Greater London · London and the South East
Electronic leak detection in Hornchurch, Greater London
Electronic leak detection in Hornchurch, with over 20 years’ experience behind it. You get a clear report with photos.
- Holes left by work on the roof
- Leaks through a flat roof with no obvious cause
- New membranes needing a check before handover
Electronic leak detection for homes and businesses in Hornchurch
A leak in a flat roof often shows up a long way from where the water gets in. That makes leaks hard to trace by eye. Electronic leak detection tests the membrane itself and locates the breach. We test and report, and the repair is for your roofer. On suitable roofs, it replaces guesswork with a located breach. We then send you the results in a written report. Typical surveys look at new roofs to check before paving or planting and a flat roof leak that can’t be traced, on green roofs, liquid-applied waterproofing and commercial flat roofs.
Water getting through a flat roof in London can travel under the covering and appear some way from the hole. Upstands against parapets, outlets and the edge where flat meets pitched are common entry points. In a converted house in Hornchurch, the roof above may belong to the building rather than one flat.
Every survey ends with a written report, with photos, sent by email. It sets out the condition of the flat roof membrane, any defects and our written recommendations.
- Location
- Hornchurch (RM12, RM11, RM14, RM1)
- Region
- Greater London
- Prices
- Quoted for your roof
- Reports
- Emailed report with photos and recommendations
- Survey days
- Weekdays and weekends
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Should I look at the roof myself first?
Inside, the loft is a good place to look, with care. Take a torch and only step on boards or joists, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
After heavy rain, check ceilings and the tops of walls for new stains. Photograph them and note the date, which helps when we check the roof.
Do you need electronic leak detection in Hornchurch?
Other trades on the roof can puncture the waterproofing. Engineers fitting equipment, solar panels or aerials may leave damage behind.
Common reasons to book include:
- Repairs that haven’t stopped the leak
- Holes around roof penetrations
- Gaps at membrane joints
- New membranes needing a check before handover
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for instance near The Brewery, outlets and upstands on commercial flat roofs are the places to check before trouble starts.
Questions to ask before booking
- Whether you get a written report with photos
- Whether they hold professional indemnity and public liability insurance
- How long they’ve been surveying roofs
- Whether the price includes VAT
Landlords, agents and block managers in Hornchurch
Where a roof is shared: access has to be agreed with whoever owns or manages the building. Mention it when you get in touch and we’ll plan the survey around it.
Managing agents and residents’ management companies use roof surveys to plan maintenance. The report sets out what needs attention now and what can wait, which helps when budgeting.
Practical tips
There’s plenty you can do without going near the roof. What helps most:
- Don’t let outlets block
- Consider ELD before paving or planting goes on
- Check trades protect the waterproofing
- Do not leave water getting in
After your roofer repairs the breaches, a retest can confirm them if the build-up allows.
Limit foot traffic on flat roofs. Many breaches come from foot traffic.
What we do, step by step
We photograph the roof as we go, so the report shows exactly what we saw. Close-ups come from the safest viewpoint available. Most surveys take as long as needed for the roof’s area and construction, and we’ll give you a guide when quoting. Surveys in Hornchurch can be booked for any day of the week. London parking is frequently by permit or pay-and-display, so it’s useful to know what’s near you. Upstairs rooms at the back are useful too, as they frequently give the best view of a rear addition.
- We start by finding out what the roof is made of and where it leaks.
- We confirm whether the roof is suitable for electronic testing.
- The method depends on the membrane and what sits above and below it.
- We test the membrane and find where current is passing through it.
- You get a report showing where each breach is, for your roofer to repair.
Preparing for the visit
- Leave a clear route to the loft
- Have any questions written down, so nothing gets missed
- Tell us where we can park nearby
How to book
If you have photos of the roof, send them over. Take them safely from the ground or a window. To send them or to book, call 07833 053749 or email us.
Advice
Hornchurch questions
Is parking a problem for a survey in Hornchurch?
It rarely stops a survey, but it is worth planning. Let us know the parking rules on your street and we’ll work around them.
Is my home in Hornchurch listed or in a conservation area?
For listing, use Historic England’s list; for conservation areas, ask the council. It matters most if you’re planning to re-roof in a different material.
Which method do you use?
It depends on the membrane and the build-up. Low-voltage testing typically needs a wet surface, while high-voltage testing needs a dry, exposed membrane.
Does ELD include fixing the breach?
No, our part is finding the breaches. Your roofer uses the report to target the repair.
Do you take photos of the roof?
Yes. Photos are part of every report, so you can see exactly what each finding refers to.
Do I have to be there for the survey?
That depends on the survey. For inside areas and the loft space, someone has to give us access; we will agree the details when you book.
Does ELD work under paving or planting?
In some cases. It depends on the build-up and the layers above the membrane and parts may need to be lifted. We will discuss it before we quote.
Also near Hornchurch
Also in Hornchurch
Different roofs, different checks
Bituminous membranes
Many flat roofs use bitumen-based membranes. The build-up decides which method will work.
Green and ballasted roofs
Roofs with planting or ballast hide the membrane. Testing may still be possible but it depends on the layers.
Flat roofs in Hornchurch
Further from the centre, London’s housing takes in interwar semis with hipped roofs in clay or concrete tiles as well as slate-roofed terraces. If your home in Hornchurch is one of them, bay roofs, hips and later dormers each have their own details. Next to the main roofs there is usually a flat roof somewhere, whether on an extension, a garage or a commercial unit. Hare Hall, about 1.8 miles north, is one of the historic houses in the wider area around Hornchurch. On older houses around here, roofs often carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead, and a listed home or one in a conservation area may need consent for changes of material.
Take a building like Langtons Infant School: a large flat roof with lots of outlets and rooflights has many places where a membrane can fail. Parking in Hornchurch, as in most of London, takes a little planning: let us know about parking bays, permits or a driveway when you book, as a space near the door cannot be promised.
Hornchurch is about 6 miles south-west of Brentwood, in Greater London. Hornchurch is one of many places we visit across Greater London. Hornchurch is one of the places in Greater London where we work for electronic leak detection. You can also see our page for London.
Electronic leak detection in RM12, RM11, RM14 and RM1 are booked the same way as anywhere else. Streets in the area include High Street, The Avenue and Stanley Road, and we cover them all. You will find Hornchurch on the A125, which makes it straightforward to reach. If you are just outside Hornchurch, we cover Upminster Bridge (1 mile east), Heath Park (1 mile north-west), Emerson Park (1 mile north-east), Hacton (2 miles south) and Ardleigh Green (2 miles north). Further out, we also cover London (14 miles west), St Pancras (14 miles west), Shoreditch (13 miles west), Walthamstow (10 miles west), Hoxton (13 miles west) and Whitechapel (13 miles west).
What’s near Hornchurch
Around Hornchurch, our work takes us to homes and buildings near Abbs Cross Academy and Arts College, J.J. Moon's pub and St. Andrew's Park, among other places. Hornchurch’s nearest station is Emerson Park station, roughly 0.7 miles north of the centre. Nearby you will also find Upminster Tithe Barn Museum of Nostalgia (1.9 miles east) and The Brewery (1.8 miles north-west). The countryside around Hornchurch includes Hornchurch Cutting.