East Sussex · London and the South East
Chimney survey in East Dean, East Sussex
Get a clear view of the chimney stack at a property in East Dean. Visits run on weekdays and weekends, in the daytime.
- Unused flues sealed without airflow
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- A chimney out of line
Should I look at the roof myself first?
After heavy rain, check ceilings and the tops of walls for new stains. Photograph them and note the date, as it helps a surveyor trace the cause.
It helps to keep a record: when leaks happen, ground-level photos and any past roof work. Share it with us when booking, as it helps us focus the survey.
Chimney survey in East Dean
For buyers, a chimney survey before exchange can flag work you may want to raise. On older stacks, we often find cracked flaunching, loose flashings and worn pointing. You get photos and findings you can take back to the seller or agent. It complements a RICS home survey rather than replacing it. We survey chimney breasts, shared and party-wall stacks and brick chimney stacks, and the problems we are asked to look at most are gaps where the stack meets the roof and gaps in the mortar around the pots.
In a village or hamlet like East Dean, 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 often old. We report on everything that’s safely in view, and thatch is a specialist material. Chimneys and lead flashings on old roofs frequently need the most attention.
The report works through the roof section by section, from the coverings down to the gutters, each with a short note and a photograph. It records what’s sound as well as what isn’t.
- Place
- East Dean (BN20)
- Region
- East Sussex
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- When we survey
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Chimney surveys in East Dean: local notes
East Dean lies within about 1 mile of the sea, where sea air brings more salt and stronger wind than inland. Metal fixings and flashings corrode faster in salt air, while gales work at loose ridges, slates and tiles, while driving rain finds any gap. In Sussex, older roofs are often handmade clay tile, frequently with tile-hanging on the walls below. Horsham stone slab roofs survive on some old Sussex buildings, alongside oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses. On roofs like these, good slates or tiles can outlast the nails, battens, lead and mortar around them.
Take an older house close to The Parish Church of St Simon and St Jude: its roof may have old fixings, lead flashings and chimneys that need a closer look. If you let a flat or house near Eastbourne station, the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at.
East Dean is about 4 miles south-west of Eastbourne, in East Sussex. East Dean is part of the area we cover as part of our work across London and South East England. Across East Sussex, we cover East Dean. Brighton is in our area too.
We survey roofs across BN20 for chimney surveys and the streets around it. Local streets include Lower Street, Went Way and Gilberts Drive, and we cover them all. We also cover the places around East Dean: Friston (1 mile north-east), Birling Gap (1 mile south), Jevington (2 miles north), Meads (3 miles east) and Old Town (3 miles east). We also work in nearby towns like Eastbourne (4 miles north-east), Bexhill-on-Sea (13 miles north-east), Seaford (4 miles west), Lewes (12 miles north-west), Hailsham (8 miles north) and Uckfield (15 miles north).
Around East Dean
Around East Dean, our work takes us to homes and buildings near The Tiger Inn and the streets around them. The nearest railway station is Eastbourne station, roughly 3.4 miles east of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find Filching Manor And Motor Museum (3.3 miles north) and Eastbourne District General Hospital (3.3 miles north-east). Open spaces near East Dean include Combe Hill.
Your questions about chimney surveys in East Dean
Do you cover smaller places like East Dean?
Yes, we do. We work right across London and the South East, from towns to the smallest villages. The journey is planned ahead, so it helps to know about access.
How do I find out if my home in East Dean is listed?
Start with Historic England’s list for listing and your council for conservation areas. Either can affect what roof work is allowed, so it is worth checking before planning any.
Are you structural engineers?
No. Visible signs such as deflection or sagging are recorded, but we do not provide calculations or an engineer’s opinion. The report will say if you need an engineer.
Will I get photos?
Yes, every report has them. Each finding is shown in a picture where possible, which makes the report easy to follow.
How much is a survey?
Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT. We confirm the price for your roof before you book, based on the roof’s size, access and package. For a price, call 07833 053749 or email us.
Is a chimney survey the same as a flue inspection?
No. It isn’t a flue, sweep or gas safety inspection. We check the stack, pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings, and damp inside, and we will say if anything suggests the flue needs checking.
Do you survey roofs on blocks of flats?
Yes, once whoever controls the roof agrees access. On a shared roof we can only inspect the parts we’re allowed to reach.
What a survey costs
Survey packages start from £150, inc. VAT. What you pay for your roof depends on:
- Whether it is a home or a commercial building
- How complicated the roof is, with its valleys, chimneys and parapets
- Any need for thermal images or a drone flight
- The number of roofs, including extensions and garages
For a price for your roof in East Dean, phone 07833 053749 or email us with the address and a few details. The price is agreed before a date is set.
What we need to know
Getting the details right at the start saves time. Please include:
- Whether there is a loft hatch, a shared roof or tricky access
- Where water is showing inside, if it is
- The property’s address and postcode
- When you need the report by
We confirm the price for the job before you book, so you know where you stand. Prices start from £150, including VAT. For a price for your roof, ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email.
Places near East Dean
Other services in East Dean
Do you need a chimney survey in East Dean?
Aerials and dishes are frequently fixed to stacks. Their weight and the wind on them can loosen bricks and pointing. Any fixings on the stack are checked and recorded.
A survey can pick up problems like:
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
- Worn or missing pointing
- A stack that appears to lean
Alfriston Clergy House, about 3.9 miles north-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around East Dean. Older homes in the area may have roofs that need matching materials when work is done.
Questions to ask before booking
- Whether the price includes VAT
- How long the report takes to arrive
- Will they check the loft as well as the outside?
- What follow-up you get after the report
Before and after the survey
A little preparation and a few simple habits help, both for the survey and for the roof itself. Our tips:
- Check unused flues are capped with ventilation
- Use a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances
- File photos of the stacks with your home records
- Have brackets on the chimney checked
If anything in the report isn’t clear, just ask us. The Standard Survey includes a follow-up consultation and the Premium Survey an in-person consultation.
Make sure fixings on the stack are sound, and moved if they’re working it loose. Less load on the stack means less strain in wind.
What happens on the day
The visit has one job: to look at the chimney stack as closely as is safe and record what we find. Notes and photos go into the written report. The visit normally takes an hour or two for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. For a village or hamlet like East Dean, the journey is planned in advance: let us know about narrow lanes, gates, long drives and where we can park. The roof is looked at from ground level, from windows, from the loft where there’s safe access and from the roof where it’s safe.
- We go through the chimneys, any damp and any work done on them.
- We check every stack from wherever it can be seen safely.
- 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
- Agree roof access with the managing agent if it is shared
- Keep pets in another room
- Have keys ready for side gates, garages or roof access doors
Getting a price
Most bookings start with a short call: phone 07833 053749 or email us. You’ll have a price before anything is arranged.
Advice
Why act early in East Dean
Damp in a chimney breast usually gets worse while the cause is left. It can stain walls and damage plaster. Finding the cause means the right work can be planned. Where a roof is exposed, as many are in small places like East Dean, driving rain gets into any weakness, and damp in older walls is slow to dry out.
The Premium Survey includes thermal imaging and drone inspection where it applies, which starts from £400, including VAT. We’ll tell you which package suits the questions you have.
What you get with us
- Package prices that include VAT
- Over 5,000 surveys carried out
- Insured for professional indemnity and public liability
- Visits on any day of the week
Take a look at what a roof survey costs or our case studies.