If it's leaking now
Catch the water
Bucket, towels, and move anything valuable. Take photos of the drip and any stain for the roofer and your insurer.
Think about power
If water is near a light or fitting, switch off at the switchboard and leave it off until it's checked.
Wait for a dry, calm day
Wet, frosty or windy roofs are dangerous. A roofer may put on a temporary cover first and do the proper repair once it's dry.
Talk to your insurer early
If it's sudden storm damage, let them know before permanent repairs start.
What breaks roofs in Dunedin
Westerly gusts
Musselburgh averages about 14 strong wind days a year, and 2 days with gusts over 94 km/h. Wind gets under the edges of iron and ridge capping first, especially where screws or nails have worked loose. After a big blow, check from the street for lifted sheets or flashings.
Hail on the Taieri Plain
NIWA records hail on 12 days a year at Dunedin Airport, considerably more often than at other Otago stations. Clear roofing and skylights take the worst of it, so check them from below after a hailstorm if you live out that way.
Chimneys on brick villas
Brick chimneys with corbelled tops are typical of Dunedin's villas. The flashing around each one is a common leak point, and a chimney you no longer use may be better removed than re-flashed yet again. See chimney removal.
Slips on hillside sections
The June 2015 rain set off a large number of landslides around the Dunedin district, and in June 1980 at least 60 St Clair residents were evacuated from hillside homes as a mudslide threatened. If a slip damages your house, Natural Hazards Commission cover applies to both the home and the land.
Salt on fixings near the coast
Within 500 m of the sea or the harbour you're in exposure Zone D, where salt shortens the life of fixings and flashings, and overhangs that rain doesn't rinse corrode first. A repair at St Clair or St Kilda should use materials rated for the zone, not whatever happens to be on the truck.
Repair or re-roof?
A repair makes sense when the problem is local: a flashing, a few sheets, a chimney junction. When rust has gone through across the roof, or every storm finds a new leak, you're patching a roof that's finished. Our repaint or re-roof guide and restore or re-roof tool help you decide, and re-roofing covers the bigger job.
Repairs with comparable products are usually exempt from consent under Schedule 1. That exemption doesn't extend to replacing a part that failed the Building Code's durability rules, so if a fairly new roof is leaking, check with Dunedin City Council before a big repair.
Insurance after a Dunedin storm
House insurance covers sudden damage, like a tree landing on the roof. Rust, worn paint and blocked spouting count as gradual, so they're usually excluded. Storm damage to the house is a private insurance claim, while slips are the Natural Hazards Commission's job for home and land. Photograph everything before it's fixed; our storm damage claims guide walks through the rest.
What makes a Dunedin repair a bigger job
Reaching the problem is often half of it. A two-storey villa or a steep hillside section may need scaffolding before anyone can touch the roof, while a single-storey house on the flat is far easier to get at. Hidden damage, like rotten timber under a long-running leak, also grows the job once the iron comes off.
Ask for a written quote that says what's causing the leak, exactly what will be replaced, the materials and their exposure rating, the fall protection, and what happens if more damage turns up. Our guide to reading a roofing quote covers the rest.
Before you say yes to a Dunedin repair
- What's actually causing the leak, and can you show me photos?
- Are the fixings, flashings and any new iron rated for my exposure zone?
- If it's the chimney flashing again, would removing the chimney make more sense?
- What fall protection will you use on my section?
- Could anything you'll disturb contain asbestos?
- Does this job need a building consent or an LBP, and will I get a Record of Work?
Our take on Dunedin repairs
We'd get the cause found and photographed before paying for any fix. On a brick villa, we'd look hard at the chimney: if it's unused and leaking, taking it out can end the repairs for good. And after a big westerly, we'd have loose fixings checked before the next one arrives, not after.
Want a roofer to take a look?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.