Greater London · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Farnborough, Greater London
A careful look at the chimney stack at your property in Farnborough, and put it all in a report with photos.
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Spalled or crumbling bricks
Chimney survey in Farnborough: what you get
A chimney stands up above the roof, exposed to wind, rain and frost on every side. Over the years, the flaunching cracks, the pointing wears and flashings lift. That lets water into the brickwork, which can show up as damp on a chimney breast or in the loft space. A survey finds these problems and records them with photographs. We survey shared and party-wall stacks, flaunching and brick chimney stacks, and the problems we’re asked to look at most are mortar washing out of the joints and disused chimneys trapping moisture.
Victorian and Edwardian terraces are found right across London, many with Welsh slate roofs, shared chimney stacks and parapet or valley gutters. Slates can last a century or more, but the nails holding them corrode, and slates slip. In Farnborough, as across London, that is why a roof needs a close look rather than a glance from the street. Shared chimney stacks and the lead around them are just as important to check.
The report works through the roof section by section, from the coverings down to the gutters, with a note and a photo for each point. You’ll see the good as well as the bad.
- Location
- Farnborough (BR6)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Cover
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Honest limits
Without opening up the roof, some things stay hidden, so a survey has limits:
- Checks on boilers, fires or their flues
- Flue inspections or sweeping
- Parts of the stack that cannot be seen safely or belong to a neighbour we cannot access
If in doubt, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email and we will point you to the right survey before booking. What a survey covers and doesn’t.
What this survey covers
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Chimney breasts
- Lead flashings
- Brick chimney stacks
- Flaunching
Farnborough homes and their roofs
With Down House about 2.1 miles south-west, Farnborough sits in an area with a long building history. 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. Further from the centre, London’s housing takes in interwar semis with hipped roofs in clay or concrete tiles as well as slate-roofed terraces. On a semi of that age, the small roofs over the bays, the hip tiles and any later dormer each need their own look. Each of these coverings has its own weak points, from fixings and valleys to flashings, chimneys and gutters.
If yours is one of the older homes in the streets near Church of St Giles the Abbot, its chimney, valleys and lead work are likely to be the parts that need attention first. For site and facilities teams at buildings like Farnborough Primary School, a written record of a large roof helps plan work for the holidays rather than in term time.
Farnborough is about 2 miles south-west of Orpington, in Greater London. We visit Farnborough as part of our work across Greater London, for homes and businesses alike. Across Greater London, we cover Farnborough and the places around it. For surveys nearby, see our London page.
Chimney surveys in BR6 are booked the same way as anywhere else. That includes homes and businesses on Tye Lane, Peel Road and Pitt Road and the roads around them. Neighbouring places we cover for chimney surveys include Green Street Green (1 mile south-east), Locksbottom (1 mile north-west), Crofton (1 mile north), Farthing Street (1 mile south-west) and Downe (2 miles south-west). Further out, we also cover London (12 miles north-west), City of Westminster (15 miles north-west), Marylebone (15 miles north-west), Kensington (15 miles north-west), St Pancras (14 miles north-west) and Shoreditch (13 miles north-west).
Around Farnborough
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to Newstead Wood School, South Park and The Buff pub, among other places. The nearest railway station is Orpington station, about 1.2 miles north-east of the centre. A little further out are Orpington Hospital (0.9 miles east) and Crofton Roman Villa (1.1 miles north-east). The countryside around Farnborough includes Downe Bank Nature Reserve and Summer Hill.
Common questions in Farnborough
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Orpington station?
Yes, rented property is part of what we cover. Just phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and tell us about the building.
Can parking be tricky for a visit in Farnborough?
Usually it is manageable with a little notice. Tell us what parking is available nearby, and the visit is planned around it.
Will you photograph what you find?
Yes. Photos are part of every report, so you can see exactly what each finding refers to.
Do you inspect shared chimneys?
Yes. Many houses share stacks with a neighbour. We record the stack as far as we can see it and flag anything on the neighbour’s side.
Do you carry professional indemnity insurance?
Our surveys are covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance. Ask if you need details for a managing agent or building owner.
How experienced are you?
We have more than 20 years’ experience and have completed over 5,000 surveys across London and the South East.
Do you need to get into the loft?
Where it is relevant to the survey and there is safe access, yes. A clear path to the hatch helps, and if the loft can’t be reached safely, the report says so.
Landlords, agents and block managers in Farnborough
Landlords, agents and building managers in Farnborough and across Greater London can book any of our surveys. For a price for a let property or a block, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email.
We also survey roofs for businesses and commercial landlords, including offices, shops and units. Larger roofs take longer, so they’re priced to suit.
When to book a survey in Farnborough
Chimney stacks stand above the roof, exposed to wind, rain and frost on every side. Frost works into cracks in the flaunching and pointing, and rain soaks into worn brickwork. People normally call us when they notice damp or a problem with the stack, or before a purchase.
These are some of the problems a survey can pick up:
- A stack that appears to lean
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Frost-damaged brickwork on the stack
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
If you live near a park such as South Park, or anywhere with mature trees, autumn leaves can block gutters and valleys, and blocked gutters overflow and soak walls.
Choosing a roof surveyor
- Their report turnaround times
- What the report includes, and whether it has photos
- What the survey will not cover
- Which parts of the roof they’ll actually see
The survey, step by step
We work from the outside in: first the slopes, edges and gutters from every safe viewpoint, then the roof space where it can be reached. In total, it takes roughly 1–2 hours for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. In Farnborough, visits are available on weekdays and at weekends. London parking is often by permit or pay-and-display, so it helps to know what’s near you. A back bedroom window can be the best vantage point for a rear addition, so we may ask to use one.
- First you let us know about the chimneys, any damp on the chimney breasts and any worries.
- The stacks are looked at from the ground, from windows and from other safe vantage points.
- The pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, brickwork and flashings are checked and photographed.
- Inside, we look for damp on chimney breasts and in the loft where there is safe access.
- You get a written report with photos and our recommendations.
Getting ready for the survey
- Agree roof access with the managing agent if it’s shared
- Move anything stored under the loft hatch
- Find any records of previous roof work
Arrange a survey
Photos help, if you have them. Pictures from ground level or a window are fine, and please don’t climb up for a closer look. To get started, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email.
Advice
Different roofs, different checks
Flaunching
The sloping mortar around the pots is called flaunching. Once it cracks, water can get straight into the brickwork.
Lead flashings
Mortar fillets are sometimes used where lead would normally be. They crack with age, and we check them too.
Towns and villages near Farnborough
What else we do in Farnborough
What a survey costs
A few things affect what a survey costs:
- If the survey needs thermal imaging or a drone
- Chimneys, valleys, parapets and other details
- The roof’s overall size
- Whether it is a home or a commercial building
The cost of a survey depends on the roof: its size, its height, how many sections it has and how safely it can be seen. Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT.
What we need to know
To price your survey accurately, we’ll ask about:
- Where water is showing inside, if it is
- The property’s address and postcode
- The type of building and roof, like pitched or flat
- Photos of the roof, taken safely from the ground or a window
Surveys can be booked for weekdays, Saturdays or Sundays. To arrange a day that suits you, call 07833 053749 or email us.