Roofers for West Pennant Hills

Houses in the trees

West Pennant Hills has Cumberland State Forest on Castle Hill Road running through the middle of it, and Bidjigal Reserve and the Darling Mills Creek catchment along its southern side. The housing is mostly split-level and two-storey brick from the 1970s and 1980s, built onto sloping, heavily treed blocks in Hornsby Shire.

It is one of the leafiest suburbs in the district, and roofs here pay for it.

The leaf load problem, in detail

A complex roof under mature eucalypts collects debris continuously, not seasonally. The chain of failure is always the same:

1. Valleys and gutters fill with leaf and bark
2. The packed debris stays permanently damp
3. Water runs sideways under the tile laps instead of down the valley
4. The galvanised valley iron corrodes from the lower end upward
5. Moss and lichen colonise the shaded southern planes, holding more moisture against the tile surface

Separate valley mesh and properly specified metal gutter mesh are what break that cycle. Plastic guard under these trees goes brittle and sags into the gutter within a couple of summers.

Split-level roofs and sloping blocks

The 1970s and 1980s split-level design means multiple roof levels, step-downs and plenty of junctions where a lower roof meets an upper wall. Those junctions are where the leaks live, and sealant-only flashings on a house of this age have usually failed.

Access is the other factor. Sloping, treed blocks frequently leave nowhere level to foot a ladder, so set-up is a real cost and gets quoted as its own item.

Possums and roof spaces

Worth mentioning here specifically: in heavily treed suburbs we routinely find vermin and possum damage that has shredded the sarking. The roof above may be sound while the second line of defence underneath is in pieces. Inspections include the roof space for that reason.

Arrange an inspection

Call (02) 9100 0388 or book a free inspection. Photographs from the roof and the roof space, then a written quote.

Nearby: Cherrybrook, Castle Hill and Baulkham Hills. See roof repairs or the full suburb list.