Thurrock · London and the South East
Horndon on the Hill Chimney Survey
Chimney surveys in Horndon on the Hill and the rest of Thurrock. Surveys run on any day of the week.
- Eroded joints in the brickwork
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
Chimney surveys for homes and businesses in Horndon on the Hill
A chimney survey is about the outside of the stack and the roof around it. It isn’t a flue inspection, a sweep or a gas safety check. If you use a fire or a gas appliance, the flue should be checked by a sweep or a Gas Safe registered engineer as appropriate. If something we see points to the flue, we will say so. Typical surveys look at worn or missing pointing and a stack that appears to lean, on chimney breasts, lead flashings and chimney pots and cowls.
Village roofs often face open fields and take the full force of wind and rain, which is hard on ridges, chimneys, flashings and gutters. 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 frequently 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 goes further, with thermal imaging, drone inspection where applicable, structural analysis and an in-person consultation.
- Place
- Horndon on the Hill (SS17)
- Wider area
- Thurrock
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Survey days
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
What affects the cost of chimney surveys
We confirm the price for your survey before booking. This is what makes a difference:
- How big the roof is
- The number of roofs, including extensions and garages
- House, block, shop or office
- Basic, Standard or Premium
Every price we give includes VAT. Prices start from £150, including VAT. You’ll know the price for your survey before booking.
Getting in touch
You don’t need to know any roofing terms. It’s enough to let us know:
- Where the property is, with the postcode
- Pictures from the garden or a window, if you have them
- What kind of property and roof it is
- Any stains, drips or damp patches you’ve seen indoors
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, phone 07833 053749 or email us.
Horndon on the Hill questions
Do you cover smaller places like Horndon on the Hill?
Yes, Horndon on the Hill is on our map. A small place gets exactly the same survey as a big one, with the route planned beforehand.
Do roofs near the sea, like those around Horndon on the Hill, take more of a battering?
Yes, coastal weather is harder on roofs: there is more wind, and more salt in the air. Exposed details such as ridges, verges, flashings and metal fixings are the ones to watch, and Horndon on the Hill is within about 3 miles of the coast.
Can you survey a shared roof?
Yes. Shared roofs just need a little more planning. Tell us about it when booking and we’ll explain what’s needed.
Do you inspect the flue?
No. We survey the stack and its weathering, not the flue. The flue should be checked by a sweep, or by a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances.
What should I do with a chimney I do not use?
An unused stack still needs to stay weathertight and ventilated. If it is capped without ventilation, damp can build up inside. We check how it is capped and its condition, so you can decide with a builder what to do.
Will you check the loft?
If the survey needs it and the roof space can be reached safely, yes. Please clear anything stored under the hatch.
When does the report arrive?
It depends on the package: the Basic Survey report arrives within 48 hours, the Standard Survey in 24 to 48 hours and the Premium Survey the same day. The report is emailed to you.
What we cannot see
Our survey is not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey, a structural engineer’s report or an asbestos survey. It also has these limits:
- Parts of the stack that cannot be seen safely or belong to a neighbour we cannot access
- Whether a stack needs rebuilding on structural grounds
- The inside of the flue, which needs a sweep or flue specialist
If you’re not sure which survey you need, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email and we will give you a straight answer. What a survey covers and doesn’t.
Roof types and parts we check
- Chimney breasts
- Brick chimney stacks
- Flaunching
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Lead flashings
- Chimney pots and cowls
What happens on the day
We work from the outside in: outside views come first, then the loft space if there is safe access. All told, expect an hour or two at a typical home, and longer for a large or complex roof. Rural addresses near Horndon on the Hill can be hard to find from a postcode alone, so a few directions, or a note of a nearby landmark, help us arrive on time. After that, the survey runs as it would anywhere.
- We start by noting which stacks are in use, shared or causing concern.
- The flashings and the roof around each chimney are inspected.
- The top of each stack is checked for cracked flaunching and loose pots.
- We note the brickwork, pointing and any sign of leaning.
- The report explains the condition and which work is most urgent.
Preparing for the visit
- Make a note of anything you’d like us to look at
- Make sure the loft hatch can be reached
- Check we can get to the back of the property
Arrange a survey
Prices start from £150, including VAT. The exact figure depends on the roof and the package, and you can call 07833 053749 or send us an email to find out.
Related advice
Chimney surveys in Horndon on the Hill: local notes
Horndon on the Hill lies within about 3 miles of the sea, and places near the sea get more salt in the air and more wind than inland. Salt is hard on nails, clips and metal flashings, and strong wind lifts anything already loose on a roof, and driving rain gets into whatever gap is left. Before planning roof work on an older home, find out whether it is listed or in a conservation area. Listed building consent covers changes to a listed building’s special interest, and an Article 4 direction can bring extra controls in a conservation area.
Living close to Grove House Wood is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn. For site and facilities teams at buildings such as Horndon-On-the-Hill CofE Primary School, large buildings have long gutter runs and big roofs that need checking like any other. For landlords with property near Stanford-Le-Hope station, the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at.
Horndon on the Hill is about 1 mile west of Stanford-le-Hope, in Thurrock. We survey roofs in Horndon on the Hill and the rest of Thurrock, as part of our work across London and the South East. Our area takes in places right across Thurrock. We also survey roofs in Chelmsford.
We survey roofs across the SS17 postcode area for chimney surveys and the streets around it. Whether your property is on Mill Lane, Francis Close and Stephens Crescent or anywhere close by, we can help. Close by, we survey roofs in Balstonia (1 mile east), Stanford-le-Hope (1 mile east), Corringham (3 miles east), Langdon Hills (3 miles north) and Great Berry (3 miles north). Within a short drive, we also cover Grays (4 miles south-west), South Ockendon (5 miles west), Chadwell St Mary (3 miles south-west), Aveley (7 miles west), Tilbury (5 miles south) and South Stifford (5 miles south-west).
Near you in Horndon on the Hill
We work in homes and buildings around Grove House Wood, St Clere's School and Swan Inn, among other places. The nearest railway station is Stanford-Le-Hope station, about 1.1 miles south-east. Other landmarks nearby include Orsett Hospital (1.9 miles south-west) and Eastgate Shopping Centre (3.9 miles north-east). Green spaces nearby include Horndon Meadow.
How the survey changes by roof type
Chimney pots and cowls
Each pot is bedded into the flaunching, often with a cowl or cap on top. We check that they look secure and undamaged.
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.
Can I check my roof myself?
Watch the gutters in a downpour, from a window or the ground. Overflowing water can point to a blockage or a sagging run.
Your own check is a good start, but it is not a survey. From the ground, valleys, flashings and the backs of chimneys are frequently out of sight, and those are details a survey looks at closely.
Practical tips
These tips come from what we see on roofs every week, before and after a survey:
- Keep track of stains on chimney breasts
- Have brackets on the chimney checked
- Look at the chimneys with binoculars after a storm
- Check that disused chimneys can still breathe
Where another specialist is needed, such as a structural engineer or sweep, we explain why. It gives them a clear starting point.
Have aerial and dish brackets on the stack checked and taken off if they’re no longer needed. Less load on the stack means less strain in wind.