East Sussex · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Rye Foreign, East Sussex
We take a careful look at the chimney stack at your property in Rye Foreign, with photos and a written report.
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
- Worn or missing pointing
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
Chimney survey in Rye Foreign: what you get
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. We also look for damp on chimney breasts and in the loft where there is safe access. The findings come in a written report with photos and recommendations. It suits a single stack on a house as well as several on a larger building. If you are worried about worn or missing pointing and gaps where the stack meets the roof, a survey will tell you what’s going on, on chimney breasts, brick chimney stacks and flaunching alike.
Some older homes in villages like Rye Foreign are listed or in a conservation area. If yours is, re-roofing in different materials may need consent, so the council is the place to check. A roof report helps you plan work with that in mind. Older materials such as clay tiles, slate and stone are frequently matched when work is done.
The Standard Survey adds moisture detection, a structural check and a follow-up consultation. The Premium Survey goes further, with thermal imaging, drone inspection where it applies, structural analysis and an in-person consultation.
- Place
- Rye Foreign (TN31)
- Wider area
- East Sussex
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Survey days
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insured
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
What a chimney survey does not cover
Our survey isn’t a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 survey, a structural engineer’s report or an asbestos survey. It also has these limits:
- What’s inside the brickwork or behind render, without opening up
- Gas safety checks, which need a Gas Safe registered engineer
- Areas we can’t view from safe positions
If you’re not sure which survey you need, ring 07833 053749 or email us and we will give you a straight answer before booking. The full list of what we check.
What we look at
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney breasts
- Lead flashings
- Flaunching
Do you need a chimney survey in Rye Foreign?
A stack takes the weather from every direction. Frost works into cracks in the flaunching and pointing, and rain soaks into worn brickwork. Most people book after spotting damp or a loose pot, or before buying.
A survey makes sense if you’ve noticed:
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- Loose, cracked or missing pots
- Signs that a stack is leaning
If you live in an older home near The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul, corroded nails, tired lead and weathered chimney pointing are the things to watch on older roofs.
What to check before booking
- What they won’t be able to tell you
- If they fly a drone, whether they hold a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- What experience they bring
- Are they insured for the work?
Rye Foreign homes and their roofs
Rye Foreign is within about 4 miles of the coast, so there is more wind and more salt in the air than further inland. Near the sea, metal fixings wear faster and loose pieces on a roof are more likely to lift, while driving rain finds any gap. Historic houses such as Lamb House, about 1.9 miles south-east, show how far back building in the area around Rye Foreign goes. Older homes in the wider area often have features worth a closer look, like lead valleys, tall stacks and roofs that have been patched over the years, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material.
Anyone responsible for a site like Peasmarsh Church of England Primary School will know that a written record of a large roof helps plan work for the holidays rather than in term time. If you own a rental within reach of Rye station, a roof report helps you deal with small faults before they turn into a call from a tenant.
Rye Foreign is about 9 miles north-east of Hastings, in East Sussex. Bookings from Rye Foreign are handled just like any other: get in touch, agree the price and pick a day. Rye Foreign is one of the towns and villages in East Sussex we cover for chimney surveys. For surveys nearby, see our Maidstone page.
Every address in TN31 is covered for chimney surveys, from the main roads to the quietest streets. If you’re just outside Rye Foreign, we cover Iden (1 mile north-east), Playden (1 mile east), Houghton Green (2 miles east), Rye (2 miles south-east) and East Guldeford (2 miles east). Larger places within reach include Hastings (9 miles south-west), Bexhill-on-Sea (13 miles south-west), St Leonards (10 miles south-west), Hastings Old Town (9 miles south-west), Belmont (9 miles south-west) and Hollington (9 miles south-west).
Local landmarks in Rye Foreign
Around Rye Foreign, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Rye College and The Horse And Cart Inn. For rail, the closest station is Rye station, roughly 1.7 miles south-east of the centre. Nearby you’ll also find Rye Castle Museum (East Street) (1.9 miles south-east) and Ypres Tower (2 miles south-east). Open spaces near Rye Foreign include Flatropers Wood.
How the survey changes by roof type
Flaunching
We often find flaunching that has cracked or broken away. It is normally a modest repair when it is caught early.
Rendered stacks
Water can get in through cracks and then struggle to dry out. We record any cracking and where it is.
How we price chimney surveys
Prices vary from roof to roof, for these reasons:
- The size of the roof
- Basic, Standard or Premium
- Chimneys, valleys, parapets and other details
- The number of roofs, including extensions and garages
To find out what your survey will cost, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email and let us know about the roof. We will confirm the figure before booking.
Helping us price your survey
When you call or email, these details help:
- Where any leaks, stains or damp patches show inside
- Any deadline, like an exchange date
- Photos of the roof, taken safely from ground level or a window
- Why you want a survey: buying, a leak, a storm or new work
Unsure which package suits your roof? The easiest way is to ring 07833 053749 or send us an email and describe the roof and why you want it surveyed. We’ll talk you through the options and what they cost.
Why it’s worth a survey now in Rye Foreign
For a buyer, the best time to learn about a chimney is before exchange. Once you’ve exchanged, the work is down to you. A report gives you something specific to put to the seller. Outbuildings and barns around Rye Foreign are easy to forget, but a failed roof there can spoil what’s stored inside. It’s worth including them in a survey before a winter does the damage.
We offer three survey packages: the Basic Survey from £150, the Standard Survey from £250 and the Premium Survey from £400, all inc. VAT. The price for your roof depends on its size, access and what you want to find out.
Why book us in Rye Foreign
- An independent look at the roof
- Visits on any day of the week
- Satisfaction rate of 98%
- Over 20 years’ experience
Take a look at how roof surveys are priced and two real surveys.
Common questions in Rye Foreign
Will you come out to Rye Foreign?
Yes, Rye Foreign is covered. We cover the whole of London and South East England, from towns to the smallest villages. Longer journeys are simply planned ahead of time.
Is the coastal weather around Rye Foreign hard on roofs?
Places near the sea get more wind and more salt in the air than inland, and both are hard on roofs. Salt is hard on nails, clips and metal flashings, while strong wind lifts anything already loose.
Do you test for asbestos?
No. We can flag materials that might contain asbestos, but confirming it is a job for a specialist asbestos surveyor. It may be present in buildings built or refurbished before 2000.
What insurance do you have?
Professional indemnity and public liability insurance cover our surveys. If you need details for a managing agent or a building owner, just ask.
Is a leaning chimney dangerous?
It’s worth having a leaning stack checked. We record the lean, the brickwork and the pointing, and recommend a structural engineer where it may be a structural concern.
Can you give me structural calculations?
No. Our survey is not a structural engineer’s report, and it doesn’t include calculations. We’ll recommend an engineer if we see signs that call for one.
How soon will I get the report?
The Premium Survey report comes the same day, the Standard within 24–48 hours and the Basic within 48 hours. All of them come by email, ready to forward.
What we do, step by step
The visit has one job: to see as much of the chimney stack as can safely be seen and record it clearly. Notes and photos go into the written report. It typically takes an hour or two at a house, as part of a look at the roof around the stack. Somewhere like Rye Foreign needs a little journey planning: let us know about narrow lanes, gates, long drives and where we can park. On the day, we inspect what can safely be seen, inside and out.
- You tell us whether any stacks are shared, unused or leaning.
- The flashings and the roof around each chimney are inspected.
- We check the flaunching and pots on every stack.
- We note the brickwork, pointing and any sign of leaning.
- The report explains the condition and which work is most urgent.
How to prepare
- Make sure pets are kept safely away
- Have any questions written down, so nothing gets missed
- Note where any stains or damp appear
Getting a price
For a price for chimney surveys in Rye Foreign, phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form. The address, the type of property and what you’d like to know help us give you an accurate price.