Project
Industrial roof maintenance and repairs, Dalkeith
Industrial roof maintenance for a manufacturer: repeat visits to clear, repair and inspect corrugated steel and asbestos cement roofs, with each visit building on what the last one found.
- Industrial
- Planned maintenance
- Fragile roofs
- Repeat visits
Project summary
The client had water getting in through the roofs of its industrial units. The first visit cleared vegetation from the area of the leak, treated the roof with biocide, repaired the laps and fixings and cleared the valley gutters.
Each visit included an inspection of the surrounding roof, gutter coverings, abutments and flues. Further repairs were recommended from the findings and carried out on the following visits. That is how industrial roof maintenance works best in practice: small, regular repairs that stop a leak spreading.
Work on the asbestos cement sheets was planned under a non-licensed asbestos risk assessment and method statement, in line with HSE guidance on non-licensed asbestos work, with staging and crawl boards used to spread load on the fragile sheets.
- Location
- Dalkeith, Midlothian
- Client
- Industrial manufacturer
- Roofs
- Corrugated steel and asbestos cement sheets, with valley gutters
- Access
- Ladders, staging and crawl boards on fragile roofs
- Visits
- Estimate November 2021, then visits in December 2021, January, February, April and September 2022
- Work
- Vegetation clearance, gutter clearing, roof and flue repairs, inspection
What we found
- Moss and vegetation growing across the roof sheets and holding water on the laps
- Valley gutters blocked with debris and vegetation, restricting the outlets
- Failed seals at laps and fixings
- Corroded and damaged flues, cowls and upstands where they pass through the roof
The work
Clear
Vegetation removed and the roof treated with biocide to slow regrowth. Waste double bagged and taken off site.
Gutters
Valley gutters cleared and outlets checked to make sure they were running freely.
Repair
Laps, fixings, flues and upstands sealed with a polyurethane roof repair system.
Inspect and return
Findings reported after each visit, with further repairs agreed and carried out on the next.
Before and after
Working on fragile sheet roofs
Asbestos cement sheets and older corrugated steel will not safely take a person’s weight between the purlins. On this site, staging and crawl boards were used to spread load across the sheets, and method statements and risk assessments were issued for the visits.
A maintenance visit on a sheet roof like this usually covers clearing valley gutters and outlets, checking laps and fixings, checking flues, upstands and rooflights where they pass through the roof, removing vegetation, and reporting anything that needs a repair.
Why regular industrial roof maintenance works
Most leaks on sheet roofs start small: a blocked valley gutter, a failed seal at a fixing or a corroded flue. Visiting regularly means each one is found and dealt with before it damages stock, equipment or the building.
Because the same team returns, the roof is already known. Access is planned in advance, and each visit picks up where the last left off.
Related services
Need regular visits to a commercial roof?
Tell us about the site, the roof type and any leaks you have had. We will look at the roof and set out what an industrial roof maintenance visit would cover.