Medway · London and the South East
Chimney Survey in Cooling Street
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching for Cooling Street, from an experienced roof surveyor. You get a clear written report with photographs.
- Damaged chimney pots and cowls
- Worn or missing pointing
- Frost-damaged brickwork on the stack
FAQs for Cooling Street
Is the coastal weather around Cooling Street hard on roofs?
It can do. Cooling Street is within about 3 miles of the sea, and coastal roofs tend to see faster wear on metal parts and more wind lifting loose pieces.
Can a landlord with a rental near Higham station book a roof survey?
Yes, landlords and agents are among the people we work for. Just phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email with the details.
Do you work in Cooling Street?
Yes, we do. Cooling Street is part of the area we cover, and the service is the same as everywhere else we work.
Is this a RICS survey?
No. Our survey is a roof survey, not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey of the whole building. It focuses on the roof, so it sits alongside a building survey rather than replacing it.
What should I do with a chimney I do not use?
An unused stack still needs to stay weathertight and ventilated. If it is capped without ventilation, damp can build up inside. Our survey records its condition and how it is capped, so you can decide with a builder what to do.
How do I arrange a chimney survey in Cooling Street?
To book, phone 07833 053749 or email us and let us know the address and what you’d like to know. We’ll confirm the price and find a day that suits.
Will you check the chimney is safe to use with a fire?
No. We survey the stack and its weathering, not the flue. For the flue, you will need a sweep or, for gas, a Gas Safe registered engineer.
About our chimney survey in Cooling Street
Many terraced and semi-detached homes share their chimney stacks with a neighbour. We check whatever is safely visible and what the owner gives us access to. If a defect appears to be on the neighbour’s side, we note it and you can then discuss it with them. You get a written report with photographs and our recommendations. If you are worried about damaged chimney pots and cowls and lifted or split lead flashings, we can find out what’s behind it.
In a village or hamlet like Cooling Street, older cottages and farmhouses often sit alongside barns, outbuildings and a few newer houses. Roofs there can be clay tile, slate, stone or thatch, and chimney stacks are frequently old. We report on what can be seen safely, and thatch is a specialist material. On older roofs, it is usually the chimneys and lead flashings that need work first.
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
- Cooling Street (ME3)
- Wider area
- Medway
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Survey days
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Roof by roof
Rendered stacks
Cracked render can let water in and trap it behind. We record any cracking and where it is.
Lead flashings
Flashings can lift in wind or pull out of their mortar joints. We photograph any we find that look loose or damaged.
What you can safely check yourself
If you have a loft with safe access, take a look inside. Take a torch and only step on boards or joists, checking for stains, damp wood or chinks of daylight.
Your own check is a good start, but it is not a survey. You won’t see flashings, valleys or the backs of chimneys properly from ground level.
Useful tips for Cooling Street property owners
Some practical points come up on survey after survey. They apply to most roofs:
- Look at the chimneys with binoculars after a storm
- Leave close inspection to people with safe access
- Check with the council before altering a stack in a conservation area or on a listed building
- Check that disused chimneys can still breathe
Where another specialist is needed, such as a structural engineer or sweep, we explain why. That helps you brief them.
Unused stacks should be capped in a way that still lets air through. Ventilation helps keep the stack dry.
What we do, step by step
Expect us to ask a few questions before we start, like when any problem began and what work has been done before. The inspection then takes an hour or two on an ordinary house, with bigger or more complicated roofs taking longer. Rural addresses near Cooling Street can be hard to find from a postcode alone, so a few directions are welcome. The visit itself is the same as anywhere else.
- We go through the chimneys, any damp and any work done on them.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- Pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing and flashings are checked and photographed.
- Inside, the chimney breasts and the loft are checked for damp where there’s access.
- The report, with photographs and recommendations, is emailed to you.
Getting ready for the survey
- Leave side gates unlocked
- Gather any invoices or paperwork from past roof work
- For flats, check roof access has been agreed
How to book
Not sure which survey you need? It is easiest to ring 07833 053749 or email us and describe the roof and what’s worrying you. We will talk you through the options and what they cost.
Related advice
Landlords, agents and block managers in Cooling Street
Roof problems in a rented home affect tenants as well as the building. A survey helps you spot issues early and plan the work.
Freeholders and residents’ companies use a roof report to plan and budget.
Why it is worth a survey now in Cooling Street
If you’re buying, find out about the stacks before you exchange. Once you’ve exchanged, the work is down to you. Our report gives you facts to raise with the seller or agent. Around Cooling Street, older homes often have old roof timbers, where water from a failed roof can cause rot if it is left.
What a survey costs comes down to the roof itself: how big it is, how high it is, the number of separate roofs and how it can be reached and seen safely. Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT.
Why book with us
- Surveys seven days a week
- Plain-English reports with photos
- 5,000+ surveys completed
- An independent view of the roof
Read what a roof survey costs or what we found on two real jobs.
Local roofs in Cooling Street
Cooling Street is within about 3 miles of the coast, and being near the sea means more wind and salt than a roof inland would face. Metal fixings and flashings corrode faster in salt air, while gales work at loose ridges, slates and tiles, and driving rain gets into whatever gap is left. With Temple Manor about 3.9 miles south, Cooling Street sits in an area with a long building history. Older roofs in the wider area can hide decades of patch repairs, so the detail matters, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material.
The streets around a church such as St James' 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. If you look after a building like Cliffe Woods Primary School, large buildings have long gutter runs and big roofs that need checking like any other. If you own a rental within reach of Higham station, a roof report between tenancies helps plan work before a small defect becomes a tenant’s leak.
Cooling Street is about 4 miles north of Rochester, in Medway. Anywhere in Cooling Street, we can carry out chimney surveys at your property. Across Medway, we cover Cooling Street and the places around it. Maidstone is in our area too.
Here we cover the ME3 postcode area for chimney surveys. We also cover the places around Cooling Street: Cooling (1 mile north-east), Chattenden (2 miles south-east), Wainscott (2 miles south), Lower Upnor (2 miles south) and High Halstow (2 miles east). We also work in nearby towns like Gillingham (6 miles south-east), Chatham (6 miles south), Rochester (4 miles south), Rainham (7 miles south-east), Strood (4 miles south) and Luton (5 miles south).
What’s near Cooling Street
We work in homes and buildings around The Hundred of Hoo Academy and the streets around them. The closest station to Cooling Street is Higham station, roughly 2.2 miles south-west of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Huguenot Museum (3.7 miles south) and French Hospital (3.8 miles south). For a walk, there’s Gad's Hill and Rede Common.