Why Menai roofs need what they need
A suburb built from the early 1980s
Menai has been developed only since the early 1980s, and most homes are four-bedroom houses with double garages. At the 2021 Census, 75.2% of homes were separate houses and 21.5% were townhouses, semis or similar, with only 14.7% rented.
Fire has come close twice
Homes were lost at Menai, Illawong, Bangor and Alfords Point in the January 1994 fires. On 15 April 2018 a fire that started at Glenfield pushed toward Holsworthy, Wattle Grove and Menai on strong westerlies, and embers fell on Illawong and Bangor.
Embers do most of the damage
The NSW RFS says 85% of houses lost in bushfires go to ember attack, which can land more than 100 metres ahead of the fire front. Gutters full of leaves, open valleys and gaps under ridge caps are where embers settle.
Roof jobs that make sense in Menai
Metal gutter and valley guards. The RFS says leaf guards in bushfire areas should be non-combustible and installed to AS 3959, so ask what a guard is made of before you agree. See ember guard.
A first ridge and tile check. Monier lists cracked ridge mortar as a common cause of leaks, and the pointing on many of these roofs is now decades old.
Restoring rather than replacing. If the tiles are sound, a clean, rebed and recoat brings the roof back for much less than a new one. Roof restoration in Sydney has more.
What you can check, and what to leave to a roofer
You can
- Look along the gutters from the ground, or from a ladder you're comfortable on, and book a clean if they're full.
- Check the ridge line from the street for gaps, missing mortar or caps out of line.
- Look up your address on the RFS online tool, or check your Section 10.7 planning certificate, to see if it's on bush fire prone land.
Leave to a roofer
- Fitting metal ember guard to gutters and valleys.
- Sealing gaps under ridge caps and around vents.
- Rebedding and repointing the ridge, or replacing cracked tiles.
If it were our Menai roof
We'd have the gutters, valleys and ridge looked at together before each fire season, and fit metal guard if the block backs onto bush. Sealing gaps while a roofer is already up there costs far less than a second visit, and it deals with leaks and embers in one go.
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.