Where the Adelaide Hills starts and stops
The Hills sit in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges east of the city. Adelaide Hills Council, formed in 1997 from four older councils, covers 795.08 km² and about 60 suburbs and localities, from Crafers, Stirling and Aldgate to Uraidla, Woodside, Lobethal and Gumeracha. Mount Barker, the region's largest town, has its own council.
At the 2021 Census, 95.9% of homes in the Adelaide Hills council area were separate houses. Hahndorf and Lobethal began as German settlements and still show it in their buildings.
What Hills weather and fire history mean for a roof
Much more rain
Belair, at 305 m in the foothills, averages 724.0 mm a year against 536.5 mm at Adelaide Airport, and Stirling's climate table gives 1,112.1 mm. More rain means valleys, gutters and flashings get tested far more often.
Bigger hail, frost and the odd snowfall
Large hail is more likely in the Hills than on the plains, and the Adelaide Hills was one of the main claim areas after the hail of late October 2021. Frosts are common in Hills valleys and light snow falls about every three to four years.
A long run of bushfires
The 20 February 1980 fire destroyed 51 homes and the church at Longwood. On Ash Wednesday 1983, more than 60 per cent of the houses lost in South Australia were in the Mount Lofty Ranges. The Cudlee Creek fire from 20 December 2019 destroyed 84 homes and threatened Gumeracha, Lobethal, Woodside and Mount Torrens.
Building rules in bushfire areas
The CFS is a referral body for development applications within the Bushfire Hazard Overlays, and Ministerial Building Standard MBS008 adds requirements in designated bushfire-prone areas. A re-roof in those areas isn't just a materials choice.
What to ask a roofer in the Hills
- Is my address in a Bushfire Hazard Overlay, and what Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) does that mean for this roof?
- What sarking are you using? Monier and CSR Bradford both say sarking helps keep embers out of the roof space.
- How will you close the gaps under the ridges and at the ends of the sheet ribs, where embers can get in?
- Are the gutter guards you're quoting non-combustible?
Which jobs come up most across the Hills?
Bushfire-ready re-roofs. BlueScope says COLORBOND roofing, gutters and downpipes can form part of a compliant system up to BAL-FZ under AS 3959, and Monier says its tiles are non-combustible and can comply when laid with ember protection and fire-rated sarking. Either can work. The detailing is what matters. See Colorbond roofing in Adelaide.
Gutters, guards and valleys. Where homes sit among trees, gutters and valleys fill fast. Gutter guards in Adelaide covers the options.
Hail and storm repairs. Cracked tiles, dented sheets and lifted flashings after a hailstorm. Start with roof repairs in Adelaide.
If we lived up in the Hills
We'd find out the bushfire overlay and BAL for the property before asking for any re-roof quote, so every roofer prices the same standard. Then we'd budget for gutters to be cleared every autumn and again before summer. A cheaper quote that skips the bushfire detailing isn't really a saving.
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.