Roofers in Worthing
Top Guard Roofing & Paving is a family owned roofing firm based in Arundel, and we work as roofers in Worthing on homes and commercial properties. We repair roofs, replace them, and look after the chimneys, fascias and gutters that go with them. The full list is on our roofing page.
Worthing runs from the seafront up to the South Downs, and the houses change as you go inland. That matters to a roofer, because the age of a house says a good deal about its roof before anyone climbs a ladder. Every job starts with a visit and an inspection, and the quote is free.
Roofs we work on across Worthing
Three periods of building account for most of the town, and each left a different kind of roof.
Victorian and Edwardian houses
Worthing grew fast as a resort, and the streets near the centre still hold many Victorian and Edwardian buildings. A lot of the larger houses have since been divided into flats. Roofs of this age are usually slate or clay tile, with tall brick chimneys and lead flashing. The slates often outlast the nails that hold them, so slates sliding out of line and tired leadwork are the usual signs of wear.
1930s streets in Goring, Durrington and Tarring
The town spread again in the 1930s, and Durrington and Tarring have many semi detached houses. Homes of this period usually have a hipped, tiled roof with a bay at the front, and many still carry their first covering. After this long the common faults are worn underlay beneath the tiles, loose ridge and hip tiles, and old timber fascias. The chimney shared by a pair of houses deserves a look as well.
Homes built after 1948
Estates were built on the west side of Worthing from 1948 onwards. These homes mostly have concrete tiled roofs, and many have gained a flat roofed extension, garage or dormer since. Concrete tiles last well. The mortar on the ridge and at the gable ends is what cracks with age, and a flat roof reaches the end of its life long before the pitched roof beside it.
Roof Repairs in Worthing
Roof repairs in Worthing tend to start in one of three ways. A tile comes off in a gale, a damp patch shows on a bedroom ceiling, or water starts to drip at the edge of a flat roof. We find where the water is getting in, which is often some way from where it shows indoors. Then we repair that point and check the roof around it.
Our roof repairs cover leaks, storm damage, tiles and slates that have moved or come off, flashing around chimneys and skylights, and gutters and downpipes. We also carry out roof inspections and clear moss and debris. We are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with an emergency service for urgent repairs, so you can ring when the leak starts and not the morning after.
Flat Roofing in Worthing
Flat roofs in Worthing sit on rear extensions, garages, dormers and the back additions of older terraces, as well as on shops and other commercial buildings. We install, repair and replace flat roofs in felt, rubber and single ply membrane. Blisters, splits, lifting edges and standing water are the signs that one needs attention. A sound roof with one weak spot can be patched. Where the covering has worn across the whole area, a new covering makes more sense than another patch, and we can advise on insulation while the roof is open. There is more on our flat roofing page.
Chimney Repairs in Worthing
The older houses in Worthing have tall chimney stacks, and many are no longer used for a fire. A stack takes the weather whether it is used or not. Mortar joints wash out, lead flashing lifts, and the bricks at the top work loose. Our chimney repairs in Worthing include repointing, lead flashing repairs and rebuilding loose brickwork. If a stack is past saving and you no longer need it, we can remove it fully. Damp on a chimney breast upstairs is the usual first sign. See chimneys and guttering for the full service.
New Roof in Worthing
When a roof has been repaired many times, or the covering has worn across whole slopes, a new roof in Worthing is the sounder choice. We fit pitched and flat new roofs in slate, tile and felt. A full replacement means stripping the old covering, checking the timbers, laying a breathable membrane and new battens, and fitting the new slates or tiles. Fascias, soffits, chimney repairs and leadwork can all be done as part of the same job. We visit and inspect the roof before we quote.
Slate Roofing in Worthing
Slate is the roof on many of the older terraces and larger houses in Worthing. We work in natural slate and man made slate. Our slate roofing service replaces broken or missing slates, and we match the type and size of your existing slate where possible so the repair does not stand out. Where a slate roof has reached the end of its life, we strip it and lay a new one.
Roof Tiling in Worthing
Clay and concrete tiles cover most of the pitched roofs in Worthing. Our roof tiling runs from a single cracked tile to stripping and retiling a whole roof with new underlay and fixings. Ridge tiles and the verges at the gable ends are where a tiled roof gives way first, because the mortar that holds them cracks. We rebed or refix them. If your tiles look sound but the roof still leaks, the underlay beneath is the likely cause, and an inspection will show whether a repair or a retile is needed.
Facias Replacements in Worthing
Fascia boards run along the edge of the roof and carry the gutter. Soffits close the gap beneath them. On older Worthing houses both are usually timber, and paint does not last long this close to the sea. Once the paint goes the board rots, and the gutter starts to sag or pull away from the wall. We fit, replace and maintain fascias and soffits in uPVC and timber, and we refix or renew the gutters and downpipes at the same time.
Sea air and your roof
Worthing faces the English Channel, so its roofs take wind driven rain and salt air that houses a few miles inland are spared. Wind works on anything loose: ridge tiles, verges, lead flashing and the top courses of a chimney. Salt is hard on metal, so nails, clips, flashing fixings and metal gutter brackets corrode sooner near the seafront. A roof by the sea can last as long as any other. Its fixings matter as much as its tiles, and a check after a rough winter is time well spent.
Areas of Worthing we cover
We work across the borough, postcodes BN11 to BN14:
- Goring-by-Sea
- Durrington and West Durrington
- Broadwater and Offington
- West Tarring
- Salvington and High Salvington
- Findon Valley
- Heene and West Worthing
- East Worthing
We also travel to Ferring on the west side and Lancing on the east. North of the Downs, about 10 miles from Worthing, we are roofers in Storrington too.
Common questions
Do you cover Goring, Durrington and Ferring?
Yes. We cover the whole of Worthing, including Goring-by-Sea, Durrington, Broadwater, Tarring, Salvington and Findon Valley, and we travel to Ferring and Lancing on either side of the town.
Can you come out for a leak at night or at the weekend?
Yes. We are available 24/7 and offer an emergency roofing service for urgent repairs. While you wait, put a bucket under the drip and move anything that water could spoil. Please stay off the roof yourself.
My flat shares a roof with other flats. Can you still quote?
Yes. In a converted house the roof normally belongs to the freeholder, or to all the flat owners together, so the work has to be agreed by whoever is responsible. Check your lease, then put us in touch with the managing agent or the other owners and we will inspect and quote for the whole roof.
Should I repair my roof or replace it?
If the damage is in one place and everything around it is sound, a repair is enough. If slates or tiles are failing across whole slopes, or the same leak keeps coming back, a replacement is usually the better choice. We inspect first and explain what we found.
How do quotes work?
Quotes are free. We visit, inspect the roof and tell you what it needs, then give you a clear price before any work starts.
Get a free quote
For roofers in Worthing, call Top Guard Roofing & Paving on 01903 442348 or 07394 150273, or send a message through our contact page. Tell us where the property is and what you have noticed, and we will arrange a visit.