Greater London · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Hornchurch, Greater London
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching around Hornchurch, with a written report you can act on. Weekday and weekend visits available.
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Worn or missing pointing
Chimney surveys for homes and businesses in Hornchurch
Our chimney survey covers the stack and the details that keep water out around it: pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, bricks and the flashings at the roof line. Inside, we check chimney breasts and the stack in the loft where it is safe to reach. You get a written report with photos and our recommendations. It suits a single stack on a house as well as several on a larger building. If you’ve noticed a stack that appears to lean and gaps where the stack meets the roof, we can find out what’s behind it, on flaunching, chimney pots and cowls and chimney breasts alike.
London has Victorian and Edwardian terraces in almost every borough, 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. Homes in Hornchurch are no exception. Lead flashings and shared chimney stacks on these houses need a close look too.
Most points in the report come with a picture, so you can see each defect rather than just read about it. If something couldn’t be seen safely, the report is clear about it.
- Place
- Hornchurch (RM12, RM11, RM14, RM1)
- Wider area
- Greater London
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Prices for chimney surveys in Hornchurch
Several things affect the price of a survey:
- How big the roof is
- Basic, Standard or Premium
- The height of the building and how the roof can be seen safely
- Extra roofs, like extensions, dormers or garages
For a price for your roof in Hornchurch, ring 07833 053749 or email us and tell us about the roof. The price is agreed before a date is set.
Getting in touch
You don’t need to know any roofing terms. Just tell us:
- Any stains, drips or damp patches you’ve seen indoors
- How the loft is reached, if there is one
- The type of building and roof, such as pitched or flat
- The reason for the survey, such as buying, a leak or storm damage
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Take them safely from the ground or a window; never climb up to get a better view. To send them or to book, call 07833 053749 or use the contact form.
How it works
You don’t need to do much on the day. Point out anything you’ve noticed, such as stains, drips or loose pieces, and we’ll get on with the inspection. A typical survey takes about one to two hours for most houses, and longer for a large or complex roof. Surveys in Hornchurch can be booked for any day of the week. London parking is often by permit or pay-and-display, so it’s useful 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 we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- 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.
How to prepare
- Let us know where we can park nearby
- For flats, make sure roof access has been agreed
- Make sure we can get to the back of the property
Booking a survey
For a price for chimney surveys in Hornchurch, call 07833 053749 or send us an email. Some details about the property and the roof help us give you an accurate price.
Advice
Honest limits
Our findings are based on what we can see safely on the day, so some things are outside what a survey can do:
- Hidden damage within the stack
- Flue inspections or sweeping
- Checks on boilers, fires or their flues
If you’re not sure which survey you need, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we’ll give you a straight answer before you book. The full list of what we check.
Roofs we survey in Hornchurch
- Chimney breasts
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Flaunching
- Brick chimney stacks
- Lead flashings
Also near Hornchurch
More services for Hornchurch
Landlords, agents and block managers in Hornchurch
An agent can book and manage the survey for a landlord, and the report can go to both. Access is agreed with the tenant beforehand.
For blocks of flats, a roof survey helps managing agents and residents’ management companies plan ahead. The report sets out what needs attention now and what can wait, which helps with budgets and planning.
Checking the roof from the ground
Keep a simple record: dates of leaks, photos from the ground and any work done on the roof. Share it with us when you book, as it helps us focus the survey.
The one thing to avoid is getting up close. Slates, tiles, flat roofs and rooflights can give way. That part is for a survey, using safe viewpoints and a drone where it applies.
Roof by roof
Brick stacks
Frost can damage bricks that have soaked up water, making the faces flake away. We record any we can see.
Rendered stacks
Some stacks are rendered, which can hide the condition of the brickwork beneath. We look for cracks, hollow areas and staining.
Hornchurch homes and their roofs
The wider area around Hornchurch has a long history of building, with Hare Hall about 1.8 miles north. On older houses around here, roofs frequently carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead. In outer London, interwar semis with hipped, tiled roofs sit alongside older slate-roofed terraces. Hips, bay roofs and later loft conversions are typical of those semis, if your home is one of them. On roofs like these, good slates or tiles can outlast the nails, battens, lead and mortar around them.
Take a building like Langtons Infant School: its roofs, gutters and any chimneys need the same checks as a house’s, just on a bigger scale. For landlords with property near Emerson Park station, a dated record of the roof is useful when planning maintenance across a let. If you live in an older home near Saint George's Church, its roof may have old fixings, lead flashings and chimneys that need a closer look.
Hornchurch is about 6 miles south-west of Brentwood, in Greater London. In Hornchurch, as across Greater London, every roof gets the same careful survey. Our Greater London coverage includes Hornchurch. There is also a page for London.
All of RM12, RM11, RM14 and RM1 is covered for chimney surveys, from the main roads to the quietest streets. We cover properties on High Street, The Avenue and Stanley Road. You’ll find Hornchurch on the A125, so it is easy for us to get to. If you are just outside Hornchurch, we cover Upminster Bridge (1 mile east), Heath Park (1 mile north-west), Emerson Park (1 mile north-east), Hacton (2 miles south) and Ardleigh Green (2 miles north). Within a short drive, we also cover London (14 miles west), St Pancras (14 miles west), Shoreditch (13 miles west), Walthamstow (10 miles west), Hoxton (13 miles west) and Whitechapel (13 miles west).
What’s near Hornchurch
In Hornchurch, that means homes and buildings near Abbs Cross Academy and Arts College, J.J. Moon's pub and St. Andrew's Park, among other places. The nearest railway station is Emerson Park station, about 0.7 miles north of the centre. Other landmarks nearby include Upminster Tithe Barn Museum of Nostalgia (1.9 miles east) and The Brewery (1.8 miles north-west). Open spaces near Hornchurch include Hornchurch Cutting.
Common questions in Hornchurch
Do you survey roofs for landlords with property near Emerson Park station?
Yes, letting agents and landlords book with us as well as owners. Just phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form and let us know about the building.
Can parking be tricky for a visit in Hornchurch?
In much of London, parking needs planning: a visitor permit or a bay close to the door helps a lot.
How long is the visit?
That depends on the size and shape of the roof, but most surveys take roughly 1–2 hours on an ordinary house, rising to roughly 3–4 hours on a commercial building. The report is sent afterwards by email.
What if it rains on the day?
Light rain doesn’t usually stop a survey, and it can even help show where water is getting in. Heavy rain or strong wind can ground a drone and make the roof unsafe, so we will agree a new date if the weather is not suitable.
What does the report include?
A written report with photos, covering the condition of the chimney stack, the defects we found and what we recommend. Standard adds moisture detection and a structural check; Premium adds thermal imaging, drone inspection where it applies and structural analysis.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We don’t carry out asbestos surveys or testing. We flag materials that could contain asbestos, such as cement sheets or soffits on pre-2000 buildings and suggest a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before any work.
Will you walk on the roof?
Not always. Some roofs are too steep or fragile to walk on safely. We use safe viewpoints, the loft space and a drone where it applies, and the report records anything we couldn’t see.