Tiled roofing and pitched roof strip and retile in Sittingbourne

When you hire C.L. Baker, you get me, Chris Baker. I have been roofing around Sittingbourne and across North Kent for over thirty years. Unlike many bigger firms or agencies, I do not use subcontractors or sales reps. I personally survey your property, provide a straightforward quote, and carry out the work myself. I was born and bred in Kent and went to school here at Ethelbert Road, so my reputation in the local community is something I stand by on every job.

Yes, if you are replacing more than 25% of your roof surface, it falls under Building Regulations. In the Swale area, this is usually managed by the STG Building Control Partnership. The rules are there to make sure your home insulation is upgraded to modern standards, known as Part L. I can explain how this works during my visit and help make sure your new roof meets all the legal requirements for thermal efficiency.

Properties on the Isle of Sheppey or the Whitstable coast face heavy salt air and very high winds. Traditional felt roofs have seams that can eventually lift or crack under pressure. GRP, which is glass reinforced plastic, is a seamless resin system. Because there are no joins, there is nowhere for the wind or rain to get a foothold. It is a very tough material that handles coastal weather and foot traffic much better than older bitumen systems.

The older housing stock in the Medway towns often has high, exposed chimney stacks that suffer from perished mortar or cracked cement haunching. I provide full chimney remediation, which includes repointing with the correct mortar mixes and replacing worn lead flashings. If you have an unused chimney causing damp issues in a Rochester terrace, I can also talk you through the process of removing the stack to below the roofline and tiling over it.

Leadwork is one of the most reliable ways to keep your home watertight. I use Code 4 and Code 5 milled lead, which is thick and durable enough to last for decades without splitting. Whether it is a stepped flashing on a chimney or a lead valley trough between two roof pitches, properly dressed lead is far superior to modern "flash-band" tapes. It handles the expansion and contraction of the seasons and is the only right choice for the period properties we have in Faversham and Canterbury.

A leak does not always mean you need a brand-new roof. If a single tile has slipped or a piece of lead has moved, a simple repair is usually the best way forward. However, if I find that the underlying timber battens have rotted or the old internal felt has crumbled away, a strip and retile becomes necessary to protect your ceilings. I will always give you an honest diagnosis after a physical inspection and show you exactly what is happening under the tiles.

Yes, I replace old, rotting timber fascias and leaking gutters with high-quality uPVC systems. Modern deep-flow guttering is particularly useful for the larger roof pitches found in Gillingham and Rainham, as it handles heavy rainfall much more effectively. Replacing these alongside your roof repairs is often a practical way to keep your maintenance costs down in the long run.

If the scaffolding needs to stand on a public pavement or a road, a highways licence is required from Medway Council or Kent County Council. This is something that needs to be arranged before the work begins. I can help coordinate this with the scaffolders to make sure everything is legal and that the project runs smoothly without any delays from the local authority.