Flat roof leak repair in Newcastle
Active leak coming through your ceiling right now? Ring us on 0330 223 7665 — same-day call-out across Newcastle, Gateshead and North Tyneside. We trace the actual leak path, expose the failed detail, patch it permanently, and stand by the work.
The single most common mistake we see on flat roof leak repairs is treating the symptom rather than the cause. Water rarely enters where it drips inside the building. A wet patch above the kitchen ceiling could be a failed upstand twelve feet away, water tracking through the deck and finding the lowest point. Slap a tube of mastic on the visible drip and you've achieved nothing — three weeks later it's back, possibly in a slightly different spot.
Our diagnosis process is methodical. We get on the roof in daylight (never in rain — pointless), look at the obvious suspects first (upstands, drip edges, outlets, lap joints, lead apron flashings), then if nothing's obviously failed we'll wet the roof in sections with a hose to identify exactly where water gets through. On a 30m² flat roof, this normally takes 30 to 60 minutes. We've never failed to find a leak yet.
What we find most often
The big four in Newcastle, in rough order of frequency:
- Failed upstand against a vertical wall. Either the lead chase has come out of the brickwork, or the felt has shrunk and pulled away from the wall, or the mortar pointing has failed. Usually the lead chase. We re-cut, re-dress, re-point.
- Split or shrinkage cracks in old felt. Built-up felt from the 1970s and 1980s loses its plasticisers over time. The cap sheet starts to crack, particularly along south-facing edges that have seen the most UV. Small splits patch easily with a torched felt overlay; widespread splitting is a re-roof.
- Failed lead apron flashings. Where a flat roof abuts a pitched roof or a parapet wall. Lead is brilliant when it's dressed properly with the right code thickness and the right cover; fail to do either and water gets behind.
- Outlet failure. The metal grating goes, leaves block the outlet, water backs up and finds the nearest weak point. Often the weak point is a poorly bonded outlet flange.
How long does a leak repair take?
The diagnosis itself: 30–60 minutes. The repair itself depends what's failed:
- Small split patch in felt: 1–2 hours, on-site once.
- Re-dressed upstand against brick: Half a day to a day, depending on length.
- New lead apron flashing: Half a day to a day.
- New outlet replacement: Half a day.
If the failure is widespread enough that patching is a false economy, we'll tell you honestly and quote for an overlay or a full re-roof. We won't keep patching a roof that needs replacing — it wastes your money and reflects badly on us when it leaks again two months later.
Active leak? What to do right now
If water is dripping into a room and you've got a few minutes before we arrive:
- Put a bucket under the drip. Towels at the perimeter of the bucket to catch splash.
- If the ceiling is bulging, consider deliberately puncturing it with a screwdriver into the bucket. A small hole drains the water out cleanly; an unattended bulging ceiling sometimes collapses the whole sheet of plasterboard.
- Turn off any electrics in the affected room until water has stopped coming in and the area's dry.
- Don't try to climb onto the roof in rain. Wet flat roof membranes are genuinely dangerous and no temporary fix you can do up there will outlast our proper repair.
- Ring us on 0330 223 7665. We'll triage over the phone and confirm an ETA.
What about insurance claims?
If the leak followed storm damage and you're claiming on home insurance, we provide everything insurers ask for: written diagnosis, photographs of the failure, photographs after repair, and a fixed-price quote on letterhead. We don't sit and wait for the insurance to pay before we start — we invoice you and you reclaim from the insurer.
Warranty on leak repairs
All leak repair work is guaranteed for 12 months. That covers it through one full winter, which is when most fitting faults reveal themselves. If you've got a leak back in the same area within that period, we come back and fix it at no charge — labour, materials, scaffold access included.
Common questions about leak repairs
"Can't you just put some sealant on it?" We can, but it's usually a false economy. Tubed mastic and brush-on sealants over the top of an existing roof are short-term emergency fixes — they last weeks to months, not years. For a permanent repair we need to expose what's actually failed and replace it properly.
"My roof's only five years old, surely it shouldn't be leaking?" Correct — a properly-fitted flat roof should not leak for 20+ years. If a five-year-old roof is leaking, the most likely culprit is a fitting fault that wasn't picked up at installation. We'll look at it, identify what's gone wrong, and tell you whether it's worth pursuing the original fitter for a warranty claim before paying anyone to repair it.
"I think the leak is coming from the chimney, not the roof." Possibly — chimneys are a frequent leak source on flat roofs, particularly through failed flaunching or open mortar joints behind the lead apron. We can identify whether it's a chimney or roof issue at diagnosis stage. If it's a chimney rebuild needed, we don't do those but we'll happily recommend someone local who does.
Other things we install & repair
Felt Roofing
Three-layer SBS torch-on felt for awkward shapes and tight detail.
Read more →Solar Panel Mounts
Ballasted tilt frames that don't pierce the membrane.
Read more →Skylights & Rooflights
Kerb-mounted Velux, Fakro and Keylite flat-glass rooflights.
Read more →GRP Fibreglass
Hand-laminated, walkable, takes paint or anti-slip aggregate.
Read more →Commercial Roofs
Single-ply for industrial units, schools and retail.
Read more →Concrete Flat Roofs
Refurbishing post-war concrete decks with overlays.
Read more →Get a free written quote — no charge, no obligation
Tell us about your flat roof. We'll arrange a site visit, give you a fixed-price written quote, and explain the options in plain English.