Kent · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Darenth, Kent
Find out what’s going on with the chimney stack before you spend money on it. Chimney surveys in Darenth, with photos and a clear written report.
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Spalled or crumbling bricks
What a survey costs
Prices vary from roof to roof, for these reasons:
- Whether you choose the Basic, Standard or Premium Survey
- How big the roof is
- The height of the building and how the roof can safely be seen
- The use of thermal imaging or a drone
Prices start from £150, including VAT. Basic starts from £150, Standard from £250 and Premium from £400, VAT included.
Helping us price your survey
A little information up front helps. Please include:
- Your postcode, so we can check access and travel
- Where water is showing inside, if it is
- What’s prompted the survey
- The style of property, from a terrace to a block
Booking is simple: just phone 07833 053749 or email us, tell us about the property and we will explain which survey suits. We confirm the price before anything is booked.
Chimney survey in Darenth: what you get
If you’re buying a home with chimneys, it’s worth knowing their condition before you exchange. Cracked flaunching, failed flashings and worn pointing are common findings on older stacks. Our report gives you specific points to raise with the seller or agent. It works alongside a RICS home survey, not instead of one. If you’ve noticed mortar washing out of the joints and damaged chimney pots and cowls, a survey will tell you what’s going on.
Somewhere as small as Darenth, homes are often older cottages and farmhouses, with outbuildings and some newer houses. Older roofs may be clay tile, slate, stone or thatch, often with chimneys that have stood a long time. Each needs checking in its own way, and thatch is a specialist material we report on as far as it can be seen. Chimneys and lead flashings on old roofs frequently need the most attention.
How fast the report arrives depends on the package: Basic within 48 hours, Standard in 24–48 hours and Premium the same day.
- Where
- Darenth (DA2)
- Region
- Kent
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Chimney surveys in Darenth: local notes
About 4.6 miles north-west lies Hall Place and Gardens, a reminder of how long the area around Darenth has been built on. 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. Older houses across Kent frequently have handmade clay or peg tiles, and many have tile-hung walls. Oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses are part of the county’s older buildings too. Whichever you have, the details that tend to fail before the covering itself get the closest look.
The streets around a church such as Church of St Margaret of Antioch are often among the oldest in a place, and if you own one of the older houses nearby, corroded nails, tired lead and weathered chimney pointing are the things to watch on older roofs. Living close to Darenth Country Park is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn. Take a building like Greenlands Primary School: its roofs, gutters and any chimneys need the same checks as a house’s, just on a bigger scale.
Darenth is about 2 miles south-east of Dartford, in Kent. Whether the building in Darenth is a house, a flat or a commercial unit, we can survey the roof. Darenth is one of the towns and villages in Kent where we work. Our London page covers surveys nearby.
We cover every part of the DA2 postcode area for chimney surveys. We cover properties on Hill Rise, Hillside and Moss Way and the roads around them. We also cover the places around Darenth: St Margarets (1 mile south), Green Street Green (1 mile south-east), Sutton at Hone (1 mile south-west), South Darenth (1 mile south) and Bean (1 mile east). Further out, we also cover Sevenoaks (10 miles south), Gravesend (5 miles east), Tonbridge (15 miles south), Northfleet (4 miles east), Swanley (4 miles south-west) and Kings Hill (12 miles south-east).
Landmarks near Darenth
We work in homes and buildings around Fox & Hounds pub, Darenth Country Park and Leigh Academy and the streets around them. The closest station to Darenth is Farningham Road station, roughly 1.6 miles south-west of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Bluewater (1.5 miles north-east) and Darenth Park Hospital (1 mile north). For a walk, there’s Wansunt Pit and Sawyers Lake.
What this survey can’t tell you
Before booking, it’s worth knowing what a survey will not do:
- Flue inspections or sweeping
- Conditions inside walls
- Gas safety checks, which need a Gas Safe registered engineer
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we’ll tell you. The full list of what we check.
What this survey covers
- Lead flashings
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Chimney breasts
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Brick chimney stacks
- Flaunching
What we do, step by step
There isn’t much for you to do on the day. Show us any stains, drips or problem areas you know about, and we’ll get on with the inspection. A typical survey takes about one to two hours for a house, and about three to four hours for a commercial roof. Cottages and farmhouses around Darenth often have roofs at several levels, with lean-tos and outbuildings attached. Each part is looked at from wherever it can safely be seen, and anything we can’t see is noted.
- First we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- We check every stack from wherever it can be seen safely.
- We photograph and record the pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings.
- We look for damp on chimney breasts and in the loft space.
- The report, with photographs and recommendations, is emailed to you.
Getting ready for the survey
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
- Note where any stains or damp appear
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
Arrange a survey
Most bookings start with a short call: call 07833 053749 or email us, and we will ask about the building and what you need. You’ll have a price before anything is arranged.
Read more
What we look for on each type of roof
Brick stacks
Frost can damage bricks that have soaked up water, making the faces flake away. We record any we can see.
Lead flashings
Over time, lead can lift or come away from the brickwork. Any loose or split flashings are recorded.
Towns and villages near Darenth
Other services in Darenth
Should I look at the roof myself first?
During heavy rain, look at the gutters from ground level or a window. Overflowing water can be a sign of a blockage or a gutter that has dropped.
Inside, the loft is a good place to look, with care. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
FAQs for Darenth
Do you cover smaller places like Darenth?
Yes, we do. We cover the whole of London and South East England, from towns to the smallest villages. Longer journeys are simply planned in advance.
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Farningham Road station?
Of course. We just need to know who will give access, and the report can go straight to you or your agent.
Do you carry out surveys on Saturdays and Sundays?
We survey on any day from Monday to Sunday, during the day, which suits people who work during the week. Let us know your preferred days when you book.
Is it the same as a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey?
No. It is a specialist roof survey, not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 building survey. It focuses on the roof and can sit alongside a RICS survey.
What does a chimney survey cover?
We check the pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, brickwork and flashings. We also check chimney breasts and the stack in the loft space where we can reach. You get a written report with photos.
How experienced are you?
We’ve completed more than 5,000 surveys, across 20+ years of surveying roofs.
Will you go up on the roof?
Not unless it’s safe. Most of what we need can be seen from safe viewpoints, the loft and, where it applies, a drone, and the report notes anything we couldn’t see.
Tips from our surveys
From years of surveys, a few habits stand out:
- Check with the council before altering a stack in a conservation area or on a listed building
- Glance at the stacks from the street now and then
- Do not use a ladder to reach the stack yourself
- Check fixings on the stack are secure
With a shared stack, the report can help when talking to next door. The photos show the problem and which side it’s on from the viewpoints we used.
Watch for damp or staining on chimney breasts. Early signs are easier to trace.