Slate roofing in Macclesfield
Slate is the roof of Macclesfield's Victorian streets: grey-blue Welsh slate on red-brick terraces, mill houses and villas, brought in by canal and rail when the silk trade was at its height. We repair, refix and relay slate roofs, and where a roof has to be stripped we keep the good slates and match the rest with reclaimed or new natural slate.
Why old slate roofs fail
Good Welsh slate rarely wears out first. What fails is what holds it: iron nails rust through after a century or so and slates start to slide out of their courses, known as nail sickness. Battens rot, especially on roofs with no felt underneath, and the lime or mortar torching under the slates crumbles away.
A few slipped slates can be refixed with clips. When slates are sliding all over a slope, the honest answer is usually to strip it, sort the slates, and relay them on new battens and membrane.
Slate repairs we do
- Slipped and broken slates refixed or replaced with matched slate
- Slates relaid on new battens and breathable membrane, reusing the sound ones
- Ridges, hips and verges rebedded or dry-fixed
- Lead valleys, soakers and flashings renewed
- Torching repaired where it is part of the roof's construction
Matching slate on older Cheshire roofs
Welsh slate varies by quarry in colour and thickness, and roofs are often laid in diminishing courses, with the larger slates at the eaves getting smaller towards the ridge. Matching that properly means sorting slates by size and sourcing reclaimed slate of a similar colour, not putting a different new slate in one patch.
Around Bollington, Rainow and the hill farms east of Macclesfield you will also find heavy stone slates, sandstone flags quarried locally at Kerridge and across the Pennine edge. They are laid differently, on stronger timbers and often with diminishing courses, and they need a roofer who has handled them. See our heritage roofing page.
New slate roofs
For a full new slate roof we can use Welsh slate, which matches most original roofs and is often expected on listed buildings and in conservation areas, or good-quality imported natural slate where that is acceptable. We fix to the current standards for the exposure of the site, which on the hills around Macclesfield can mean a larger headlap or extra fixings.
Slate roofing: questions people ask
How long does a slate roof last?
Good natural slate can last well over a hundred years. The nails, battens and flashings usually need renewing long before the slates themselves wear out, which is why so many Victorian roofs can be stripped and relaid with their original slate.
What is nail sickness?
It is when the iron nails holding slates rust through, so slates slip out of place one after another. You see slates sliding down the roof or missing in a scattered pattern. The cure is relaying the roof on new fixings, not refixing slates one at a time.
Can I replace slate with concrete tiles?
It is possible, but concrete tiles are much heavier, so the rafters must be checked under the Building Regulations, and the look changes. In a conservation area or on a listed building it may not be allowed. Most owners of period houses stay with slate.
Is reclaimed slate a good idea?
Reclaimed Welsh slate is often the best match on an old roof. It must be checked for cracks, delamination and old nail holes that have weakened the head, and we sort it before it goes on.
Tell us what is happening with your roof
Call, or send a few details and a photo if you have one. We will come back to you, arrange a visit and give you a written quote before any work starts.