Roofing Services · Cannock & Staffordshire
Chimney repairs in Cannockdone properly — lead, mortar, brick.Not sealant and hope.
Repointing, lead flashings, cap replacement and full rebuilds by a team who understand chimneys aren't decorative — they're the single most common source of a roof leak in Staffordshire.
30+ years' experience · Code 4/5 lead as standard · £5m public liability
Chimney Repairs — what you're actually buying
What it is
Chimney repair covers repointing weathered mortar joints, replacing failed lead flashings, refitting or replacing the cap and pot, rebuilding above the roofline, and dressing new lead where old flashband has failed. Full rebuilds take the stack down to the roofline and rebuild in matching brick with new lead.
Who it's for
Homeowners with a leak that shows up on the ceiling near the chimney breast, or on the wall around it. Anyone with visible cracked mortar joints, a leaning stack, or missing pots. Buyers or sellers whose survey has flagged a chimney defect.
When you need it
When you can see daylight around the flashings from the loft. When mortar is falling into the fire opening. When the stack looks visibly out of plumb. When flashband is peeling. When it's been more than 25 years since the last repointing.
Why it matters
Chimneys sit above the roofline in every weather. Their mortar joints get more rain, wind and frost than any other brickwork on the house. A chimney that's been ignored for 30 years is a problem waiting to happen — and it's nearly always cheaper to fix now than to fix now plus fix the ceiling below.
Chimney Repairs — recent work on the tools
Photos and short clips from real chimney repairs jobs across Cannock and Staffordshire.
What happens if you leave it
A leaking chimney is a slow-motion emergency. Everything the water does happens invisibly, and then it doesn't.
Ceiling stains under the breast
Water tracks down the flue and into the chimney breast plaster. The first sign is a yellow patch on a bedroom ceiling right under the stack.
Brickwork spalls in frost
Once the mortar joints let water in, one hard frost splits the face off the bricks. That turns a repointing job into a rebuild.
Stacks lean
A leaning chimney means the mortar bed at the roof line has failed on one side. That's not decorative — it's a structural problem. And it's a Building Control matter if it leans far enough to become a hazard.
Flashings peel
The three most common 'roof leaks' are all actually chimney leaks — cracked flashings, cracked back gutters, and cracked cement fillets. Almost never the tiles.
Common mistakes we fix after someone else has been
- Applying roof-and-gutter sealant over failing lead. It sticks for a season, then peels off with a chunk of lead attached.
- Repointing with a hard cement mortar on soft Victorian brick. The mortar becomes stronger than the brick and pops the brick faces off.
- Skipping the back gutter (the flashing on the upslope side of the chimney) because it's fiddly. That's the flashing that leaks first.
- Rebuilding a stack without checking the flue liner — a rebuild with a cracked liner still lets flue gases into the house.
Our process
Five steps. Every job. From first WhatsApp to final sign-off.
- 1
Roof-side inspection
We access the chimney from proper scaffold or roof ladder, photograph every mortar joint, flashing and pot, and check the loft side for staining.
- 2
Written fixed-price quote
Scope by section: pot, cap, above-roof brickwork, flashings (front, back, sides), pointing. Line-by-line, not lump-sum.
- 3
Scaffold and preparation
Independent scaffold with proper edge protection and platform level with the roofline. Existing flashings and failed mortar removed carefully.
- 4
Repair or rebuild
Repointing in matched mortar (typically NHL lime for period properties, 3:1 sand:cement for modern). New Code 4 or 5 lead dressed by hand into a proper chase. Rebuilds in matching brick, bedded and pointed to match.
- 5
Cap, pot, and finish
New cap and pot fitted where needed. Final photos taken and a proper walk-round with you before scaffold comes down.
What you get — specifically
Code 4/5 lead only
Real lead, dressed by hand, cut into a proper chase. Not flashband, not fake lead, not sealant.
Matched brick and mortar
We match the mortar mix and brick type to your existing chimney — including lime mortars on period properties.
Full-height scaffold
Proper independent scaffold to roofline. No ladder-work on a rebuild — that's how corners get cut.
Building Regs where needed
Full rebuilds notified to Building Control. Certification handed to you on completion.
Cost saved vs full rebuild
Nine chimneys out of ten only need repointing and re-leading. We tell you honestly which side yours is on.
Owner on every job
Lee Grove runs the work himself — one number, one man accountable from first look to sign-off.
The detail that separates a job that lasts
Chimney work is where the shortcuts show fastest. Here's what actually goes wrong, and what a proper repair looks like.
Repointing
Mortar joints on a chimney are the first thing to fail because they take horizontal driving rain. We rake out to 20mm depth minimum, brush and wet the joint, and repoint in a matched mortar. On pre-1920 properties we use NHL 3.5 lime; on modern chimneys, 3:1 sand:cement with plasticiser.
Lead flashings
A chimney has four flashings: front apron (downslope), back gutter (upslope), and two side step flashings. Code 4 lead is standard for domestic; Code 5 for exposed positions. Every flashing dressed by hand into a proper chase cut into the mortar joint and pointed with lead-mate sealant on top of the mortar.
Full rebuilds
Where a stack is leaning, spalling or structurally compromised, we take it down to the roofline and rebuild. Bricks matched to the existing, flue liner checked (and replaced if needed), pot and cap refitted, all new flashings. 3–5 day job with proper scaffold.
Caps and pots
Chimneys not in active use need capping to prevent water ingress but not sealing (they still need to breathe). We fit hooded cowls on active flues, C-cap terminals on capped flues. Wrong choice traps moisture and causes damp on internal chimney breasts.
Cement fillets
The old style of sealing a chimney to the roof was a cement fillet — a triangular slab of mortar. Every one of them cracks within 15 years. If yours is cracked, don't seal over it — chase it out and lead it properly. Anything else is a temporary fix.
Residential vs commercial
Domestic chimneys 1–5 days depending on scope. Commercial and heritage chimneys (churches, listed buildings, large industrial) — we handle NHL lime mortar work and can quote to conservation-officer specifications.
Straight answers
How much does a chimney repair cost?＋
Every chimney is quoted individually — repointing, re-leading, cap replacement and full rebuilds are all priced after a proper look. Free WhatsApp ballpark from photos, £150 written quote refunded in full when you go ahead.
How long does a chimney repair take?＋
Repointing and re-leading: 1–2 days. Full rebuild: 3–5 days. All with proper scaffold — no ladder work.
Do I need Building Regs approval?＋
For repointing and flashings, no. For a full rebuild involving flue liner work, yes — we handle the Building Control notification.
Can you match my chimney's brick?＋
Yes — we source matching bricks from reclamation yards for period properties. On modern stacks we match from stock.
What's the guarantee?＋
We don't attach a written guarantee to chimney repointing or flashing repairs — because they're a repair on brickwork and lead we haven't controlled end-to-end. Where we do a full rebuild it's discussed and set out in your written quote.
Is my leak definitely the chimney?＋
Roughly 60% of 'roof leaks' near a chimney are actually flashing or pointing failures on the chimney itself. We'll water-test to be sure before quoting.
Should I cap a disused chimney?＋
Yes, but with a vented cap or hooded cowl — never a sealed cap. Sealing traps moisture inside the flue and causes damp on internal chimney breasts.
Do you do emergency chimney callouts?＋
Yes — 24/7 at our standard £250 call-out. If a stack is leaning or losing bricks, we can get temporary weatherproofing on and scaffold arranged as fast as possible.
Next step
Get your chimney repairs quote — free, fixed, in writing.
WhatsApp a photo for a same-day ballpark, or book a proper inspection. Family-run, Cannock-based, insured to £5m, guaranteed in writing.
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