Roofing, answered straight

It depends on the material. A good long-run colour steel roof typically lasts around 30 to 40 years, while concrete and clay tiles can go 50 years or more if they're maintained. Coastal homes get a harder life from salt air, so roofs near the sea wear faster and need closer attention. Regular maintenance like clearing debris and fixing small issues early makes a big difference to how long any roof lasts.

Common signs are rust spreading across steel, cracked or slipped tiles, sagging in the roofline, and leaks or water stains showing up on your ceilings. Granules washing off old asphalt shingles or paint flaking badly are other giveaways. If you're patching leaks every winter or the roof is past its expected life, it's usually more cost-effective to replace than keep repairing. We can get up and give you an honest assessment of whether it needs replacing or just repairs.

Plenty of roof problems can be repaired, like replacing a few cracked tiles, resealing flashings, fixing a localised leak or patching a small rusted area. Whether repair is the right call comes down to the age and overall condition of the roof. If the damage is isolated on an otherwise sound roof, a repair makes sense. If the roof is old, widely rusted or leaking in several spots, you're throwing good money after bad and a replacement is the smarter spend.

Long-run colour steel is the most popular choice in New Zealand because it's durable, relatively light, handles our weather well and suits most roof pitches. Concrete and clay tiles last a long time and look great on certain styles, but they're heavier and need a structure built for the load. Membrane roofing suits flat or very low-pitch roofs. The best choice depends on your roof pitch, your house style, your budget and how exposed your site is, and we'll talk you through the options.

Replacing a roof with a similar material on a like-for-like basis is often exempt from consent under Schedule 1 of the Building Act, but it depends on the details. If you're changing the roof structure, switching to a much heavier material like tiles over steel, or altering the pitch, a consent is usually needed. We check what your specific job requires before we start, so the work is done properly and you're not left with an unconsented change that causes grief later.

Most roof leaks don't come from the open roof, they come from the joins and penetrations, like chimneys, skylights, vents and where the roof meets a wall. The fix is good flashing, which is the metal or sealing detail that directs water away from these spots. When we sort a leak, we look at the flashings first, because failed or poorly installed flashing is the usual culprit. Done properly, the flashing should outlast several reseals.

Yes, keeping your roof and gutters clear is one of the cheapest ways to make it last. Leaves, moss and lichen trap moisture against the surface, which speeds up rust and can block your gutters and cause overflow. We'd suggest clearing debris and checking the roof once a year, and more often if you've got overhanging trees. Soft washing to kill moss and lichen helps too, but blasting an old roof with high pressure can do more harm than good.

A re-roof means stripping off the old roofing and replacing it with new, including checking the underlying timber and sorting any flashings, underlay and fixings while we're up there. For a typical house, the work usually takes a few days to a week depending on the size, the pitch, the material and the weather. We work to keep your home weathertight throughout and plan around the forecast, because nobody wants the roof off when a southerly rolls in.