Kent · London and the South East
Chimney Survey in Sholden
We take a careful look at the chimney stack at your property in Sholden, and put it all in a written report with photos.
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
Questions from Sholden
Do roofs near the sea, like those around Sholden, take more of a battering?
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.
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Sholden?
We cannot confirm that for you, but Historic England’s list and your council can. A change of roofing material may need consent in either case, and councils can also use Article 4 directions.
Does the report include photographs?
Yes, plenty. Pictures sit next to the findings they show.
Is it a structural engineer’s report?
No. We note visible signs like sagging or deflection, but we are not structural engineers and don’t carry out calculations. Where an engineer is needed, we say so in the report.
Which days do you carry out surveys?
Surveys can be booked for any day of the week: Monday to Friday, Saturdays and Sundays. Let us know which days suit you when booking.
Should I worry about a leaning stack?
It is worth having a leaning stack checked. Our survey notes how it looks and the condition of the bricks and joints, and if it may be a structural issue, we recommend a structural engineer.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We don’t carry out asbestos surveys or testing. If we see materials that could contain asbestos, like cement roof sheets or soffits on buildings from before 2000, we flag them and suggest a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before any work.
About our chimney survey in Sholden
A chimney stands up above the roof, exposed to wind, rain and frost on every side. In time, flaunching cracks, mortar washes out and flashings come loose. Water then gets into the stack and can show as damp on a chimney breast or a stain in the loft. A survey finds these problems and records them with photos. If you’ve noticed frost-damaged brickwork on the stack and flaunching that has broken away, we can find out what’s behind it, whatever the roof.
Some older homes in villages like Sholden are listed or in a conservation area. That can affect what materials can be used when work is done, so check with the council before planning anything. A roof report helps you plan work with that in mind. Older materials such as clay tiles, slate and stone are often matched when work is done.
The written findings come by email, easy to pass on to a roofer, an agent or an insurer. Basic reports come within 48 hours, Standard within 24–48 hours and Premium on the day.
- Place
- Sholden (CT14)
- Wider area
- Kent
- Cost
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Towns and villages near Sholden
Other services in Sholden
Leave it or get it looked at?
Before deciding what to do with a redundant stack, a survey shows how it is doing. In a conservation area or on a listed building, changes may need permission from the council and the council can advise. For older village homes like those around Sholden, the right replacement materials aren’t always easy to find quickly. Spotting a problem early leaves room to find them.
Prices quoted always include VAT, and the report isn’t charged as an extra. Our price is from £150, including VAT. Size, height and access decide where your roof falls.
What you get with us
- Covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Plain-English reports with photos
- Independent findings on the roof’s condition
- Thermal imaging and drones used where they help
See what a roof survey costs and two real surveys.
Chimney surveys around Sholden
The coast is about 2 miles or less from Sholden, so there’s 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. The wider area around Sholden has a long history of building, with Walmer Castle about 2 miles south-east. Older homes in the wider area often have features worth a closer look, such as lead valleys, tall stacks and roofs that have been patched over the years, and any change of roofing material on a listed home needs checking with the council first.
If you own a rental within reach of Deal station, a roof report helps you deal with small faults before they turn into a call from a tenant. If yours is one of the older homes in the streets near Church of St Nicholas, the nails, lead and mortar on the roof may be wearing out even where the slates or tiles look fine. Living close to Betteshanger Park is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn, and blocked gutters overflow and soak walls.
Sholden is about 1 mile north-west of Deal, in Kent. Sholden gets the same service as everywhere else we work: a close look at everything that’s safely in view, photographs and a clear written report. Our area takes in places right across Kent, large and small. Our Canterbury page covers surveys nearby.
We cover every part of CT14 for chimney surveys and the streets around it. If you need a chimney survey at a property on The Street, London Road and Colmanton Grove or a nearby road, we can survey it. Close by, we survey roofs in Sholden Meadows (1 mile west), Mill Hill (1 mile south), Great Mongeham (1 mile south-west), Deal (1 mile south-east) and Finglesham (1 mile north-west). Larger places within reach include Canterbury (13 miles west), Margate (11 miles north), Dover (7 miles south-west), Folkestone (13 miles south-west), Ramsgate (8 miles north) and Broadstairs (10 miles north).
Local landmarks in Sholden
Typical jobs here are in homes near Betteshanger Park, Castle Community College and The Magnet pub. Sholden’s nearest station is Deal station, roughly 1.1 miles east of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Deal Castle (1.4 miles east) and Kent Museum of the Moving Image (1.2 miles east). Green spaces nearby include Monk's Wall nature reserve.
Before and after the survey
A little preparation and a few simple habits help, both for the survey and for the roof itself. Some pointers:
- Have brackets on the chimney checked
- Never climb onto the roof to look at a chimney
- Look at the chimneys with binoculars after a storm
- Photograph damp patches with the date
The report is emailed to you, ready to share with a roofer or builder. Each defect is described in plain words and shown in a photo, so it’s easy to follow.
Get small mortar repairs done while they’re small. It is far simpler than rebuilding a stack later.
What we can’t see
It is useful to know what a survey won’t do before you book:
- Whether the flue is safe to use
- Hidden damage within the stack
- A structural engineer’s assessment
If in doubt, ring 07833 053749 or send us an email and we’ll point you to the right survey. The full list of what we check.
What this survey covers
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Flaunching
- Lead flashings
- Chimney breasts
- Shared and party-wall stacks
- Brick chimney stacks
How the survey works
Where it is relevant and can be reached safely, the loft space is checked as well as the outside. Inside, we look for staining, damp, gaps and signs of movement, as far as the space allows. The whole visit typically takes between one and two hours on an ordinary house, and longer for a large or complex roof. Somewhere like Sholden needs a little journey planning: let us know about narrow lanes, gates, long drives and where we can park. On the day, we inspect everything that’s safely in view, inside and out.
- We go through the chimneys, any damp and any work done on them.
- 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.
Before we arrive
- Leave a clear route to the loft
- If it isn’t your property yet, arrange access through the agent
- For flats, make sure roof access has been agreed
How to book
If you are buying, it is useful to book soon after your offer is accepted, so there’s time to use the report before exchange. Otherwise, simply phone 07833 053749 or send us an email whenever suits you.
Read more
DIY checks: what’s safe
It is useful to keep a record: when leaks happen, ground-level photos and any past roof work. Send it with your enquiry and it will help the survey.
A DIY look is useful, but it isn’t a survey. From ground level, valleys, flashings and the backs of chimneys are often out of sight.
Surveys for landlords and agents in Sholden
For a freeholder or residents’ company, a roof report is a sound basis for a maintenance plan, putting the urgent items at the top.
For blocks of flats, a roof survey helps managing agents and residents’ management companies plan ahead. Recommendations are set out with the most urgent first where relevant, which helps with budgets and planning.