inside areas and the loft space, someone has to give us access, while outside access can be discussed when you book.
Can you inspect my roof with a drone?
Yes, where applicable and safe. We are a CAA-registered drone operator (Flyer ID and Operator ID), flying a sub-250g drone. Drone inspection is part of the Drone Roof Survey and the Premium Survey, where applicable.
What happens after the survey?
We email you the written report with photographs and recommendations. You can use it to talk to a seller, an insurer, a roofer or a managing agent, whichever applies.