Norwich Roofers supplies and installs new roofs in Watton, helping homeowners choose the right material for their property rather than the easiest one to fit.
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When a new roof is being specified, the choice of covering material is one of the most consequential decisions you will make. It affects the appearance of your home, the frequency of future maintenance, how the roof performs in driving rain and wind, and the overall cost. There is no single best material - the right choice depends on your roof pitch, your property's character, your budget and your priorities.
What follows is an honest look at the main options available for pitched and flat roofs, with the real advantages and the genuine drawbacks of each.
Concrete tiles are a widely used covering on new and replacement roofs. They are made to a consistent standard, readily available, and cover a large area per tile so they go on relatively quickly. A standard concrete interlocking tile roof typically costs less in materials than natural slate or clay, which makes it attractive on a budget.
The drawback is longevity and aesthetics. Concrete tiles have a factory-applied colour coat that fades and eventually breaks down, typically after 25-35 years. Once the surface goes, moss takes hold rapidly. The tiles themselves can last longer in purely structural terms, but the visual deterioration often prompts replacement before the tile is technically finished. They are also heavier than most alternatives, which means the roof structure needs to be adequate to carry them.
Clay plain tiles are a traditional covering for older properties. They have a warm, matt appearance that ages well - the colour actually improves over time as weathering gives them a natural patina. A good quality clay plain tile can last 60-80 years or more with normal maintenance.
The honest disadvantage is cost. Clay tiles are more expensive to buy and slower to lay than concrete interlocking tiles because they are smaller - a plain tile covers roughly half the area of a modern interlocking tile, so the same roof needs twice as many tiles and considerably more labour time. They are also more fragile during handling and transport. For a listed building or a property in a conservation area, clay may be the only option the planning authority will accept, so budget accordingly.
Natural Welsh or Spanish slate is the premium pitched roof material. Slate is genuinely long-lasting - a quality Welsh slate roof laid properly can last well over 100 years. It is thin, lightweight relative to its area, and requires a steeper pitch than most concrete or clay tiles to shed water effectively.
The downsides are price and availability of matching material for future repairs. Natural slate is the most expensive option per square metre. Spanish slate is more affordable than Welsh but the quality varies between quarries, so sourcing matters. Reclaimed Welsh slate is available and is genuinely good material, but supplies are inconsistent and the price per tile has risen sharply in recent years. Synthetic slate products exist but their long-term performance does not yet match the originals.
Reconstituted slate tiles are made from a composite of natural minerals and a binder. They are lighter than natural slate and significantly cheaper. Aesthetically they are a reasonable match from a distance. Typical quoted lifespans from manufacturers are 30-50 years, though this varies by product and has not yet been verified by decades of real-world performance on a wide scale.
They suit homeowners who want the look of slate without the cost, particularly on a property that does not have a planning constraint requiring natural materials. Ask any roofer you speak to which specific product they use and whether it carries a manufacturer's performance statement - the quality between brands varies considerably.
Traditional built-up felt uses multiple layers of bitumen-based felt torched or bonded together. It has been the standard domestic flat roof covering for decades and is well understood by roofers.
The honest picture: a quality three-layer felt installation can last 15-20 years, but the lower end of that range is more typical on roofs with poor drainage or in exposed positions. Felt is prone to blistering as the layers delaminate when surface temperatures swing between hot summers and cold winters. Once blistering is widespread, the roof is compromised. It is the cheapest option upfront but may need replacing sooner than modern alternatives, so total cost over 30 years is not always lower.
EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) is a synthetic rubber membrane supplied in large sheets that cover a flat roof with few or no joins. Fewer joins mean fewer potential failure points. It is flexible and moves with the deck without cracking, which is one of the main failure modes of felt.
A well-installed EPDM roof has a typical lifespan of 40-50 years in normal conditions. The material cost is higher than felt but the labour is broadly comparable, and the longer service life means it often works out cheaper over the roof's lifetime. EPDM is now the material of choice for domestic flat roof replacements on extensions and garages. Its main visual limitation is that it is black or dark grey - there is no colour option - but for most extension or garage roofs this is not an issue.
Single-ply membranes such as TPO (thermoplastic polyolefin) or PVC-based products are widely used on commercial and larger domestic flat roofs. They are mechanically fixed or adhered to the deck and the laps are heat-welded to form a continuous waterproof layer.
They perform very well on larger areas and are available in a range of colours including light grey and white, which can reduce solar heat gain on a south-facing extension roof. The installation requires specialist equipment and training. For a small domestic extension roof they can be cost-effective; for a very small area such as a bay window top, EPDM is usually simpler and equally durable.
When you speak to any roofer about a new roof in Watton, ask these questions before agreeing anything:
A roofer who cannot answer these questions clearly is not one you want on your roof.
A new roof covering will only perform as well as the drainage system behind it. Blocked or undersized gutters cause water to back up under the eaves, soaking fascias and the first course of felt. When the roof comes off, it is the right time to assess whether the existing guttering is adequate for the catchment area and falls are correct. Replacing guttering at the same time as a re-roof avoids a second scaffold erection later.
We install new pitched and flat roofs for homeowners in Watton, working from our Norwich base. If you are trying to decide which material is right for your home, call us and we will give you a straight answer based on your specific roof, not the easiest option to fit.
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Call any time. Calls are answered day and night and passed straight to our roofers.
