Why Melbourne ridges let go
Federation roofs have metres of ridge
Federation Queen Anne was Australia's most popular house style from 1890 to 1910, and Federation homes typically have terracotta roofs with decorative gables. Gables, hips and valleys add up to a lot of capping, so a full rebed on one of these houses is a bigger job than on a simple hipped roof of the same size.
Terrace ridges are out of sight
Melbourne's terrace designers deliberately hid the roof behind a decorative parapet. That means crumbling ridge mortar on a terrace in Fitzroy or South Melbourne can go unnoticed for years, until it shows up as a stain on a bedroom ceiling.
The wind before the front
North-westerlies ahead of a cold front can reach gale force, and gusts topped 100 km/h at Melbourne Airport in the March 2010 storm. Loose caps with cracked bedding are what move first, which is why ridge work often follows a windy week.
Rebed or repoint?
Monier describes bedding as the mortar that holds the ridge caps in place, and pointing as the top layer that seals and finishes the joints. It says pointing can crack or loosen with weather, that cracked bedding is a common cause of leaks, and that repairs should use modern flexible compounds.
If the caps are firm and only the pointing is cracked, repointing may be enough. If caps rock when touched or the bedding underneath is crumbling, they need lifting and rebedding. The National Construction Code also requires ridge and hip tiles to be fixed with clips, screws, nails or flexible pointing to AS 2050, with how often set by the wind classification, so ask how yours will be held down.
What to ask a Melbourne roofer about ridge work
- Does my roof need full rebedding, or will repointing do?
- How many metres of ridge and hip are you quoting for?
- Which flexible pointing compound will you use, and in what colour?
- How will the caps be fixed to suit the wind rating for my area?
- Are you registered with the Building and Plumbing Commission in the roof tiling class, which covers bedding and pointing?
- Could my ridge capping be asbestos cement, and how would you handle that?
Where we'd put the money
We'd ask for photos of the ridge before agreeing to anything, because it's the one part of the roof you can't judge from the ground, especially on a terrace. If only the pointing is cracked, repoint and move on. If the caps are loose, rebed properly with a flexible compound, and if the rest of the roof is tired too, price it as part of a restoration. Our national rebedding and repointing page explains the job, and the Melbourne hub has more on roofs here.
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.
