There is a moment in the life of every roof when the arithmetic changes. You can keep patching slipped tiles, replacing split underlay and re-bedding flashings - and for years, that is the right call. But eventually the cost of the next repair exceeds the value of the covering it is prolonging, the membrane beneath has failed across its full area, and the timber is taking moisture it was never meant to hold. That is the moment for a full roof replacement, and recognising it early saves you money, protects your property and gives you two decades of peace of mind.
Burton Roofing carries out full strip-and-re-roof projects across Colchester and a 20-mile radius - from period properties in the town's Dutch Quarter with their heavy clay peg tiles, to the 1930s semi-detached houses of Ipswich and the Suffolk borders with their concrete interlocking tiles, to the Victorian and Edwardian terraces of Maldon and Witham with their natural slate roofs. Every replacement is a full strip: we take the roof back to bare timber, inspect and repair the structure, lay a modern breathable membrane, renew battens and counter-battens and re-cover with the material that best suits the property, the street and your budget.
This page covers replacement - taking an existing roof off and putting a new one on - which is distinct from our new-roof service for new-build construction and our re-roof service for re-covering an existing structure where the timbers are sound. A full replacement is the right specification when the roof has reached the end of its service life, when the structure needs attention, or when you want to upgrade insulation, ventilation and weatherproofing to modern standards in a single, properly sequenced project.
Why Choose Burton
What We Deliver
Full strip to bare timber on every replacement - never an overlay
Structural timbers inspected and repaired as standard
Modern breathable membranes and dry ridge ventilation installed
Wide choice of slate, clay, concrete and composite materials
20-25 year written workmanship guarantee on all replacements
Part L Building Regulations compliance with insulation upgrades
Is It Time?
Warning Signs You Should Not Ignore
As specialist roofing contractors covering Colchester and a 20-mile radius across Essex and Suffolk, these are the issues we see most often - and what they typically mean for your property.
Multiple leaks that keep returning
One leak is a repair. Two leaks in different parts of the roof, recurring after each fix, is a covering that has failed across its area. If your roofer is back every winter for a new patch, the membrane beneath the tiles is finished and the whole roof needs stripping and replacing. Continuing to repair it is throwing good money after bad.
Tiles or slates slipping regularly across the roof
When nails corrode and tiles begin sliding down the roof in numbers, the fixing system has reached the end of its life. A few slipped tiles is a maintenance issue; widespread slippage across several slopes means the battens and nails are failing and a full strip and re-roof is the only lasting solution. This is particularly common on pre-1950s roofs across Colchester, Sudbury and the wider Essex and Suffolk area.
Sagging or undulating roofline visible from the street
If your roofline has dips, waves or a visible sag - particularly along the ridge or between the purlins - the structural timbers beneath may have deflected, rotted or been undersized when built. This is not a covering problem; it is a structural problem, and a full replacement gives us access to inspect, sister or replace the rafters, purlins and ridge plate that are carrying the roof. We carry out the same structural inspection on every new roof we build.
Daylight showing through the roof from inside the loft
Climb into your loft on a bright Colchester day, switch off the torch and look up. If you can see daylight through the tiles or slates, the underlayment is either missing, perished or torn. Without an intact membrane, every driven rainstorm sends water onto the timbers and insulation. A roof in this condition needs a full replacement, not a patch.
Damp, stained or rotting timbers in the loft
Blackened rafters, soft spots on the purlin or a musty smell in the loft all point to moisture getting past the covering and into the structure. Fungal attack and timber rot are progressive - they do not stop until the moisture source is removed. A full replacement lets us cut out and renew affected timbers and lay a weather-tight new covering that keeps the structure dry for good - the same approach we take on every re-roof where hidden damage is suspected.
Your roof is over 70-80 years old
A well-maintained slate roof can last a century, and a clay tile roof even longer, but the membranes, battens and fixings beneath them have shorter lives. If your roof dates from before the 1950s and has never been fully stripped, the underlayment is almost certainly original - and it has long since stopped doing its job. Age alone is not a reason to replace, but it is a reason to get a proper survey.
What to Expect
How We Work - From Survey to Sign-Off
No subcontractors. No agency crews. The same experienced Burton team that surveys your roof carries out the work and signs it off.
Free written survey and honest recommendation
We survey your roof from inside and out - loft access, external inspection and a full condition assessment of the covering, membrane, battens and structural timbers. We tell you honestly whether a repair would hold or whether replacement is the right specification. You receive a written, itemised quote with a fixed price, a materials schedule and a clear programme of works. No pressure, no vague estimates.
Scaffolding and full strip-down
We erect independent scaffolding to give safe, full access to every slope. The existing tiles or slates are stripped and sorted - we salvage and clean reusable materials, particularly natural slate and clay peg tiles, for re-use or recycling. The roof is taken back to bare timber so we can see the true condition of the structure that has been hidden for decades.
Structural timber inspection and repair
With the roof bare, we inspect every rafter, purlin, ridge plate and wall plate. Rotten, split or deflected timbers are cut out and replaced or sistered with treated timber to original or improved dimensions. Undersized or modified roofs - common in period properties across Colchester and Essex that have been altered over the years - are brought back to structural soundness before any new covering goes on.
Breathable membrane, battens and ventilation
We lay a modern breathable underlayment across the rafters, fix treated counter-battens to create a ventilation gap and nail preservative-treated roofing battens to the correct gauge for your chosen covering. Eaves and ridge ventilation are installed to meet current Building Regulations, ensuring the roof space breathes correctly and interstitial condensation cannot build up in the structure.
New roof covering - tile, slate or dry ridge
Your chosen covering is laid to the manufacturer's specification and British Standards. We install new ridge tiles - either traditional mortar-bedded or a modern dry ridge system mechanically fixed without mortar - and renew all hips, valleys, verges and flashings. Lead work is renewed at chimneys, abutments and valleys using code 3, 4 or 5 lead to BS EN 12588.
Final inspection, sign-off and guarantee
The completed roof is inspected by our site supervisor and signed off against our internal quality standard. We clean the gutters, clear the site and walk you through the finished work. You receive your written 20-25 year workmanship guarantee, the manufacturer's material warranty documentation and a photographic record of the structural repairs carried out beneath the covering.
Why Burton
Why Homeowners Across Colchester and Essex Choose Us
We know the roofs of Colchester and Essex
The housing stock across our region is wildly varied - Dutch Quarter clay peg tiles, Suffolk concrete interlocking tiles, Colchester Victorian slate and everything between. We have replaced roofs on all of them, and we know which materials suit which properties, which timbers tend to fail and what the local planners expect in conservation areas. That local knowledge means fewer surprises and a roof that fits its setting.
Full strip, every time - never an overlay
Some contractors will offer to lay a new roof over the old one to save time and money. We do not. An overlay hides the condition of the timbers, traps the old failed membrane, adds weight your structure may not support and cuts the life of the new covering short. Every roof replacement we do is a full strip to bare timber, with the structure inspected and repaired before anything new goes on.
Employed roofers, never subcontractors
A roof replacement is a major investment and it must be done by the people who will stand behind it. Every Burton replacement is carried out by our own employed, trained roofers - not agency crews, not labour-only subcontractors, not franchisees. The supervisor who signs off your roof is on our payroll, and the guarantee that backs it is ours.
Weather-tight at the end of every working day
A stripped roof is a vulnerable roof. We plan every replacement around the forecast, and we never leave your property exposed overnight without a fully secured, battened temporary covering. If the weather turns - as it often does on the exposed Essex and Suffolk coast - we have the tarpaulins and fixings on the van to make the roof weather-tight before we leave site.
5-star rated with unedited local reviews
A roof replacement is the kind of job a homeowner tells their neighbours about - for better or worse. Our reputation across Colchester and the surrounding area is built on those conversations, and on the reviews every customer leaves after we finish. We publish them unedited, and we hold an average above 9.5/10 because we do not walk away from a job that is not right.
Building Regulations compliance as standard
A roof replacement is not just a like-for-like swap. Current Part L Building Regulations require insulation upgrades where the structure allows, and ventilation must meet current standards. We handle the compliance - calculating U-values, specifying the right insulation and ventilation, and ensuring the finished roof meets or exceeds the regulations - so your new roof is not just weather-tight but legally compliant and energy-efficient.
Transparent Pricing
What Does It Cost in Colchester?
Cost depends on property size, roof complexity, and material. Every roof is different - which is why we provide a written itemised quote after your free survey. As a genuine guide for 2025-26 in our area:
Semi-detached roof replacement (concrete tile)
£7,500 - £12,000
Detached roof replacement (concrete tile)
£11,000 - £18,000
Terraced roof replacement (natural slate)
£8,500 - £14,000
Semi-detached roof replacement (natural slate)
£12,000 - £19,000
Detached roof replacement (natural slate)
£16,000 - £28,000
Dry ridge system upgrade (per linear metre)
£45 - £75 / m
These ranges are genuine 2025-26 guides for our coverage area around Colchester and across Essex and Suffolk, drawn from completed replacement projects - not generic national averages. Your actual quote depends on roof area and pitch, the covering specified, the extent of any structural timber repairs, scaffolding access and whether insulation and ventilation are upgraded to current Building Regulations. We provide a free written survey with a fixed, itemised price before any work begins, so you know exactly what you are paying for and why.
How We Price
- Free written survey with a fixed, itemised quote - no vague estimates
- Stage payments agreed in writing before work begins - no surprise invoices
- Price held for 90 days from the date of your survey
- Clear breakdown of materials, labour, scaffolding, skip and timber repairs
Our Guarantees
- 10-year written workmanship guarantee on labour
- Manufacturer warranties up to 40+ years on materials
- Insurance-backed guarantees available on request
- Customer-reviewed aftercare - we stand behind our work
Coverage
Serving Colchester & a 20-Mile Radius
Based in Colchester, we cover every town and village within a 20-mile radius across Essex and Suffolk - from Ipswich and Sudbury in the north to Clacton and Mersea in the south, and from Braintree and Chelmsford in the west to Harwich and Felixstowe in the east. If you are in any of the areas below, we can be with you for a free survey within the week.
Not on this list? Contact us - we cover the full surrounding area and will confirm coverage when you get in touch.
Related Services
Other Services You May Need
Brand new roof construction for new-build projects and extensions where no existing roof exists.
Re-covering an existing roof structure where the timbers are sound and only the covering needs renewing.
Targeted tile, slate and leak repairs when a full replacement is not yet required.
Specialist natural slate repairs and partial slate replacement across Colchester and Essex.
Replacement fascia, soffit and bargeboard installation - often combined with a full roof replacement.
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
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