Hertfordshire · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Uppend, Hertfordshire
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching in Uppend, carried out by an experienced roof surveyor. You get a clear written report with photographs.
- Damp patches on chimney breasts
- Mortar washing out of the joints
- A chimney out of line
What we do, step by step
After the inspection, everything we found is written up as a photo-illustrated written report, emailed to you. As for time on site, it usually takes between one and two hours for most houses, though large, tall or awkward roofs take more time. Around Uppend, older homes can have small or awkward roof spaces, so it helps to know whether there’s a loft hatch and how easy it is to reach. We only go where it is safe.
- You tell us how many stacks there are and any damp or problems you’ve noticed.
- Each chimney is viewed from wherever it can be seen safely.
- The pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, brickwork and flashings are checked and photographed.
- Where there is safe access, we check the stack in the loft and the chimney breasts for damp.
- You get a written report with photographs and our recommendations.
Before we arrive
- Have any paperwork from past roof work to hand
- Jot down any questions you want answered
- Check we can get to the back of the property
How to book
To book a survey, phone 07833 053749 or send us an email with the address and what you’d like to know about the roof. We will confirm the price before you book.
Advice
How a chimney survey works in Uppend
Many homes have chimneys that are no longer used. Even when it isn’t used, a stack has to stay weathertight. Capping a stack without ventilation can trap moisture and lead to damp inside. We check how redundant stacks have been capped and look for damp in the chimney breasts. The report sets out what we found and what we recommend. We survey brick chimney stacks, chimney breasts and shared and party-wall stacks, and the problems we are asked to look at most are loose, cracked or missing pots and frost-damaged brickwork on the stack.
Older buildings in small places like Uppend may be 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.
Nothing in the report is left vague: if work is needed, the report says so clearly, along with how urgent it is.
- Place
- Uppend (CM23)
- Region
- Hertfordshire
- Price
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- Written, with photos, emailed to you
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insured
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Why get it checked now?
A leaning stack should be looked at sooner rather than later. Our survey records it and says when a structural engineer should look at it, so you know where you stand. In a small place like Uppend, homes can be exposed to wind and rain, which finds any gap, and damp in older walls is slow to dry out.
Prices start from £150, with VAT included, for a Basic Survey. Standard is from £250 and Premium from £400, both inc. VAT. We confirm the exact price before you book.
Why choose Independent Roof Survey in Uppend
- Every finding written up with photos
- Satisfaction rate of 98%
- More than 5,000 surveys completed
- Two decades and more of roof surveys
Read our cost guide or our case studies.
Your questions about chimney surveys in Uppend
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Uppend?
Start with Historic England’s list for listing and your council for conservation areas. Either can affect what roof work is allowed, so it’s worth checking before planning any.
Do you cover smaller places like Uppend?
Yes, smaller places are covered as well as towns. We work right across London and South East England. Let us know about access, parking and anything unusual about getting there when you book.
Is this an asbestos survey?
No. We do not 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 recommend a specialist asbestos surveyor checks them before they’re disturbed.
How do you inspect a chimney without scaffolding?
We inspect from wherever is safe: from ground level, windows and vantage points, and from the loft where there is access. Our Premium Survey includes a drone inspection where applicable. If part of a stack cannot be seen, the report says so.
Which parts of the chimney do you look at?
The whole stack, as far as it can be seen safely: pots, cowls, flaunching, pointing, bricks and flashings. Leaning, unused stacks and damp on chimney breasts are recorded too.
Does the report include photos?
Yes. The report includes photographs of what we found, so you can see each point for yourself.
What does a roof survey cost?
Prices start from £150, including VAT. The final figure depends on the roof and the package you choose, confirmed before anything is booked.
When you need someone else
Without opening up the roof, some things stay hidden, so a survey has limits:
- Whether a gas appliance or its flue is safe
- Flue inspections or sweeping
- Structural calculations for a leaning stack
Not sure which survey suits your roof? You can call 07833 053749 or email us and we’ll tell you. The full list of what we check.
Roofs we survey in Uppend
- Flaunching
- Lead flashings
- Chimney pots and cowls
- Brick chimney stacks
- Chimney breasts
- Shared and party-wall stacks
Local roofs in Uppend
Much Hadham Palace, about 4.7 miles south-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Uppend. 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 the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. Older houses in the South East often have slate or clay tile roofs, while many later estates have concrete tiles, and flat-roofed additions turn up almost everywhere. Each of these coverings has its own weak points, from fixings and valleys to flashings, chimneys and gutters.
For site and facilities teams at buildings like Farnham Church of England Primary School, long gutter runs and wide roofs on a building that size are worth checking on a regular cycle. Take an older house close to Church of St Mary the Virgin: its chimney, valleys and lead work are likely to be the parts that need attention first.
Uppend is about 3 miles north of Bishop's Stortford, in Hertfordshire. We survey roofs in Uppend across London and South East England. Our Hertfordshire coverage includes Uppend. For surveys nearby, see our Chelmsford page.
Every address in CM23 is within our area for chimney surveys. We also cover Mount Pleasant (1 mile north-east), Farnham (1 mile south), Manuden (1 mile east), The Willows (2 miles north-west) and Stocking Pelham (2 miles north-west). Within a short drive, we also cover Stevenage (14 miles west), Bishop's Stortford (3 miles south), Hoddesdon (13 miles south-west), Hertford (12 miles south-west), Ware (10 miles south-west) and Baldock (15 miles west).
Landmarks near Uppend
Uppend’s nearest station is Stansted Mountfitchet station, about 2.9 miles east of the centre. A little further out are Bishops Stortford Local History Museum (2.4 miles south) and Herts and Essex Hospital (3.9 miles south-east). The countryside around Uppend includes Aubrey Buxton Nature Reserve.
Practical tips
Getting the most from a chimney survey starts before we arrive and carries on afterwards. Tips:
- Never climb onto the roof to look at a chimney
- Check that disused chimneys can still breathe
- Use the report as a baseline for future checks
- Look at the chimneys with binoculars after a storm
You get the report by email and can pass it to whoever does the work. Each defect is described in plain words and shown in a photo, so it is easy to follow.
Check your stacks from the street or garden after a storm. With binoculars, you can frequently see cracked flaunching or lifted lead.
What we’re asked to look at in Uppend
Removing a chimney breast inside can leave questions about how the stack is supported. We note what’s visible in the loft space and outside, and the report recommends a structural engineer if support is a concern.
These are some of the problems a survey can pick up:
- Eroded joints in the brickwork
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
- Bricks with flaking faces
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
If you let a flat or house near Stansted Mountfitchet station, the gap between tenancies is a good time to have the roof looked at.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Will they check the loft as well as the outside?
- What they will not be able to tell you
- Whether any drone flown is registered with the CAA
- Which parts of the roof they’ll actually see
DIY checks: what’s safe
Watch the gutters in a downpour, from a window or the ground. Water spilling over the edge can point to a blockage or a sagging run.
Keep a simple record: dates of leaks, photos from ground level and any work done on the roof. Share it with us when booking.