Greater London · London and the South East
Custom House Chimney Survey
We take a careful look at the chimney stack at your property in Custom House, with photos and a written report.
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- Worn or missing pointing
- Spalled or crumbling bricks
Custom House: your questions answered
How do I find out if my home in Custom House is listed?
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.
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Custom House station?
Yes, that’s a common request. Let us know whether a tenant or an agent will let us in, and we can send the report to you or your agent.
Do I have to be there for the survey?
If the survey includes the loft or the inside of the building, someone needs to let us in. Access is agreed with you as you book.
How can you see the top of the stack?
We inspect from wherever is safe: the ground, nearby windows and higher points, and the roof space. Our Premium Survey includes a drone inspection where it applies. We note anything we couldn’t see.
How much does a chimney survey cost in Custom House?
Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT. The final figure depends on the roof and the package you choose.
How do I arrange a chimney survey in Custom House?
It’s easiest to call 07833 053749 or email us. Give us the address and a few details about the roof, and we will take it from there. We survey on any day of the week.
Why is my chimney breast damp?
There are a few common causes: water getting in at the top, through the brickwork or at the flashings, or moisture trapped in a stack with no ventilation. Our survey checks each of these and records the likely cause.
Chimney surveys for homes and businesses in Custom House
On terraced and semi-detached houses, a chimney stack is frequently shared with next door. We check whatever is safely visible and what the owner gives us access to. Where a problem seems to involve a neighbour’s side, the report records it, so you can talk to them. You get a photo-illustrated written report and our recommendations. We’re often asked to look into pots or cowls that look unsafe and flashings pulling away from the stack, across chimney breasts, shared and party-wall stacks and lead flashings.
London has Victorian and Edwardian terraces in almost every borough, often with slate roofs, chimney stacks shared with neighbours and gutters hidden behind parapets. Slates can last a century or more, but the nails holding them corrode, and slates slip. Homes in Custom House are no exception. Lead flashings and shared chimney stacks on these houses need a proper look too.
The report doesn’t just list problems. It explains what we found, why it matters and what we recommend.
- Where
- Custom House (E16, E13)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Local roofs in Custom House
Queen's House, about 2.3 miles south-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Custom House. If yours is one of the older homes, expect a mix of original materials and later repairs on the roof, and any change of roofing material on a listed home needs checking with the council first. Welsh slate on Victorian and Edwardian terraces is a familiar sight across inner London. A butterfly roof with a central valley gutter, tucked behind a parapet wall, is common on these houses. Shared chimney stacks, party-wall upstands and lead work come with this kind of house. Each of these coverings has its own weak points, from fixings and valleys to flashings, chimneys and gutters.
Anyone responsible for a site like St Joachim's Catholic Primary School will know that large buildings have long gutter runs and big roofs that need checking like any other. For businesses in and around places such as Gallions Reach Shopping Park, knowing the roof’s condition lets you budget for work rather than pay for emergencies.
Custom House is about 1 mile south of Canning Town, in Greater London. Whether the building in Custom House is a house, a flat or a commercial unit, the roof can be surveyed on a weekday or at the weekend. We cover towns and villages across Greater London, large and small.
Every address in E16 and E13 is covered for chimney surveys. Streets in the area include Tree Road, Ethel Road and Booth Road. With the A1020 close by, Custom House is easy for us to reach. Close by, we survey roofs in West Silvertown (1 mile south-west), Silvertown (1 mile south), Canning Town (1 mile north), Royal Docks (1 mile east) and Limmo Peninsula (1 mile west). Larger places within reach include London (5 miles west), City of Westminster (8 miles west), Marylebone (8 miles west), Kensington (10 miles west), St Pancras (6 miles west) and Shoreditch (5 miles west).
Landmarks near Custom House
We work in homes and buildings around Thames Barrier Park, The Royal Docks Community School and Royal Docks Academy. There’s a railway station in Custom House itself: Custom House station. Other landmarks nearby include Gallions Reach Shopping Park (2.2 miles east) and Charlton Athletic Museum (1.5 miles south). The countryside around Custom House includes Gilbert's Pit and Tower Hill.
Nearby places to Custom House
Also in Custom House
How it works
Once we’ve finished looking, we write up our findings as a report with photos. As for time on site, it usually takes about 1–2 hours at a house, as part of a look at the roof around the stack. London terraces rarely offer a view of the whole roof from one spot, so in Custom House we work round the house, using the street, the windows, the loft and any safe vantage point behind it. If other people live in the building, tell us who can let us into the shared parts.
- We start by noting which stacks are in use, shared or causing concern.
- We check the roof around each stack, including the flashings.
- The top of each stack is checked for cracked flaunching and loose pots.
- We note the brickwork, pointing and any sign of leaning.
- The report explains the condition and which work is most urgent.
Getting ready for the survey
- Make sure we can get to the back of the property
- Move anything stored under the loft hatch
- Find any records of previous roof work
Book a survey
Buyers should book once an offer has been accepted, so there’s time to use the report before exchange. Otherwise, simply phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form whenever suits you.
Read more
When to book a survey in Custom House
Flaunching is the mortar bed that holds the pots and throws water off the top. Once it cracks, water gets in and frost makes the cracks bigger. Loose pots can follow.
These are some of the problems a survey can pick up:
- A chimney out of line
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Bricks with flaking faces
Trees in and around Thames Barrier Park shed leaves that can end up in nearby gutters, and an overflowing gutter soon means a wet wall.
Before booking anyone
- Which viewpoints they use to see the roof
- When you will get the report
- What exactly goes into their report
- Is there a chance to talk the report through?
DIY checks: what’s safe
If you have a loft with safe access, take a look inside. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, checking for stains, damp wood or chinks of daylight.
You can learn a lot from ground level. With binoculars, look for slipped or missing slates and tiles, gaps along the ridge and leaning chimneys. Please do not climb up for a closer look.
Tips that help
There is plenty you can do without going near the roof. What helps most:
- Do not use a ladder to reach the stack yourself
- Have brackets on the chimney checked
- Keep track of stains on chimney breasts
- Keep the report to compare against at the next survey
You get the report by email and can pass it to whoever does the work. Each defect is described in plain words and shown in a photo so anyone reading it can see what we saw.
Unused stacks should be capped in a way that still lets air through. Ventilation helps keep the stack dry.
Roof by roof
Chimney pots and cowls
For unused flues, we check whether caps or cowls allow ventilation. Capping without ventilation can trap moisture.
Rendered stacks
What’s behind the render cannot be seen without removing some, so the report says what can and can’t be judged.
Why act early in Custom House
Chimneys are easy to forget because you rarely see the top of them. Defects tend to go unseen until there’s a stain. Surveying the stack now can catch problems first. Behind a London parapet, a blocked gutter can sit full of water without anyone seeing it. By the time a ceiling stains, the timbers underneath may have been wet for a while.
One thing that affects the price is the package: from £150 for Basic, £250 for Standard and £400 for Premium, with VAT included. Size, height and access can affect the price too.
What you get with us
- Satisfaction rate of 98%
- Weekday and weekend surveys
- Drone flown under a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- Independent findings on the roof’s condition
Take a look at our cost guide and two real surveys.