Roof Replacement Wellington

A new roof is one of the biggest maintenance bills a homeowner faces, so it pays to be sure before committing. Plenty of roofs that look tired from the street still have useful years left after a few targeted repairs. Others look fine from the footpath but are failing underneath, where you cannot see. A proper inspection tells the two apart.

This page is about that decision: how long roofs last in Wellington's wind and salt air, the signs a roof is close to the end, and how to weigh repair costs against a replacement. If you already know it is time, our re-roofing page explains what a full re-roof involves, step by step.

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

Already decided to replace? How the work itself is done, from underlay to sign-off, is covered under re-roofing.

How long should a roof last in Wellington?

The Building Code sets a floor, not an expectation. Under clause B2 Durability, roof cladding must last at least 15 years with normal maintenance. Well-installed roofs usually go well past that, but how far depends on the material, the installation, the maintenance and where the house sits.

Two Wellington conditions shorten roof life. The first is salt. NZS 3604 puts land within 500 m of the sea, including the harbour, in exposure Zone D, and salt settles on surfaces rain does not wash, such as under laps and behind flashings. The second is wind. A roof that flexes in strong gusts day after day works its fixings and flashings harder than a sheltered one, which is why the windward face often fails first. Concrete tiles can outlast their own fixings, ridge bedding and underlay, so a tile roof can leak while the tiles themselves look sound.

Signs your roof is near the end

One of these on its own usually means a repair. Several together, or one that keeps coming back, usually means the roof is close to the end of its life and each round of repairs buys less time.

• Rust that has broken through the paint, especially at laps, eaves and around flues
• Screws that have backed out or lost their washers across large areas of the windward face
• Sheets or flashings that lift, flap or rattle in a strong northerly or southerly
• Leaks in different places each winter, or a leak that returns after repair
• Decramastic tiles shedding their stone chip and showing bare metal
• Brittle, torn or sagging underlay visible from the roof space
• Soft or stained timber at the eaves, or a roofline that has started to dip

How It Works

Repair or replace: how to decide

A repair is almost always cheaper today. The better question is how much you will spend on repairs over the next five to ten years, and whether that money would be better put towards a new roof that ends the cycle.

We look at three things. First, whether the problem is local, such as one failed flashing or a storm-damaged section, or general, such as corrosion across every sheet. Local problems suit roof repairs. Second, what is underneath: if the underlay and timber are sound, repairs hold, and if they are failing, new sheets on top will not save it. Third, your plans for the house. If you are selling soon, a sound repair and a roof report may be enough. If you are staying, a replacement often costs less over time.

Repairs to a roof that has already failed the Building Code durability requirements are also outside the usual consent exemption for like-for-like work, which can make patching a worn-out roof more involved than it sounds.

Roof weight and the Wellington Fault

Replacement is a chance to think about weight as well as weathertightness. The Wellington Fault runs from Cook Strait through Karori and the city and along the Hutt Valley, and a rupture is expected to produce an earthquake of about magnitude 7.5. Research from the It's Our Fault project put the chance of that in the next 100 years at about 11 percent, and the region has many other active faults.

A heavy roof puts more mass high up on the frame, and that mass is what the walls and bracing have to resist when the ground shakes. Moving from concrete tiles to steel takes a great deal of that weight off. The trade-off is that a light roof must be held down firmly against wind uplift, so the new purlins and fixings are designed for your wind zone. Our tile to metal re-roofing page covers what changes.

Replacement options

Most replacements go into COLORSTEEL longrun, with the product chosen to suit your site's exposure zone. Decramastic and old fibre cement roofs need an asbestos test before any work, and we arrange testing and licensed removal where needed. Our decramastic roof replacement page covers that product in detail.

Partial replacement can make sense when one roof plane has failed and the rest is sound, for example the windward face on an exposed hillside. We will tell you if that is realistic. If your house is in a Character Precinct under the Wellington City 2024 District Plan, check before changing the roof material or shape.

Cost, timing and planning ahead

A roof replacement rarely has to be decided this week. If your roof has a year or two left, use that time to get quotes, choose a colour and budget. NIWA notes Wellington gales are most frequent in winter, and winter is also the wettest season, so late spring to autumn usually offers more workable days, though we re-roof all year.

Price depends on area, pitch, complexity, access, what comes off and the steel your exposure zone needs. Hillside sections with steep or no vehicle access add scaffold and handling time. Our roof replacement cost guide sets out the factors, and the free measure gives you a firm written figure. For local detail, see roofers in the Western and Northern Suburbs.

Why Choose Cheeky's Roofers for Roof Replacement

Roof Replacement FAQs

Roof Replacement by Area

Local roof replacement information for your part of Wellington:

Related Roofing Services

• Re-Roofing
• Tile to Metal Re-Roofing
• Asbestos Roof Removal
• Decramastic Roof
• Roof Repairs
• Roof Painting

Roof Replacement Guides

• How Long Does a Roof Last in Wellington Wind and Salt Air?
• Rust on Your Roof: Treat It, Paint It or Replace It?
• Re-Roofing on a Steep Wellington Section: Access, Scaffolding and Timing

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