Medway · London and the South East
Gillingham Chimney Survey
An experienced roof surveyor for chimney surveys in Gillingham. More than 20 years and over 5,000 surveys.
- Frost-damaged brickwork on the stack
- Unused flues sealed without airflow
- A chimney out of line
Chimney survey in Gillingham
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. Water then gets into the stack and can show as damp on a chimney breast or a stain in the loft. A survey finds these problems and records them with photographs. We survey brick chimney stacks, chimney breasts and lead flashings, and the problems we’re asked to look at most are damp patches on chimney breasts and loose, cracked or missing pots.
Gillingham is big enough to have roofs from every era, from slate on older terraces to clay and concrete tiles on later houses and flat roofs on extensions and shops. Typical faults range from slipped slates and cracked ridges to tired flashings, chimneys and blocked gutters. The roof type shapes what gets checked.
Every survey ends with a written report, with photos, emailed to you. It sets out the condition of the chimney stack, any defects and our written recommendations.
- Place
- Gillingham (ME8, ME7, ME4, ME5)
- Region
- Medway
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- When we survey
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Cover
- PI and public liability insurance
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Roofs, chimneys and gutters in Gillingham
Gillingham is within about 2 miles of the coast, and places near the sea get more salt in the air and more wind than inland. Metal fixings and flashings corrode faster in salt air, while gales work at loose ridges, slates and tiles, and driving rain gets into whatever gap is left. About 3.3 miles west lies Restoration House, a reminder of how long the area around Gillingham has been built on. Older roofs in the wider area can hide decades of patch repairs, so the detail matters, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material.
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for instance near Pentagon Shopping Centre, a written record of the roof’s condition helps you plan maintenance rather than react to leaks. For an older house near a landmark such as Holy Trinity Church, old fixings, lead flashings and tall chimneys are typical of older roofs.
Gillingham is about 30 miles east of London, in Medway. From houses to flats and shops in Gillingham, we can survey the roof. Gillingham is one of the towns and villages in Medway we cover for chimney surveys. We also survey roofs in Maidstone.
We work across ME8, ME7, ME4 and ME5 for chimney surveys and the streets around it. That includes homes and businesses on Leeds Square, London Road and Dorset Square and the roads around them. Gillingham is on the A2 and A231, which makes it simple to reach. Other places close to Gillingham include Twydall (1 mile east), Lower Twydall (1 mile north-east), Grange (1 mile north), Darland (1 mile south-west) and Hale (1 mile south-west). Larger places within reach include Rochester (4 miles west), Strood (4 miles west), Lordswood (3 miles south-west), Hoo St Werburgh (4 miles north), Rochester Riverside (3 miles north-west) and Walderslade (3 miles south-west). Gillingham is one of the larger places we cover in Medway.
Landmarks near Gillingham
Locally, jobs take us to homes and businesses close to The Robert Napier School, The Robert Napier School and The Star pub and the streets around them. The closest station to Gillingham is Gillingham (Kent) station, roughly 1.5 miles north-west. Nearby you will also find Medway Maritime Hospital (1.6 miles west) and Six Poor Travellers House (3.3 miles west). The countryside around Gillingham includes Blue Bell Hill and Bishop Saltings.
More services for Gillingham
Tips that help
You don’t need to be a roofer to help. What helps most:
- Note any damp on chimney breasts and when it appears
- Use a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances
- Check that disused chimneys can still breathe
- Don’t use a ladder to reach the stack yourself
If the stack is shared, you can pass the report to your neighbour. The photos show the problem and which side it is on, as far as we could see.
Have worn pointing and cracked flaunching dealt with early. It is far simpler than rebuilding a stack later.
What we cannot see
To be straight with you, there are limits to any roof survey:
- Conditions inside walls
- Whether the flue is safe to use
- Structural calculations for a leaning stack
If you’re not sure which survey you need, ring 07833 053749 or use the contact form and we will give you a straight answer. What a survey covers and does not.
What we check
- Chimney breasts
- Brick chimney stacks
- Lead flashings
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Flaunching
Questions from Gillingham
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Gillingham (Kent) station?
Yes, landlords and agents are among the people we work for. 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.
Do roofs near the sea, like those around Gillingham, take more of a battering?
Often, yes. Gillingham is within about 2 miles of the sea, and coastal roofs tend to see faster wear on metal parts and more wind lifting loose pieces.
How long is the visit?
Time on site depends on the roof; most visits take roughly 1–2 hours for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. The report is sent afterwards by email.
How quickly is the report sent?
Report times are set by the package. Basic is within 48 hours, Standard is 24–48 hours and Premium is the same day. If you have a deadline, such as an exchange date, tell us when you book.
Is it the same as a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey?
No. This is a survey of the roof only, and it isn’t a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey. It can sit alongside a RICS survey if you want both.
Is Gillingham in your area?
Yes. We survey roofs across London and South East England, and that includes Gillingham.
Which parts of the chimney do you look at?
Every part of the stack we can see from safe positions: from the pots and flaunching down to the flashings. We also note leaning, redundant stacks and damp inside.
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 roughly 1–2 hours for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. Town-centre streets in Gillingham can mean pay-and-display or permit parking, so a word about where to park saves time. We’ll want to see the loft, if there is one, and any ceiling or wall showing damp. Outside, the roof is viewed from every point that is safe.
- First you let us know about the chimneys, any damp on the chimney breasts and any worries.
- We inspect each stack from safe viewpoints outside.
- Every part we can see is checked: pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, bricks and flashings.
- We check the chimney breasts and the stack in the roof space where we can reach them.
- The findings are written up with photographs and recommendations and emailed to you.
Before the survey
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
- Keep pets in another room
Booking a survey
Booking is simple: just call 07833 053749 or email us and give us a few details about the property and we will recommend the right survey. We confirm the price before anything is booked.
Advice
Different roofs, different checks
Chimney breasts and the loft
Where a breast has been taken out, we check what supports the stack. Confirming the support is a job for a structural engineer.
Chimney pots and cowls
A loose or cracked pot can fall from height. We record their condition with photos.
DIY checks: what’s safe
Your own check is a good start, but it is not a survey. From the ground, valleys, flashings and the backs of chimneys are often out of sight, and those are details a survey looks at closely.
You can learn a lot from the ground. Binoculars help you spot slipped slates or tiles, gaps along the ridge and a leaning stack. Never climb onto the roof to look.
What we’re asked to look at in Gillingham
Flaunching is the mortar bed that holds the pots and throws water off the top. Cracked flaunching lets water in, and each winter makes it worse. Loose pots can follow.
Things that often lead to a survey include:
- Eroded joints in the brickwork
- Cracked or missing flaunching
- Loose, cracked or missing pots
- A chimney out of line
For landlords with property near Gillingham (Kent) station, the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at.
Choosing a roof surveyor
- Will they check the loft as well as the outside?
- What happens after the report arrives
- Which parts of the roof they’ll actually see
- What the report includes, and whether it has photographs