Why the First Dry Day Matters

Storms across the UK rarely arrive politely. A night of 60mph gusts, driving rain and flying debris can undo years of quiet, reliable service from a roof in a matter of hours. Lead flashings that have sat snug against a chimney breast since the 1970s can be lifted and creased. Ridge tiles can shift. Mortar joints that were merely tired on Friday can be cracked open by Sunday morning.

The temptation is to wait until spring, or until a damp patch appears on an upstairs ceiling. Please don't. Water that gets past a failed flashing rarely announces itself immediately. It tracks along timbers, soaks into loft insulation and quietly rots the ends of rafters for months before you notice a stain. A single inspection on the first reasonably dry, calm day after a storm can save you thousands.

Safety First, Then a Methodical Walk-Around

Before you reach for a ladder, check the forecast and be honest about your own confidence at height. Binoculars from the garden will show you more than you might expect, and they carry no risk at all. If you do go up, use a proper ladder footed on firm ground, keep three points of contact, and never work on a wet or frosty roof surface. Anything above gutter height that needs hands-on attention is a job for someone with crawling boards and a harness.

Work from the ground upwards, and be systematic rather than hopeful:

• Walk the perimeter looking for tiles or slates on the lawn, in the borders or in the gutter.
• Train binoculars on the chimney stack, the ridge line and every flashing detail.
• Check gutters and downpipes for granules, broken tile fragments and mortar crumbs.
• Look at boundary fences, TV aerials and satellite dishes — if they moved, the wind was strong enough to move roof fixings too.

What Storm Damage to Flashings Actually Looks Like

Flashing is the weatherproofing where a roof meets something else — a chimney, a party wall, a dormer, a valley. Lead is still the material of choice in most UK homes because it is malleable, durable and tolerant of thermal movement, but it has limits. Sustained oscillation in high wind can fatigue lead until it splits along a fold, and a single lifted edge is enough to let water in sideways.

Things to look for specifically:

• Lifted or curled lead along the apron at the front of a chimney, or the back gutter behind it. Look for daylight or a visible gap under the edge.
• Torn or split lead, often at a corner or where the metal has been worked repeatedly by wind.
• Missing mortar in the flaunching — the sloping mortar bed that seals the top of the stack around the pots. Cracks here send water straight down the flue.
• Displaced stepped flashings where lead has been chased into the brickwork at the side of a stack and the pointing has failed.
• Broken or slipped tiles and slates around the flashing line, which leave the lead unsupported.
• Rusted or perished sealant where a previous repair used mastic instead of proper metal work.

On modern dry-fix systems and GRP or EPDM flashings, look for cracked seals, movement at the upstand and any sign that the top edge has come away from the wall.

Checking the Chimney and the Flue at the Same Time

If the stack has taken a hit, the flue inside deserves attention too. A cracked pot, a dislodged crown or a chunk of fallen mortar can leave a flue partially blocked, which is a serious safety matter the moment a stove or open fire is lit. Rain driving into an unprotected flue also accelerates corrosion of liners and makes lighting a fire miserable for weeks.

While you are looking up, note the condition of the pots, the cowl or terminal, and any bird guards. A cowl that has been blown loose or rotated out of position should be re-fixed before the next wet spell, and any flue serving a solid fuel appliance should be swept and checked before it goes back into use. If you smell damp or sooty air in a room with a chimney, or see staining on the chimney breast, get a qualified sweep in to look at the flue rather than guessing.

Temporary Repairs and When to Call Someone

If rain is forecast within 24 hours and you have found an obvious gap, a temporary seal is sensible — but keep it modest. A strip of lead dressed over the opening, or a bead of external-grade sealant used sparingly, will hold things until a proper repair can be arranged. Do not use expanding foam around a flue or chimney; it traps moisture and makes the eventual repair harder and more expensive.

Call in a professional for anything involving working at height beyond gutter level, any repair to lead that has been chased into brickwork, and any flaunching or repointing on a stack. Good roofers are busy after storms, so book early and photograph the damage from the ground for insurance purposes. Most household policies cover storm damage, but they expect you to prevent further loss once you know about a problem.

A Simple Maintenance Rhythm That Prevents Repeat Trouble

Storm damage is often a symptom of deferred maintenance rather than pure bad luck. A quick check twice a year — ideally in early autumn and again after the worst of the winter — will catch most problems while they are small and cheap.

• Clear gutters and check that water runs away freely from the chimney area.
• Look at the flaunching and pointing on the stack; repoint before cracks widen.
• Have the flue swept annually if you burn wood or smokeless fuel, and keep a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a solid fuel appliance.
• Note any change in how the fire draws or how the stove behaves — poor draught often points to a flue problem.
• Keep a dated photo record of the roof and chimney, so you can tell what has moved after the next gale.

Ten minutes with binoculars after a storm is one of the best-value maintenance habits a UK homeowner can develop. Catch the lifted lead, the cracked flaunching or the slipped slate early, and the roof, the chimney and the flue will keep doing their job quietly for years.