Essex · London and the South East
Roof Leak Investigation in Great Burstead
Roof leak investigations in Great Burstead from an independent, experienced roof surveyor. More than 20 years and over 5,000 surveys.
- Damp walls below an overflowing gutter
- Water through the ceiling under a flat roof
- Ceiling stains that grow after rain
About our roof leak investigation in Great Burstead
Flat roofs leak in their own ways. Common causes are splits and blisters, tired upstands and outlets that don’t drain. Ponding water makes any weakness worse. We look at the roof surface and the ceiling below to narrow it down. Flat roofs over extensions, garages and dormers are frequent sources of leaks. An ageing felt roof is a frequent culprit. Common reasons to book are stains around a skylight and damp ceilings under a flat roof, across chimney stacks, the roof space and flat roof details.
Being in a small place like Great Burstead makes no difference to how a leak or storm damage is looked at: the journey and access are just planned in advance. It helps to know where the water appears, in what weather, and what you’ve seen outside, along with any repairs done before. If you have photographs of the water coming in, they help as well.
We write the report in plain English, so you do not need to be a roofer to follow it. Photographs show what each point refers to.
- Where
- Great Burstead (CM11, SS15)
- Region
- Essex
- Prices
- From £150 inc. VAT
- Report
- A written report with photos, by email
- Appointments
- Monday to Sunday, daytime
- Cover
- Professional indemnity and public liability
- Call
- 07833 053749
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
For landlords and managing agents
We survey roofs for letting agents and landlords as well as householders. The report gives you a dated record of the leaking roof, with photographs, useful for planning maintenance.
Any of our surveys can be booked by landlords, agents and building managers in Great Burstead. To discuss a property or a block, call 07833 053749 or email us.
Great Burstead: your questions answered
Is Great Burstead within the area you cover?
We do. A small place gets exactly the same survey as a big one.
Do you cover Great Burstead?
Yes. We work right across London and South East England, and Great Burstead is part of that. Just phone 07833 053749 or send us an email and let us know about the property.
Will I get photos?
Yes. Photos are part of every report, so you can see exactly what each finding refers to.
How long will you be at the property?
Allow about one to two hours for most houses, and more on a big or complicated roof. We’ll confirm what to expect when we arrange the visit.
Will you fix the leak as part of this?
This service finds and reports the cause, not to carry out the repair. The report gives any roofer a clear brief.
Will you definitely find the leak?
Not every leak can be pinned down in a single visit. Many leave clear signs, but some only appear in certain weather. We report what we found and the likeliest sources.
Do you carry professional indemnity insurance?
Every survey is covered by professional indemnity and public liability insurance, and we can provide details if a managing agent needs them.
What we are asked to look at in Great Burstead
Slipped or missing slates and tiles let rain reach the underlay. Old bitumen felt may cope for a while, but it tears and sags with age, and very old roofs may have no underlay at all. Corroded nails, known as ‘nail fatigue’, are a frequent cause on slate roofs.
It is worth booking a survey if you’ve seen:
- Water through the ceiling under a flat roof
- Drips from nail tips in a cold loft
- Drips in the loft during heavy rain
- Ceiling stains that grow after rain
Take an older house close to Church of St Mary Magdalene: the leak may come from a chimney, a valley or tired lead rather than the covering itself.
Before booking anyone
- What experience they bring
- Which viewpoints they use to see the roof
- What they will not be able to tell you
- Whether you get a written report with photos
Different roofs, different checks
Chimney stacks
Water that gets in at the top can show up lower down. Unused flues with open pots can let rain straight in.
Parapet and box gutters
Linings, joints and outlets are inspected wherever it’s safe, and look for signs of past overflowing.
Towns and villages near Great Burstead
Other services in Great Burstead
What this survey can’t tell you
Our findings are based on what we can see safely on the day, so there are some things a survey cannot cover:
- An intermittent leak that shows no trace on the day
- Faults hidden behind ceilings or boarding
- Plumbing leaks that look like roof leaks
If in doubt, phone 07833 053749 or drop us an email and we will recommend the right survey. What our survey covers.
Roofs we survey in Great Burstead
- Flat roof details
- Lead flashings
- The roof space
- Rooflights and dormers
- Valleys and parapet gutters
- Slate and tile slopes
- Chimney stacks
Can I check my roof myself?
Fresh stains on ceilings or walls after rain are worth noting. Take a photo and write down when you saw it, which helps when we look at the roof.
Inside, the loft is a good place to look, with care. Use a torch and stay on the joists or boards, and look for staining, damp timber or daylight coming through.
How the survey works
On the day, we start by asking what you’ve noticed and what you need to know. After that, we look at everything we can see safely, using the ground, windows, the loft and a drone where applicable. The survey normally takes an hour or two for most houses, with bigger or more complicated roofs taking longer. Older rural homes like those around Great Burstead can have a main roof, lower lean-to roofs and outbuildings all joined together. We work round each section in turn, from the safest viewpoints.
- You get in touch with details of the leak and any photos.
- The visit starts indoors, at the stain and in the loft.
- We check the likely entry points outside, such as flashings, valleys, chimneys and gutters.
- We use moisture detection, and thermal imaging where it’s useful.
- You receive a written report with photos showing the likely source and what needs attention.
Preparing for the visit
- Jot down any questions you want answered
- Have any paperwork from past roof work to hand
- For a flat or shared roof, check access with whoever owns or manages the building
How to book
Our price is from £150, including VAT. What you pay depends on the roof’s size, access and the package, and you can call 07833 053749 or email us to find out.
Advice
Roof leak investigations in Great Burstead: local notes
The wider area around Great Burstead has a long history of building, with Ingatestone Hall about 4.6 miles north-west. On older houses around here, roofs often carry the marks of earlier repairs, from replaced slates to new lead, and the council can say whether a home is in a conservation area. Older buildings in Essex frequently have clay tiles and weatherboarding, alongside a good many post-war and newer estates. Where water gets in depends a good deal on what the roof is made of and how it’s detailed.
If you look after a shop, office or commercial unit, for instance near Eastgate Shopping Centre, finding where water is getting in quickly keeps disruption down. Take a building like St Peter's Catholic Primary School: on a building that size, finding the source of a drip means looking well beyond the stain.
Great Burstead is about 2 miles south-east of Billericay, in Essex. In Great Burstead, as across Essex, every roof gets the same careful survey. Across Essex, we cover Great Burstead. You can also see our page for Chelmsford.
Here we cover the CM11 and SS15 postcode area for roof leak investigations. We offer roof leak investigations to properties on Mill Road, Southend Road and Tyrrells Road and the roads around them. Nearby, we also carry out roof leak investigations in Crays Hill (1 mile east), Little Burstead (1 mile west), Billericay (2 miles north-west), Ramsden Bellhouse (2 miles north-east) and Ramsden Heath (3 miles north-east). We also work in nearby towns like Chelmsford (9 miles north), Brentwood (6 miles west), Maldon (13 miles north-east), Canvey Island (8 miles south-east), Rayleigh (7 miles east) and Wickford (4 miles east).
Near you in Great Burstead
We work in homes and buildings around Kings Head pub and The Billericay School. Great Burstead’s nearest station is Billericay station, roughly 2.1 miles north-west of the centre. A little further out are Eastgate Shopping Centre (2.5 miles south) and Barleylands Farm Museum (under half a mile south). The countryside around Great Burstead includes Norsey Wood.