Strong wind and gales expected

Independent Building Surveyors

We are experienced independent building Surveyors who are knowledgeable in carrying out structural surveys on all types, styles and eras of buildings. Please call us on free phone 0800 298 5424 for a friendly chat on property issues.

Strong winds and gales, take care!

Many of us have recollections of days when the wind has been very strong and you perhaps notice items being blown around during the night as well as the grey and stormy skies. You may even know an area that always seems to be windier than other areas. We have Building Surveyors that can recall particular years when there were very strong storms with gale force winds which caused all sorts of problems to buildings.

Houses (circled) are in danger of damage from large trees in high winds

Free phone 0800 298 5424

Strong winds and roof problems

One incident happened at a famous seaside town where they were building a new shopping centre and part of the profile metal sheeting had been blown off the roof by the strong winds. Amazingly the profile metal sheet did not fall straight to the ground but was carried by the wind in an almost kite like fashion for some distance before eventually landing in the shopping centre where pedestrians had been some term earlier. Luckily the windy and stormy conditions had put many people off going shopping that day and no one was hurt.

This is a profile metal roof on a warehouse

The seaside and the corrosive damage of the wind and sand

Whilst we are talking about seaside locations it is very obvious to anyone who has lived in a seaside area how much damage can be caused by the sea air and strong winds that you tend to get along the coastline. These conditions seem to make almost anything rust and weather quickly.
	Bolts rusting away caused by the wind and sand

Storm in action We recall one period a few years ago when we were managing an estate of properties of older commercial properties where the wind attacked a Victorian property and the slates were lifted off the roof and dropped onto a car park below damaging some of the vehicles.
The number of phone calls we had at this time was tremendous. In fact we spoke to insurance companies for a long time after wards to deal with the various claims.	Slates displaced by strong winds

How do you make a building watertight when it's windy and raining hard?

The answer is fairly simple and in many cases you simply can't and the repair has to be put off for some time.

Wind driven rain getting underneath the slate roof from inside the roof	Wind driven rain

Roof Tingles

Lead roof tingles are a way of securing slates that have been displaced by the wind.

When is it too windy for a contractor to go up on a roof? Unfortunately, and nearly always, the wind and the rain seem to come together. If you do get a leak in the roof because of this, and because of a displaced tile or wind driven rain, in most cases it is not the right time to send someone up onto a roof.
	Tiles on roof lifted by heavy wind

Please see our surveying articles on:-

Snow causing house and home problems in winter

Why have a residential survey?

Snow, ice and winter surveying problems in commercial property

Should I have a structural survey?

We highly recommend you always make sure when you have a survey your meet your Surveyor at the property.

Trees and chimneys and other high level things Trees tend to get battered by strong winds depending upon the time of year and whether they have leaves or not. As anyone who knows anything about trees or sailing will tell you some trees move more than others when it is windy.
	A large tree close to a house can be cause damage to it in a gale

Leaves blown off trees around the garden in windy weather	Trees can be battered by the wind. The leaves can cause property problems (see below)

What do the circles and ovals mean in our building surveys?

When reading our Building Survey and Structural Survey reports you will notice a system of circles and ovals that we use to highlight property problem areas so that you are not left wondering what the property problem is.
	Nibbed roof tiles with moss growing on them

Our Sketches If our survey photographs do not explain the property problem enough then we will use our sketches that have been drawn especially for use in our building surveys to explain the issue further.
	Nibbed tiles

Trees and leaves can also cause problems

The wind can also cause problems such as depositing leaves and twigs in gutters and downpipes to having large branches come away from the tree and go through roofs and damage them. Thankfully this is not a common occurrence.

Gutters can become blocked with leaves in windy weather	Leaves, twigs etc. in the gutter	Blocked Hopper head

Independent Surveyor

If you truly do want an independent expert opinion from a Building Surveyor, with regard to property problems caused by weather such as high winds and storms or any other property matters please Free phone 0800 298 5424 and we will call you back.

Caveat Emptor - why have an independent building survey?

You should always have an independent building survey carried out if you are thinking of buying a property as this will highlight any problems. Caveat emptor means buyer beware and means you would be liable for any problems; the estate agent is working for the seller of the property and may not advise you of any problems.

Remember the building Surveyor that you employ will be the only person working for you with your interests at heart.

Our Good, Bad & Ugly surveys!

We would like to introduce to you what we call our Good, Bad and Ugly survey which is a building survey, sometimes known as a structural survey, and is something that we have developed over many years, in fact several decades. We have listened to feedback from our clients and amended and altered our surveys to make them easy to read and describe issues clearly. The key factor we believe is that our surveys are easy to understand in plain English.

We can email you examples of our structural surveys and specific defect reports

If you are interested in having a structural survey or Specific Defect Report on a roof or any other property problems caused by extreme weather please call us and we would be happy to email you some examples of our tailor made reports. We also find that a Specific Defect Report can be of use where there is a problem or issue that needs resolving between a landlord and a tenant.

Surveying articles

The above article has been written to stimulate debate and discussion. We hope you found the article of use and if you have any experiences that you feel should be added to this article that would benefit others, or you feel that some of the information that we have put is wrong then please do not hesitate to contact us (we are only human).

The content of the website is for general information only and is not intended to be relied upon for specific or general decisions. Appropriate independent professional advice should be paid for before making such a decision. Free phone 1stAssociated.co.uk on 0800 298 5424

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