Hertfordshire · London and the South East
Chimney Survey in Sarratt
Wondering about the chimney stack at a property in Sarratt? You can book a chimney survey in Sarratt and across Hertfordshire, with plain-English findings.
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Unused flues sealed without airflow
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
Chimney surveys in Sarratt: local notes
Slate and clay tile are the usual coverings on older South East houses, with concrete tiles on many later estates. Knowing the covering helps explain which parts of a roof are likely to need work first. With Chenies Manor House about 1.8 miles west, Sarratt 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.
Landlords with a home close to Chorleywood station may find that a dated record of the roof is useful when planning maintenance across a let. Take an older house close to Church of the Holy Cross: its chimney, valleys and lead work are likely to be the parts that need attention first. For site and facilities teams at buildings such as Sarratt Church of England Primary School, its roofs, gutters and any chimneys need the same checks as a house’s, just on a bigger scale.
Sarratt is about 3 miles north of Rickmansworth, in Hertfordshire. From houses to flats and shops in Sarratt, the roof can be surveyed on a weekday or at the weekend. Sarratt is one of the places in Hertfordshire we cover for chimney surveys. London is in our area too.
Surveys in WD3 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. Whether your property is on Alexandra Road, Downer Drive and The Briars or anywhere close by, we can help. Nearby, we also carry out chimney surveys in Micklefield Green (1 mile south-east), Bucks Hill (1 mile north-east), Chandler's Cross (2 miles south-east), Loudwater (2 miles south) and Chorleywood West (2 miles south). We also work in nearby towns like Watford (4 miles east), Hemel Hempstead (5 miles north), St Albans (8 miles north-east), Welwyn Garden City (15 miles north-east), Harpenden (11 miles north-east) and Hatfield (12 miles north-east).
What’s near Sarratt
We work in homes and buildings around The Boot Public House and St Clement Danes School. The nearest railway station is Chorleywood station, roughly 2.3 miles south-west. Nearby you’ll also find Chiltern Open Air Museum (3.8 miles south-west) and Leavesden Hospital (4 miles east). Not far away are Sarratt Bottom nature reserve and Tumbling Bay.
How a chimney survey works in Sarratt
A chimney survey is about the outside of the stack and the roof around it. It’s not a flue inspection, a chimney sweep or a gas safety inspection. For the flue itself, you will need a sweep or, for gas appliances, a Gas Safe registered engineer. If something we see points to the flue, we’ll say so. We are often asked to look into damp patches on chimney breasts and cracked or missing flaunching, on flaunching, chimney breasts and brick chimney stacks.
In a village or hamlet like Sarratt, older cottages and farmhouses often sit alongside barns, outbuildings and a few newer houses. Older roofs may be clay tile, slate, stone or thatch, often with chimneys that have stood a long time. We report on whatever is safely visible, and thatch is a specialist material. Chimneys and lead flashings on old roofs frequently need the most attention.
The report works through the roof section by section, from the coverings down to the gutters, with a note and a photo for each point. It records what’s sound as well as what isn’t.
- Location
- Sarratt (WD3)
- Region
- Hertfordshire
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Reports
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Survey days
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Before and after the survey
These tips come from what we see on roofs every week, before and after a survey:
- Check fixings on the stack are secure
- File photos of the stacks with your home records
- Check with the council before altering a stack in a conservation area or on a listed building
- Never climb onto the roof to look at a chimney
If the stack is shared, you can pass the report to your neighbour. The photos show the problem and which side it’s on from the viewpoints we used.
Watch for damp or staining on chimney breasts. Early signs are easier to trace.
What a survey costs
All our prices include VAT. The things that change the price are:
- If the survey needs thermal imaging or a drone
- How tall the building is and how easy the roof is to see
- Basic, Standard or Premium
- How many separate roofs there are, like extensions, dormers and garages
The cost of a survey depends on the roof: its size, its height, how many sections it has and how it can be reached and seen safely. Our price is from £150, including VAT.
Booking your survey
If you can, have these to hand when you contact us:
- Pictures from the garden or a window, if you have them
- The reason for the survey, such as buying, a leak or storm damage
- Any deadline, such as an exchange date
- The property’s address and postcode
To get a price for chimney surveys in Sarratt, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email. Some details about the property and the roof help us price the survey accurately.
What we look for on each type of roof
Flaunching
We frequently find flaunching that has cracked or broken away. It is typically a modest repair when it’s caught early.
Lead flashings
Lead flashings seal the joint between the stack and the roof. The survey looks at whether the lead is tight, sound and well fixed.
Common questions in Sarratt
I let a flat near Chorleywood station. Can you check the roof?
Yes, letting agents and landlords book with us as well as owners. Just ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email and tell us about the building.
Do you cover smaller places like Sarratt?
Yes, Sarratt is on our map. A small place gets exactly the same survey as a big one.
Is a leaning chimney dangerous?
Don’t ignore it. Leaning often comes from mortar breaking down unevenly. We record its condition with photos, and a structural engineer can assess whether it needs work.
Is it a structural engineer’s report?
No. We point out what can be seen, such as sagging or deflection, but we do not carry out calculations or give an engineer’s opinion. Where an engineer is needed, we say so in the report.
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. Mention any deadline as you book.
Will you go up on the roof?
Only where it is safe to do so. We check everything that can safely be seen: from the ground, from windows, from inside the loft space, from the roof where it’s safe and by drone where applicable. The report says if anything couldn’t be seen.
Why is my chimney breast damp?
It can come from several places: cracked flaunching, worn pointing, failed flashings, uncapped pots, or damp trapped in an unventilated stack. Our survey checks each of these and records the likely cause.
The survey, step by step
Photographs are taken throughout the visit, so the report shows exactly what we saw. We take close-ups from wherever is safe. Most surveys take an hour or two at most homes, and longer for a large or complex roof. For a village or hamlet like Sarratt, the journey is planned beforehand: let us know about narrow lanes, gates, long drives and where we can park. On the day, we inspect whatever is safely visible, inside and out.
- First we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- Pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing and flashings are checked and photographed.
- We look for damp on chimney breasts and in the roof space.
- The report, with photographs and recommendations, is emailed to you.
Preparing for the visit
- Leave side gates unlocked
- Make a note of anything you’d like us to look at
- If the roof is shared, arrange access with whoever manages the building
Book a survey
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Pictures from ground level or a window are fine, and please do not climb up for a closer look. To get started, ring 07833 053749 or send us an email.
Related advice
Places near Sarratt
More services for Sarratt
What a chimney survey does not cover
We only report what can be seen safely on the day, so there are some things a survey cannot cover:
- Structural calculations for a leaning stack
- The inside of the flue, which needs a sweep or flue specialist
- Checks on boilers, fires or their flues
If in doubt, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll recommend the right survey. What a survey covers and doesn’t.
What we check
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Chimney breasts
- Brick chimney stacks
- Lead flashings
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Flaunching
What you can safely check yourself
You can learn a lot from the ground. Binoculars help you spot slipped slates or tiles, gaps along the ridge and a leaning stack. Please don’t climb up for a closer look.
During heavy rain, look at the gutters from the ground or a window. Water spilling over the edge can point to a blockage or a sagging run.