Greater London · London and the South East
Chimney survey in High Barnet, Greater London
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching in High Barnet, carried out by an experienced roof surveyor. You get a clear written report with photographs.
- Staining on walls around the chimney
- Unused flues sealed without airflow
- Signs that a stack is leaning
Tips that help
Some practical points come up on survey after survey. They apply to most roofs:
- File photos of the stacks with your home records
- Remove aerials or dishes from the stack if they’re no longer needed
- Look at the chimneys with binoculars after a storm
- Leave close inspection to people with safe access
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.
Check your stacks from the street or garden after a storm. Binoculars help you spot loose pots, missing mortar or lifted flashings.
How a chimney survey works in High Barnet
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 works alongside a RICS home survey, not instead of one. We’re often asked to look into loose, cracked or missing pots and flashings pulling away from the stack, on chimney pots and cowls, brick chimney stacks and flaunching.
London has a great many flats in converted houses and purpose-built blocks, so roofs are often shared between several households. Whoever looks after the building needs a clear picture of the roof, chimneys and gutters. Leaks from a shared roof rarely affect just one home. A report gives everyone the same picture to plan from, with photos.
The report is written in plain words, so you don’t need to be a roofer to follow it. Each point is backed by a photo where possible, with the urgent items made clear.
- Place
- High Barnet (EN5)
- Region
- Greater London
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
What a chimney survey looks like in High Barnet
With Wyllyotts Manor about 2.9 miles north, High Barnet sits in an area with a long building history. On older houses around here, roofs often carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead, 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. Bay roofs, hip ridges and dormers from later loft conversions are the details that set these houses apart. Whichever you have, the details that tend to fail before the covering itself get the closest look.
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for example near Spires Shopping Centre, a written record of the roof’s condition helps you plan maintenance rather than react to leaks. Landlords with a home close to Hadley Wood station may find that a roof report helps you deal with small faults before they turn into a call from a tenant.
High Barnet is about 1 mile north-west of Barnet, in Greater London. Whether the building in High Barnet is a house, a flat or a commercial unit, the roof can be surveyed on a weekday or at the weekend. We cover towns and villages across Greater London. London is in our area too.
Chimney surveys in EN5 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. We offer chimney surveys to properties on Byng Road, Park Road and Kings Road and the roads around them. Being close to the A1081, High Barnet is simple for us to get to. If you’re just outside High Barnet, we cover Hadley (1 mile east), Arkley (1 mile south-west), Kitts End (1 mile north), Totteridge (1 mile south) and Rowley Green (2 miles west). Larger places within reach include London (12 miles south-east), City of Westminster (10 miles south), Marylebone (10 miles south), Kensington (11 miles south), St Pancras (10 miles south-east) and Shoreditch (11 miles south-east).
Around High Barnet
We work in homes and buildings around Susi Earnshaw Theatre School, The White Lion pub and Queen Elizabeth's School. The closest station to High Barnet is Hadley Wood station, roughly 1.6 miles north-east of the centre. A little further out are Spires Shopping Centre (within half a mile east) and Barnet General Hospital (0.5 miles south-west). Green spaces nearby include Barnet Countryside Centre and Darland's Lake.
What a chimney survey doesn’t cover
Our survey isn’t a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey, a structural engineer’s report or an asbestos survey. Other limits to bear in mind:
- Hidden sides of a shared stack
- Whether the flue is safe to use
- Whether a gas appliance or its flue is safe
If in doubt, ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we will point you to the right survey. What a survey covers and does not.
What we check
- Lead flashings
- Chimney breasts
- Flaunching
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney pots and cowls
How the survey changes by roof type
Chimney pots and cowls
A loose or cracked pot can fall from height. We record their condition with photos.
Lead flashings
Mortar fillets are sometimes used where lead would usually be. They crack with age, and we check them too.
The survey, step by step
Before we start, let us know why you’ve booked: buying, a leak, storm damage, new work or just wanting to know where things stand. That way we can focus on what matters to you. The visit typically takes roughly 1–2 hours at a house, as part of a look at the roof around the stack. For a visit in High Barnet, parking and access are the things to plan: let us know about parking, the floor the property is on, any shared entrance and loft access. On the day, the roof is looked at from the ground, from windows, from inside the loft space and from the roof where it is safe.
- 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.
- Inside, the chimney breasts and the loft are checked for damp where there is access.
- The report, with photos and recommendations, is emailed to you.
Before we arrive
- Keep pets inside or away from the areas we are looking at
- Check we can get to the back of the property
- Tell us where we can park nearby
Getting a price
If you’re buying, it is useful to book soon after your offer is accepted, so you have the findings in time to act on them before you exchange. For any other survey, just call 07833 053749 or send us an email when you’re ready.
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Questions from High Barnet
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Hadley Wood station?
Yes, landlords and agents are among the people we work for. You can ring 07833 053749 or use the contact form with the address and what you need, and we will talk through which survey suits.
Is parking a problem for a survey in High Barnet?
It rarely stops a survey, but it’s worth planning. Let us know what parking is available nearby, and the visit is planned around it.
Does the weather affect the survey?
Light rain is normally fine; heavy rain and wind are different. In strong wind or a downpour, a drone can’t fly and access may not be safe, and we’d agree another day.
Do I have to be there for the survey?
If the survey includes the loft or the inside of the building, someone needs to let us in. We’ll talk about access when you book.
Can you survey a chimney stack we share with next door?
Yes. Many houses share stacks with a neighbour. We survey what we can see safely, and note anything that seems to involve next door.
How do I arrange a chimney survey in High Barnet?
To arrange a survey, call 07833 053749 or use the contact form and tell us the address and what you’d like to know. We will confirm the price and find a day that suits.
What do I do with the report?
You receive the written report by email, with photos and recommendations. It is yours to share with a seller, insurer, roofer or managing agent, whichever applies.
What affects the cost of chimney surveys
To price your survey, we look at:
- Whether you choose the Basic, Standard or Premium Survey
- Building height and the viewpoints available
- Whether it is a home or a commercial building
- How big the roof is
For a price for your roof in High Barnet, call 07833 053749 or drop us an email with the address and a few details. We’ll confirm the figure before booking.
What we need to know
There’s no need for technical words. It’s enough to tell us:
- Pictures of the roof from a safe spot, if you have them
- Any marks or damp showing indoors
- When you need the report by
- The style of property, from a terrace to a block
Getting a price is simple: just call 07833 053749 or use the contact form and give us a few details about the property and we’ll explain which survey suits. We confirm the price before anything is booked.
Nearby places to High Barnet
Other services in High Barnet
Signs you need a chimney survey in High Barnet
The flaunching on top of a stack holds the pots in place and sheds water. Cracked flaunching lets water in, and each winter makes it worse. Loose pots can follow.
Signs worth acting on include:
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Unused flues sealed without airflow
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
- Mortar washing out of the joints
Take a building like Foulds School: large buildings have long gutter runs and big roofs that need checking like any other.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- When you will get the report
- What’s outside the scope of the survey
- Whether the loft space is looked at, where there is one