Ridge tile problem

[Andrew Gabriel]

Another option, walk around your local area and you will surely find a house somewhere having a new roof. Ask that roofer, providing they look like they know what they're doing.

A neighbour of a friend in North London had a similar experience to yours - paid 5 grand to someone who came to the door saying his ridge tiles needed fixing. All they did was go up on the roof, take them all off and pile them up at one end ready to fall off, and then scarper with the 5 grand. The poor chap was terminally ill with cancer, and not well off. My friend helped him find a proper roofer and it was fixed, but only a few weeks before the bloke died. Just the sort of hassle he didn't need at that time.

[Harry Bloomfield]

Jim K brought next idea :

He didn't need to hack off, just 'butter' a bit over the exposed tile edges. His previous work, where he reflaunched the chimney, then redid the apex tiles has lasted and been absolutely fine. I see him around the village quite often, always managing from ladders and only tackling the smaller, single handed, quick jobs.

[Bill Wright]

I've been on hundreds of roofs where that's been done and the new mortar has come off and slid down the roof. The only way to do ridges is to take the tiles right off, remove all the old mortar, lay a new bed, then point up.

Bill

[Dave Plowman (News)]

And if you must use mortar, use a lime based one which allows more movement. You can buy it ready mixed, and the costs low as part of the overall cost of doing the job.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

For ridge tiles? Plenty. They ain't load bearing.

Have a good look at nearby houses where the ridge tiles are set in portland cement mortar. Willing to bet most have rather obvious faults in it. Even signs of repairs.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Perhaps you should read *before* snipping?

[Andrew]

Depends on what the tiles are made off. Marley Modern concrete tiles are better with a slightly stronger mortar mix because they are pretty strong anyway. If you mix a bit of cement dye in the mix to make it dry greyish, then that compensates for the extra cement anyway.

There are a few extensions near me with these tiles, where a weak mortar mix was used, which dried an awful sandy colour, unlike the original roof, and the frost is making a couple of them fairly tatty after only a few years.

[Bill Wright]

I've seen ridge tiles 'fastened' on with silicon sealant!

Bill

[Andrew]

The modern way is 'dry ridge'. There seem to be plastic connectors between the ridge and hip tiles that are nailed with aluminium nails into the truss. Only the angled joint where a hip meets a ridge is mortared.

The gable end of an unhipped roof can be done with special plastic covers and no mortar is used.

[Andrew]

Marley concrete tiles are better set in a stronger mix. This is how the 150 houses on my 1976 estate were built. Most of the houses still have their original mortar at gable ends and along the ridge.

The sand seems to be a very fine red colour which they used to make the initial mortar, then at the gable ends they scraped it back about half and inch and over-mortared with some grey-dyed mortar before the initial un-dyed mortar had set.

really tough, hard mortar too.

[Jimmy Wilkinson Knife]

What is normally pitched? I'm happy working on my roof which I would sa= y is 30 degrees from the horizontal. The 60 degree ones, no, they look = slippy.

-- =

Negligent (adj.), describes a condition in which you absentmindedly answ= er the door in your nightgown.

[Jimmy Wilkinson Knife]

He did, he said "Have a good look at nearby houses where the ridge tiles are set in portland cement mortar." But for some stupid reason you deleted that part.

[Jimmy Wilkinson Knife]

Or even silicone. Unless they're electronic?

[Mr Pounder Esquire]

A thin flag thing or whatever they are called was insecure on my front garden decorative garden wall. Those concrete square things which are sort of hollow with a pattern set on bricks. Eight years ago I squirted a bit of silicone under it. The bloke next door was highly amused. Eight years down the road and the flag thing is still there.

[Bill Wright]

Deluded people are often happy.

Bill

[Jimmy Wilkinson Knife]

If you can fall off a 30 degree slope, maybe you should take a walking stick up there with you.

[Mr Pounder Esquire]

Prick.