Advice
Practical guides on slate and flat roofs, gutters and stonework on Edinburgh buildings.
When a flat roof has reached the end of its life, the decisions made at replacement stage decide how it performs for years afterwards. A well-specified roof can improve insulation and reduce maintenance. A poorly specified one leads to repeat leaks and condensation problems. These are the five things worth getting right. 1. Choosing the … Read more
When a flat roof starts leaking, the natural reaction is to get it fixed quickly and cheaply. Sometimes a small, well-done repair is exactly right. But a cheap patch over a problem that has not been diagnosed often fails again, and the second repair usually costs more than doing it properly the first time. Why … Read more
Natural slate roofs are one of the most durable parts of Edinburgh’s older buildings, and many have lasted well over a century. Even so, every slate roof reaches a point where repairs stop being good value and re-slating becomes the sensible option. Knowing the signs helps you plan the work before water damage forces the … Read more
Loose slates, coping stones and fragments of masonry falling from buildings are a long-standing safety problem in Edinburgh. Much of the city is built from sandstone that has been weathering for well over a century, and many of the high-level parts of these buildings, such as chimneys, skews, parapets and cornices, are rarely inspected up … Read more
Cast iron gutters and downpipes are part of the character of Edinburgh’s tenements, terraces and villas. Looked after properly they last for generations, but once the paint fails and the joints start to leak they deteriorate quickly, and the water they should be carrying ends up in the stonework. This guide covers the signs that … Read more
