Brazilian or Spanish Roof Slates for a new build

[Dermot O'Loughlin]

Hi,

I am trying to decide on a natural slate for the roof of my new house. The following 3 options are what I am looking at right now:

1) Brazilian natural slate - they are inexpensive but i've visited a house with the same slates put on it and the lady that owns the house said the slaters said the slates were brittle. This is a worry for me

- is this a sign of impending trouble.

2) Spanish slates - inexpensive but have visible pyrites in them - the sales rep told me these will weather out of the slate - is this right? Will they weathering process leave rusty stains on my roof. I would also need to punch these slates myself.

3) Premium Spanish slates - more expensive that the above 2 options - would the extra cost be worth it?

Can anyone comment on the above?

Thanks, Dermot.

[Tony]

We have a country in our fair isles that is made entirely of slate! Buy cheap and be disappointed!

Tony

[Rick Dipper]

My roofer, a welsh man, born in wales, kids only speak welsh ould fit either 1) welsh slate 2) reclaimed welsh slate 3) top grade chinese

Nothing else. He did a good job and was proud of his work ........ He said he would do his house in item 3 above.

Rick

[nightjar]

Nasty foreign stuff. Try

for some of the best slate in the world. When I looked at prices some years ago, buying direct from their mine was also the cheapest option, even allowing for driving up from Sussex and an overnight stay for two people. It simplifies things if the vehicle you use can take fork-truck loaded pallets.

Colin Bignell

[Dermot O'Loughlin]

The only problem is that I am building in Ireland and the type of natural slate that is available to me and within my buget are the ones originally listed.

What is the worse case scenario? Should I just accept that my buget will not allow for natural slate and go with the artificial kind or should I take a chance on one of the types I originally listed?

[Nick Finnigan]

You could still be nearer to North Wales than Colin was, and might get a cheap day return on a ferry. Searching the web for 'Chinese roof slates' etc. only seems to find one supplier in Manchester with several different identities. What prices are you being quoted?

[The Natural Philosopher]

don't worry. Its all a cost benefit exercise, I believe my salkltes on my floor come from Brazil.

Just pick what you can afford, be it artificial 'my house looks like its covered in lego, but is waterproof' or cheapo natural 'wasted 30% that smashed when we put em up mate' or whatever.

The only real issue is how many will break on installation, and how many will absorb water and shatter in frosts. Apart from that a slate is pretty much a slate, apart from how it looks.

[Dave Liquorice]

And what had he just put on your roof?

But anyway we had the barn re-roofed (from concrete tiles) with Chinese slate. Cost just under =A31000/pallet (we had two and a bit pallets for =A32000ish). There wasn't a great heap of broken ones after =

they had finished so wastage was minimal. They look good, are uniform, ring when tapped (before fitting). Just for good measure I bunged a bit in vinegar for 6 months, no noticeable effect. OK I'm not sure of the relative reactivities of Acetic Acid and Carbonic but if there had been any serious problem I think it would have shown up.

Good slate will last for donkies years, the house we also had stripped but put back the old slates, wastage was higher than with the new, no great surprise. Don't know how old they are, unlikely to be orginal (1715...) but may well be 50 years+.

[Owain]

"Dermot O'Loughlin" wrote | The only problem is that I am building in Ireland and the type | of natural slate that is available to me and within my buget | are the ones originally listed. | What is the worse case scenario? Should I just accept that my | buget will not allow for natural slate and go with the | artificial kind or should I take a chance on one of the types | I originally listed?

Does your planning authority have any say in whether you must use natural or artificial slates? If they do and you don't comply, redoing the whole roof with a planning officer watching every (top quality, natural, individually washed in holy water and wiped dry on hand-woven Irish linen tea-towels by Gaelic-speaking maidens) slate you lay could be /very/ expensive.

Personally, I think good quality artificial slates, well laid, look quite smart on a new property.

Owain

[Dermot O'Loughlin]

I'm being quoted Euro 1300 for the brazillian slates. The Spanish slates with the pyrites are a little less but they are not pre-drilled. The premium spanish slates from a reputable source are about Euro 1800 per thousand. I need about 7000 slates.

[Nick Finnigan]

20p a slate? Yes, I can't see it being worth travelling at that rate.

[nightjar]

Buy the best you can afford / obtain. You will almost certainly find that the cheaper slates have a higher wastage rate, which could easily offset the apparent savings.

Colin Bignell

[Dermot O'Loughlin]

No, they work out about ?1.30 per slate.

[Nick Finnigan]

Ah, sorry I'd read it as Euro 1300 for 7000 slates. Not really cheap then, so it might be worth looking in Wales.

[nightjar]

That is not too far off what I was being quoted for second-hand slates in Sussex when I needed to do the roof. ISTR that buying from the mine in Wales came out at about half the price.

Colin Bignell

[Jimmy Gibson]

You could try Cumbrian slate as Honister slate mine has re-opened and is producing roofing slates. We went on a mine tour at easter, they said that all slate is not the same as it can be formed from sedimantary deposits as in Welsh slate or by compressed hot volcanic ash as in Cumbrian slate. Naturally theirs was the best!

I haven't a clue as to price but here is their website which has contact deatils.