Roof Flashing Repairs Wellington

Flashings are the folded metal pieces that seal the joins in a roof: where it meets a wall, wraps a chimney, turns a corner at a barge or runs down a valley. They are small compared with the roof sheets, but they cause a large share of leaks. When a flashing lifts, rusts or was never shaped properly, water gets past it, and in a Wellington southerly it can be driven a long way in.

We repair and replace flashings on steel, tile and decramastic roofs across the region, using steel matched to your roof and fixings suited to your exposure. If you have a leak and are not yet sure where it comes from, start with our roof leak repairs page.

Pricing: every roof gets a free on-site measure and an itemised written quote, with a fixed price agreed before any work starts.

The flashings on a typical roof

Most houses have several kinds of flashing, and each one has its own way of failing. Knowing which one is involved helps explain why a leak only appears in certain weather.

• Apron flashings, where a lower roof meets a wall below a higher one
• Wall or side flashings, running down the slope where the roof meets cladding
• Chimney flashings, including the back gutter on the uphill side
• Barge flashings, along the sloping edges at the gable ends
• Ridge and hip flashings, capping the top joins of a steel roof
• Valley flashings, carrying water where two roof planes meet
• Penetration flashings, around flues, vents, pipes and skylights

Why flashings fail in Wellington

Wind is the main reason. NIWA's Wellington climate summary records gusts over 63 km/h at the airport on about 166 days a year. Every gust tugs at the edges of a flashing, and a fixing that has loosened slightly lets the metal flex until the fastener hole elongates or the flashing lifts. Barge and ridge flashings on exposed gables take the most punishment, along with anything on the windward side of a hill.

Salt is the second reason. Under NZS 3604, land within 500 metres of the sea, harbours included, is generally Exposure Zone D. That covers a lot of housing from Lyall Bay and Island Bay to Seatoun, Eastbourne and the Petone foreshore, though the zone should be confirmed for each address. Salt attacks cut edges, fixings and the undersides of flashings that rain never washes. Old sealant that has cracked, flashings cut too short, and dissimilar metals in contact round out the list.

How It Works

How we repair and replace flashings

Small faults can sometimes be fixed by re-fastening a lifted flashing or replacing a corroded section. More often the right repair is a new flashing, folded to the correct shape with enough cover and the right turn-ups and drip edges, fixed at the spacing the Metal Roof and Wall Cladding Code of Practice calls for in your wind zone. Sealant has a role at some laps, but a flashing that relies on sealant alone will leak again once the sealant ages.

Chimneys deserve a special mention. A brick chimney needs a back gutter on the uphill side to turn water around it, and many older ones have rusted or were never formed properly. Flashings around skylights are usually part of a manufacturer's kit, and our skylights page covers those. Where your roof is near the coast we use fasteners and steel suited to that exposure, so the new flashing does not become the weak point.

Flashings and the Building Code

Building Code clause E2 External Moisture requires roofs to stop water getting into a building, and flashings are a large part of how a roof meets it. The NZ Metal Roof and Wall Cladding Code of Practice is the industry reference for flashing shapes, laps, fixings and material choice by environment. It notes that in high wind categories specific detailing is needed.

Repairing or replacing a flashing with a comparable one in the same position is normally exempt from building consent under Schedule 1 of the Building Act. Work that changes the roof structure or design may need consent, and your council can confirm. In Wellington City that is the council's building consents team.

Flashings on character houses and hillside homes

Villas and cottages in Thorndon, Mt Victoria, Newtown and Brooklyn tend to have chimneys, valleys and several wall junctions, so there are more flashings to look after than on a simple gable roof. Replacement flashings on these houses need to suit the original roof line. If your house may be inside a Wellington City character precinct, it is worth checking the District Plan before changing anything visible from the street.

Hillside access affects flashing work too. A short job on a house with no vehicle access still needs materials and safe access set up, so we look at that during the inspection and include it in the price.

Flashings on a roof near the end of its life

New flashings on a roof that is otherwise sound can add many years of service. On a roof where the sheets are rusting through or the fixings have failed across the whole area, replacing flashings alone only buys time. We tell you which situation you are in and show you photos. If the roof itself is at the end of its life, our re-roofing page explains what a full replacement involves.

Why Choose Cheeky's Roofers for Roof Flashing Repairs

Roof Flashing Repairs FAQs

Roof Flashing Repairs Across Wellington

We cover every region: Central Wellington, the Eastern and Southern Suburbs, the Western and Northern Suburbs, the Hutt Valley, Porirua, the Kāpiti Coast.

Related Roofing Services

• Roof Repairs
• Roof Leak Repairs
• Emergency Roof Repairs
• Tile Roof Repairs
• Re-Roofing
• Roof Painting

Roof Flashing Repairs Guides

• Why Does My Roof Only Leak in a Southerly? Wind-Driven Rain Explained
• Chimney Removal in Wellington: Consent, Roof Repairs and Quake Risk
• Re-Roofing a Character Villa in Wellington: Rules, Materials and Details

See the roof replacement cost guide or every service we offer.