Medway · London and the South East
Chimney survey in Walderslade, Medway
A survey of chimney stacks, pots, flashings and flaunching in Walderslade, with drones and thermal imaging where they help. Get in touch for a price.
- Signs that a stack is leaning
- Loose, cracked or missing pots
- Mortar washing out of the joints
Practical tips
You do not need to be a roofer to help. What helps most:
- Use a Gas Safe registered engineer for gas appliances
- Remove aerials or dishes from the stack if they’re no longer needed
- Ask for ventilated caps on redundant stacks
- Note any damp on chimney breasts and when it appears
With a shared stack, the report can help when talking to next door. The photos show the problem and which side it’s on from the viewpoints we used.
Check redundant flues are capped with ventilation. That helps stop damp building up inside.
About our chimney survey in Walderslade
For buyers, a chimney survey before exchange can flag work you may want to raise. On older stacks, we frequently find cracked flaunching, loose flashings and worn pointing. You get photos and findings you can take back to the seller or agent. It works alongside a RICS home survey, not instead of one. If you’ve noticed a stack that appears to lean and frost-damaged brickwork on the stack, a survey will tell you what’s going on, whatever the roof.
Around Walderslade, older cottages sit alongside bungalows and newer houses. Older roofs can have slate, clay tiles or other traditional coverings, while many later ones have concrete tiles. On older homes, chimney stacks, valleys and gutters are usually where the work is, and the fixings under the coverings matter too. The fixings under an older roof frequently fail before good slates or tiles do.
Pictures do a lot of the work in our reports, so you can see each defect rather than just read about it. If something couldn’t be seen safely, the report is clear about it.
- Place
- Walderslade (ME5)
- Wider area
- Medway
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Your report
- A written report with photos, by email
- When we survey
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Insured
- PI and public liability insurance
- Phone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Your questions about chimney surveys in Walderslade
Does a conservation area affect roof work in Walderslade?
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.
Is Walderslade within the area you cover?
Yes, smaller places are covered as well as towns. We cover the whole of London and South East England. Let us know about access, parking and anything unusual about getting there when booking.
How long is the visit?
Expect it to take an hour or two on an ordinary house, though large, tall or awkward roofs take more time. The written report follows by email, on the timescale of your package.
What insurance do you have?
Our surveys are covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance. Ask if you need details for a managing agent or building owner.
How long have you been surveying roofs?
Over 5,000 surveys so far, over more than 20 years.
What’s the best way to book?
To arrange a survey, ring 07833 053749 or email us and tell us the address and what you need to know. We will confirm the price and agree a day with you.
Does this replace a RICS home survey?
No. It’s a specialist roof survey, not a RICS Level 2 or Level 3 building survey. It focuses on the roof, so it sits alongside a building survey rather than replacing it.
The survey, step by step
The aim of the visit is simple: to see as much of the chimney stack as can safely be seen and record it clearly. Everything we note and photograph goes into the written report. The visit typically takes an hour or two for most homes, a little longer where there are several stacks. A visit to Walderslade is planned like any other: the time, the access and where to park are agreed in advance. Weekday and weekend visits are both possible. If there are outbuildings or garages you want looked at, mention them.
- First we talk through the stacks, their history and any problems.
- Each stack is inspected from safe positions outside.
- We photograph and record the pots, flaunching, pointing and flashings.
- Inside, the chimney breasts and the loft are checked for damp where there’s access.
- You get a written report with photos and recommendations by email.
Preparing for the visit
- Keep pets out of the way during the survey
- Point out any leaks or damp patches
- If you’re buying, let the agent know when we are coming
Arrange a survey
Booking is simple: just phone 07833 053749 or use the contact form, let us know about the property and we’ll point you to the right survey. We confirm the price before anything is booked.
Related advice
Nearby places to Walderslade
Also in Walderslade
Landlords, agents and block managers in Walderslade
Freeholders and residents’ companies use a roof report to plan and budget, with the most urgent items set out first.
Landlords and letting agents in Walderslade book surveys as well as householders. A photo-illustrated written report gives you a clear record of the chimney stack, useful for planning maintenance.
Chimney surveys around Walderslade
Walderslade is within about 5 miles of the coast, and being near the sea means more wind and salt than a roof inland would face. Metal fixings and flashings corrode faster in salt air, while gales work at loose ridges, slates and tiles, while driving rain finds any gap. Starkey Castle, about 3.3 miles north-west, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Walderslade. On older houses around here, roofs frequently carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead.
Living close to Westfield Wood is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn, so outlets and downpipes are worth watching. If you own a rental within reach of Chatham station, a roof report between tenancies helps plan work before a small defect becomes a tenant’s leak.
Walderslade is about 1 mile south of Chatham, in Medway. Bookings from Walderslade are handled just like any other: a call or an email, a price, then a date. Across Medway, we cover Walderslade.
We cover every part of ME5 for chimney surveys. You’ll find streets like Farm Road, York Avenue and Walsham Road. With the A2045 close by, Walderslade is simple for us to get to. We also cover the places around Walderslade: Blue Bell Hill (1 mile west), Lordswood (1 mile east), Kit's Coty (1 mile south-west), Chatham (1 mile north) and Lidsing (2 miles east). Further out, we also cover Gillingham (3 miles north-east), Rochester (4 miles north), Rainham (4 miles north-east), Strood (4 miles north-west), Park Wood (3 miles east) and Twydall (4 miles north-east).
Landmarks near Walderslade
In Walderslade, that means homes and buildings near Westfield Wood, Greenacre Academy and Walderslade Girls' School. For rail, the closest station is Chatham station, about 3.1 miles north of the centre. Nearby you will also find Allington Castle (3 miles south) and Pentagon Shopping Centre (3.3 miles north). Green spaces nearby include Blue Bell Hill and Burham Down.
DIY checks: what’s safe
What you can’t do safely is get up close. Slates, tiles, flat roofs and rooflights can give way, and a fall can be serious. That’s where a survey comes in, using safe viewpoints and a drone where applicable.
Watch the gutters in a downpour, from a window or the ground. Overflowing water can point to a blockage or a sagging run.
Roof by roof
Chimney pots and cowls
On redundant flues, we look at how the pots are capped. Capping without ventilation can trap moisture.
Rendered stacks
Cracked render can let water in and trap it behind. Cracks are photographed and noted.
Signs you need a chimney survey in Walderslade
Stacks that were used for open fires for many years can weaken from the inside. Mortar can deteriorate unevenly from flue gases and moisture, which is one reason stacks start to lean.
Signs worth acting on include:
- Flaunching that has broken away
- Gaps where the stack meets the roof
- Pots or cowls that look unsafe
- Damp on a chimney breast inside
For an older house near a landmark such as St William's Church, old fixings, lead flashings and tall chimneys are typical of older roofs.
Before booking any roof surveyor
- Do they have a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID for drone work?
- How long they’ve been surveying roofs
- Whether they hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- Is there a chance to talk the report through?