Repairing a Church Roof
Repairing a church roof can be both daunting and costly as church roofs in the United Kingdom are often extremely old, with steeples, parapets and hidden guttering systems. Another factor to contend with, is that the traditional materials used in church roofing, such as lead, require specialist knowledge.
There are companies that specialize in church roof repair, and if your church roof is damaged, it is probably worth contacting them first, and asking for a quote for labour and building materials. Decisions need to be made with the parish council about how to proceed with the repair work as issues will inevitably arise. Repairing it using original methods and materials, for example, will be more expensive than replacing the roof with equally enduring modern synthetic materials, such as fibreglass shingles or laminated metal shingles.
The appearance of the church is frequently of great importance to the congregation and the wider community. Churches are historic buildings and any alterations to their appearance should not be undertaken lightly. Using a contractor that has ideally already undertaken similar conservation work locally and understands the roof and materials to be repaired is of vital importance to maintaining the integrity of the building.
Of course, if funds are not likely to be available for such a costly task, then a cheap temporary repair may be the lesser of two evils, if it comes down to needing people's heads to be kept dry. Felt would be a suitable material in this instance.
Church roofs have a lifespan, whether it's a hundred years or fifteen, so try and plan ahead and factor in the cost of any likely upcoming repairs. Proper maintenance of the church roof, such as checking and unblocking guttering and replacing missing tiles will prolong the lifespan and save the church thousands of pounds.