Kent · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Shelvin, Kent
Chimney surveys around Shelvin, with a written report you can act on. Book a weekday or weekend visit.
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Worn or missing pointing
- Flashings pulling away from the stack
About our chimney survey in Shelvin
Damp on a chimney breast can have several causes. Water may be getting in at the top through cracked flaunching or an uncapped pot, through the brickwork, or at the flashings. Condensation inside an unventilated stack is another common cause. We look at each possibility and record what we find. You then know where to start. We’re often asked to look into gaps where the stack meets the roof and cracked or missing flaunching, across brick chimney stacks, chimney pots and cowls and flaunching.
In a village or hamlet like Shelvin, 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. Each needs checking in its own way, and thatch is a specialist material we report on as far as it can be seen. Chimneys and lead flashings on old roofs frequently need the most attention.
Report times depend on the survey you book: the Basic Survey within 48 hours, the Standard Survey in 24 to 48 hours and the Premium Survey on the same day.
- Place
- Shelvin (CT4)
- Wider area
- Kent
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- A written report with photos, by email
- Survey days
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insurance
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Landlords, agents and block managers in Shelvin
A roof problem in a let property affects your tenants as well as the building. A survey shows what needs attention, so you can plan the work.
With a portfolio of properties, surveys can be booked for more than one address. To discuss a number of properties, call 07833 053749 or send us an email with the addresses.
What affects the price in Shelvin
Prices vary from roof to roof, and it comes down to:
- Which survey package you book
- Any need for thermal images or a drone flight
- How tall the building is and how easy the roof is to see
- House, block, shop or office
A Basic Survey starts from £150, inc. VAT. The Standard Survey starts from £250 and the Premium Survey from £400, both inc. VAT. You’ll know the price for your survey before booking.
Booking your survey
Before you get in touch, it’s useful to have:
- Anything about access we should know
- Why you want a survey: buying, a leak, a storm or new work
- The type of building and roof, such as pitched or flat
- Your postcode, so we can check access and travel
Surveys can be booked for weekdays, Saturdays or Sundays. To arrange a day that suits you, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email.
Different roofs, different checks
Rendered stacks
A rendered stack can mask problems in the bricks below. We look for cracks, hollow areas and staining.
Chimney pots and cowls
For unused flues, we check whether caps or cowls allow ventilation. Poor capping can lead to damp inside the stack.
How it works
Where it’s relevant and can be reached safely, the roof space is checked as well as the outside. In the loft, the signs we look for are staining, damp, daylight and sagging. All in, the survey normally takes roughly 1–2 hours at a house, as part of a look at the roof around the stack. Somewhere like Shelvin needs a little journey planning: let us know about lanes, gates and parking. On the day, we inspect whatever is safely visible, inside and out.
- You let us know how many stacks there are and any damp or problems you’ve noticed.
- We inspect each stack from safe viewpoints outside.
- Every part we can see is looked at: pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, bricks and flashings.
- Inside, we look for damp on chimney breasts and in the loft where there is safe access.
- The findings are written up with photos and recommendations and emailed to you.
Getting ready for the survey
- Find any records of previous roof work
- Let us know about parking near the property
- Point out any leaks or damp patches
Getting a price
When you are ready to go ahead, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email. We’ll suggest a package, agree the price and find a date, weekday or weekend.
Related advice
Common questions in Shelvin
How do I find out if my home in Shelvin is listed?
Historic England’s list shows listed buildings, and the local council can tell you about conservation areas. Listed building consent is needed for changes that affect a listed building’s special interest, and conservation areas can limit changes of roofing material.
I let a flat near Shepherds Well station. Can you check the roof?
Yes, landlords and agents book with us as well as owners. You can phone 07833 053749 or email us with the address and some details.
Which parts of the chimney do you look at?
The whole stack, as far as it can safely be seen: pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, bricks and flashings. Leaning, unused stacks and damp on chimney breasts are recorded too.
Is a leaning chimney dangerous?
Don’t ignore it. Stacks can lean when mortar on one side breaks down. The survey records what we can see, and a structural engineer can assess whether it needs work.
Do you test for asbestos?
No. We don’t carry out asbestos surveys or testing. We flag materials that could contain asbestos, like cement sheets or soffits on pre-2000 buildings and suggest a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before any work.
How many surveys have you done?
Over 5,000 surveys so far, across 20+ years of surveying roofs, with 98% customer satisfaction.
How long is the visit?
It usually takes an hour or two for most houses, and longer for a large or complex roof. The written report follows by email.
Signs you need a chimney survey in Shelvin
Years of fires can affect the mortar inside a stack. Mortar can deteriorate unevenly from flue gases and moisture, which is one reason stacks start to lean.
People normally book a survey after spotting one of these:
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- A stack that appears to lean
- Eroded joints in the brickwork
If you let a flat or house near Shepherds Well station, a roof report between tenancies helps plan work before a small defect becomes a tenant’s leak.
What to check before booking
- Whether VAT is added on top
- When you’ll get the report
- What exactly goes into their report
- Which limits apply to the survey
What you can safely check yourself
After heavy rain, check ceilings and the tops of walls for new stains. Photograph them and note the date, as it helps a surveyor trace the cause.
If you have a loft with safe access, take a look inside. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
Places near Shelvin
Also in Shelvin
Chimney surveys around Shelvin
Many older homes in Kent have handmade clay tiles, including Kent peg tiles held by pegs through two holes, and tile-hanging on their upper walls. You will also find oast houses and timber-framed Wealden hall houses among the county’s older buildings. On roofs like these, good slates or tiles can outlast the nails, battens, lead and mortar around them. With Acrise Place about 4 miles south-west, Shelvin sits in an area with a long building history. If your home is one of the older ones, expect a mix of original materials and later repairs on the roof, and any change of roofing material on a listed home needs checking with the council first.
If you live in an older home near Church of St Martin, its chimney, valleys and lead work are likely to be the parts that need attention first.
Shelvin is about 6 miles north-west of Dover, in Kent. We carry out chimney surveys in Shelvin for houses, flats, blocks and commercial buildings. Shelvin is one of the towns and villages in Kent we cover for chimney surveys. You can also see our page for Canterbury.
Chimney surveys in CT4 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. If you need a chimney survey at a property on Clints Lane and Shelvin Lane or a nearby road, we can help. Nearby, we also carry out chimney surveys in Wootton (1 mile south-west), Denton (1 mile west), Lodge Lees (1 mile west), Breach (2 miles west) and Selsted (2 miles south). Further out, we also cover Ashford (14 miles west), Canterbury (8 miles north-west), Dover (6 miles south-east), Folkestone (7 miles south), Ramsgate (14 miles north-east) and Whitstable (13 miles north-west).
Local landmarks in Shelvin
Typical jobs here are in homes near Coach House Hotel. The nearest railway station is Shepherds Well station, roughly 1.9 miles east. Well-known places in the area include Buckland Hospital (5.9 miles south-east).