East Sussex · London and the South East
Five Ashes Chimney Survey
We take a careful look at the chimney stack at your property in Five Ashes, and put it all in a report with photos.
- Damaged chimney pots and cowls
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
Chimney surveys for homes and businesses in Five Ashes
If you’re buying a home with chimneys, it is worth knowing their condition before you exchange. Cracked flaunching, failed flashings and worn pointing are common findings on older stacks. 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 are frequently asked to look into redundant stacks capped without ventilation and worn or missing pointing, on shared and party-wall stacks, chimney breasts and flaunching.
In a small place like Five Ashes, many roofs stand in the open, so ridges, chimney stacks, flashings and gutters work hard. Older walls take a long time to dry once water gets in. A written report sets out what to deal with and in what order. On exposed older roofs, chimneys and lead flashings are often the first to give way.
With the Standard Survey, you also get moisture detection, a structural check and a follow-up consultation. The Premium Survey adds thermal imaging, drone inspection where it applies, structural analysis and an in-person consultation.
- Where
- Five Ashes (TN20)
- Wider area
- East Sussex
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Weekdays and weekends
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Common roof problems in Five Ashes
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.
Typical things we’re asked to look at include:
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Damaged chimney pots and cowls
- Spalled or crumbling bricks
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
If you let a flat or house near Crowborough station, a roof report helps you deal with small faults before they turn into a call from a tenant.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Their track record with similar roofs
- What they will not be able to tell you
- Whether you get a written report with photos
- Whether you can ask questions once you have the report
What a chimney survey does not cover
Every survey has limits, and we’d rather be clear about that before booking. Keep these in mind:
- Parts of the stack that cannot be seen safely or belong to a neighbour we can’t access
- Checks on boilers, fires or their flues
- Whether the flue is safe to use
If you’re not sure which survey you need, ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we will give you a straight answer. What a survey covers and doesn’t.
Roofs we survey in Five Ashes
- Flaunching
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Lead flashings
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney breasts
- Shared and party-wall stacks
Tips from our surveys
Here are a few things we’d tell any owner, before and after a survey:
- Keep the report to compare against at the next survey
- Check that disused chimneys can still breathe
- Use a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances
- Never climb onto the roof to look at a chimney
You can send the report to roofers or builders for quotes. With the same list in front of each contractor, comparing quotes is simpler.
Have aerial and dish brackets on the stack checked and taken off if they’re no longer needed. Removing unused fixings takes strain off the brickwork.
What we do, step by step
Every roof is different, but as a rough guide the survey takes about 1–2 hours at a typical home, and longer for a large or complex roof. If you have questions on the day, just ask. Older roofs in small places like Five Ashes can have low, tight loft spaces, so tell us about the loft hatch and any ladder. We only go where it’s safe.
- We go through the chimneys, any damp and any work done on them.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- We photograph and record the pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings.
- We look for damp on chimney breasts and in the roof space.
- You get a written report with photos and recommendations by email.
Before the survey
- Let us know about parking near the property
- Clear the way to the loft hatch
- Find any records of previous roof work
Arrange a survey
For a price for chimney surveys in Five Ashes, ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email. A few details about the property and the roof help us give you an accurate price.
Advice
Local roofs in Five Ashes
What can be done to an older roof may depend on listing or a conservation area. Your council and Historic England’s list will tell you where you stand, ideally before any re-roofing is planned. Many older homes in Sussex have handmade clay tiles and tile-hung walls. A few old Sussex buildings still carry heavy Horsham stone slabs, and the county’s older buildings include oast houses and Wealden hall houses. Whatever the covering, it is often the fixings, flashings, valleys and gutters that give out first.
If you look after a building such as Five Ashes CofE Primary School, long gutter runs and wide roofs on a building that size are worth checking on a regular cycle. If you live in an older home near Church of the Good Shepherd, its roof may have old fixings, lead flashings and chimneys that need a closer look.
Five Ashes is about 4 miles south-east of Crowborough, in East Sussex. Wherever you are in Five Ashes, we can carry out chimney surveys at your property, on a weekday, Saturday or Sunday. Our area takes in places right across East Sussex, large and small. You can also see our page for Brighton.
We cover every part of TN20 for chimney surveys and the streets around it. If you need a chimney survey at a property on Westfield Close, Leeds Lane and Spring Lane or anywhere close by, we can help. If you’re just outside Five Ashes, we cover Skippers Hill (1 mile north), Butcher's Cross (1 mile north), Woolbridge (1 mile north-east), Wellbrook (1 mile north-east) and Mayfield (2 miles north-east). Larger places within reach include Eastbourne (15 miles south), Bexhill-on-Sea (15 miles south-east), Lewes (13 miles south-west), Hailsham (10 miles south), Crowborough (4 miles north-west) and Uckfield (6 miles south-west).
What’s near Five Ashes
Around Five Ashes, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Skippers Hill Manor School and The Five Ashes Inn and the streets around them. The closest station to Five Ashes is Crowborough station, about 3.3 miles north-west. A little further out are Tickerage Castle (3.8 miles south-west) and Crowborough War Memorial Hospital (4.3 miles north-west). The countryside around Five Ashes includes Selwyns Wood.
What a survey costs
Prices always include VAT. What changes the price is:
- The type of building, from a house to a block or an office
- Basic, Standard or Premium
- Roof area
- Chimneys, valleys, parapets and other details
All our prices include VAT. Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT. We confirm the price for your roof before booking.
What to tell us when you contact us
These details help when you contact us:
- When you need the report by
- Photos of the roof, taken safely from the ground or a window
- The type of building and roof, like pitched or flat
- Your postcode, so we can check access and travel
We confirm the price for your survey before you book, so you know the cost up front. Chimney survey starts from £150, including VAT. To book, call 07833 053749 or email us.
Towns and villages near Five Ashes
More services for Five Ashes
FAQs for Five Ashes
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Five Ashes?
Check Historic England’s online list first, then ask the council about conservation areas and any Article 4 direction. The answer matters most when a change of material is on the cards.
Can a landlord with a rental near Crowborough station book a roof survey?
Yes. We survey roofs for landlords, letting agents and managing agents as well as owners. You can phone 07833 053749 or send us an email with the address and what you need, and we will talk through which survey suits.
Are you insured?
We’re covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance.
What causes damp on a chimney breast?
It can come from several places: cracked flaunching, worn pointing, failed flashings, uncapped pots, or damp trapped in an unventilated stack. Our survey checks each of these and records the likely cause.
How many surveys have you done?
Over 20 years and more than 5,000 surveys.
How do you inspect a chimney without scaffolding?
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 applicable. We note anything we couldn’t see.
Can you tell me if my roof has asbestos?
No. Our report may flag materials that could contain asbestos, but only a specialist asbestos surveyor can confirm it. It may be present in buildings built or refurbished before 2000.
Can I check my roof myself?
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.
Keep a simple record: when leaks happen, ground-level photos and any past roof work. Send it with your enquiry.