Kent · London and the South East
Roof leak investigation in Cheriton, Kent
Roof leak investigations in Cheriton, backed by more than 20 years’ experience. You get a clear report with photos.
- Damp on a chimney breast
- Staining where a gutter or parapet meets the wall
- Water through the ceiling under a flat roof
Why act early in Cheriton
Leaks tend to get worse, not better. Each storm can open a gap a little more. Tracing it now lets you plan the work rather than react to it. Around Cheriton, a leak in an older house can soak into timbers and plaster, which is far harder to put right than the roof fault itself.
The cost of a survey depends on the roof: its size, its height, how many sections it has and how safely it can be seen. Prices start from £150, including VAT.
What you get with us
- Surveys seven days a week
- Clear package prices, with VAT included
- 5,000+ surveys completed
- CAA-registered drone operator (Flyer ID and Operator ID)
Read our cost guide and what we found on two real jobs.
How a roof leak investigation works in Cheriton
On older houses, leaks frequently start at lead work and hidden gutters. Lead flashings crack or lift, valley linings wear and parapet gutters overflow when outlets block. If your home has a butterfly roof, the central valley gutter is a common culprit in heavy rain. Parapet walls and their gutters are looked at from wherever it is safe. Our report shows what we found, with photos. If you are worried about damp on a chimney breast and staining where a gutter or parapet meets the wall, a survey will tell you what’s going on.
Chimney stacks on older houses around places like Cheriton can let water in, through worn flaunching, failed pointing or lifted flashings. Damp on a chimney breast is not always rain from above, which is why it is worth tracing properly. It’s worth looking at the stack from outside and at the timbers beside it in the loft.
If any part of the leaking roof couldn’t be seen safely, we say so in the report. You will know exactly what was inspected and what wasn’t, and what we’d suggest next.
- Location
- Cheriton (CT19, CT20, CT50)
- Region
- Kent
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Weekdays, Saturdays and Sundays
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Telephone
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
What we are asked to look at in Cheriton
Chimneys can let water in by several routes. Water can enter through crumbling mortar, cracked flaunching, worn flashings or uncapped pots. The damp may appear on a chimney breast, a ceiling or in the loft.
Most people get in touch after spotting something like this:
- Damp walls below an overflowing gutter
- Ceiling stains that grow after rain
- Damp on a chimney breast
- Leaks that appear only in driving rain
If yours is one of the older homes in the streets near Church of All Souls, old mortar, worn lead and slipped slates are the usual suspects when water gets in.
What to check before booking
- Their report turnaround times
- If they fly a drone, whether they hold a CAA Flyer ID and Operator ID
- Whether the loft space is looked at, where there is one
- What the report includes, and whether it has photos
Common questions in Cheriton
Do you cover smaller places like Cheriton?
Yes, Cheriton is on our map. A small place gets exactly the same survey as a big one, with the route planned beforehand.
Do roofs near the sea, like those around Cheriton, take more of a battering?
Near the coast, roofs face more wind and more salt than further inland. Salt corrodes metal fixings and flashings, and wind lifts loose slates, tiles and ridge pieces.
Can you give me structural calculations?
No. We point out what can be seen, such as sagging or deflection, but we do not carry out calculations or give an engineer’s opinion. If we think you need an engineer, the report says so.
How long does a roof leak investigation take?
The visit normally takes about one to two hours at a typical home, with bigger or more complicated roofs taking longer. We will confirm what to expect when we arrange the visit.
Can every leak be traced?
We can’t promise to find every leak on one visit. Most leave clues we can follow, but intermittent leaks that need particular weather can be harder. The report sets out what we found and the most likely routes.
How many surveys have you done?
We’ve completed more than 5,000 surveys, across 20+ years of surveying roofs.
Does the report include photographs?
Yes. Photos are taken throughout the survey, and the report uses them to show each finding.
Landlord and commercial surveys in Cheriton
We also survey roofs for businesses and commercial landlords. Bigger roofs take more time, and they’re priced for the size.
Landlords and agents in Cheriton book surveys as well as householders. The report gives you a dated record of the leaking roof, with photos, which helps you plan work between tenancies.
Tips that help
A few practical points come up again and again on our surveys. They apply to most roofs:
- Don’t touch fittings that water is reaching
- Protect furniture and flooring under the leak
- Leave roof access to professionals
- Let us know about any past repairs to the roof
Once the work is done, hold on to the report. If water appears again, it shows what was found before, which makes the next step quicker.
Check the loft after heavy rain, with care and a good torch. Look for drips, damp patches and stains on timbers. Photograph anything new.
How the survey changes by roof type
Slate and tile slopes
Slipped, cracked or missing slates and tiles let rain onto the underlay. Older felt may hold for a while, but it tears with age.
Flat roof upstands and outlets
Outlets drain a flat roof. When one blocks, water ponds and finds any weak spot. We check outlets and the covering around them.
How it works
When we arrive, we begin with a quick chat about the roof and anything that is worrying you. We then inspect everything that can safely be seen, from the ground, from windows, in the roof space and by drone where applicable. Most surveys take about 1–2 hours for most homes, though a hard-to-trace leak can take longer. A visit to a smaller place like Cheriton is no different on the day: we look from ground level, from windows, from the loft and from the roof where it’s safe. It is useful to show us anything you’ve already noticed.
- We start with your notes and photos of the leak.
- Inside, we look at the stain and the ceiling around it.
- From the loft space, we trace the water’s route where there is safe access.
- We inspect the likely entry points outside, from the ground, windows and the roof where safe.
- We email a written report showing where the water most likely gets in.
Before we arrive
- Keep pets in another room
- Show us where any leaks or stains appear
- If it isn’t your property yet, arrange access through the agent
Book a survey
Surveys can be booked for weekdays, Saturdays or Sundays. To arrange a day that suits you, ring 07833 053749 or drop us an email with the address and the days you’d prefer.
Read more
Roof leak investigations around Cheriton
The coast is about 1 mile or less from Cheriton, and being near the sea means more wind and salt than a roof inland would face. In a coastal gale, rain is driven sideways into laps, verges and flashings, and salt air slowly wears metal fixings. About 3.4 miles north lies Acrise Place, a reminder of how long the area around Cheriton has been built on. Period homes nearby can have lead valleys, tall chimneys and a patchwork of past repairs, and any change of roofing material on a listed home needs checking with the council first.
If you run a hotel or guest house in or near Cheriton, a roof problem can mean rooms out of use, so it pays to find faults before guests do. Living close to Lower Leas Coastal Park is pleasant, but mature trees mean leaves in gutters and valleys each autumn, and blocked gutters overflow and soak walls.
Cheriton is about 1 mile west of Folkestone, in Kent. Whether the building in Cheriton is a house, a flat or a commercial unit, we can survey the roof on a weekday or at the weekend. Cheriton is one of the towns and villages in Kent where we work. We also survey roofs in Canterbury.
All of CT19, CT20 and CT50 is covered for roof leak investigations. Streets in the area include Oaks Road, Firs Lane and Star Lane. Cheriton is on the M20, so it’s easy for us to get to. We also cover Sandgate (1 mile south), Folkestone (1 mile east), Peene (1 mile north-west), Newington (1 mile west) and Arpinge (1 mile north). Further out, we also cover Ashford (12 miles west), Canterbury (13 miles north), Dover (8 miles north-east), Deal (14 miles north-east), Hythe (3 miles south-west) and Tower Hamlets (7 miles east).
Around Cheriton
In Cheriton, that means homes and buildings near The Folkestone Academy, Lower Leas Coastal Park and White Lion pub, among other places. For rail, the closest station is Folkestone West station, roughly 0.6 miles south-east. Other landmarks nearby include Sandgate Castle (1 mile south) and Elham Valley Countryside Centre And Railway Museum (1.3 miles north-west). Open spaces near Cheriton include Sugar Loaf Hill.