Collyweston slate

[RBailey]

Hi All,

Bad day, lost a Collyweston slate.


But improved as you can now buy them.


Claude N. Smith
www.claudesmith.co.uk

They have their own quarry and dig, split (with freezer containers) and dress the slate on site.

More than happy to sell an odd replacement stone

Just got to get on the roof to fit it now

Cheers,
Richard B.

 

[Cubist]

That reminds me. A few years back we visited one of the First Ladies cousins who had recently acquired a lovely cottage in South Wales - not a second home, please note. They were justifiably proud of the place and in particular they had been attracted by the way in which mosses and lichens had occupied every nook and cranny of the slate roof and the blooms of other natural patina it exhibited.

It was indeed gorgeous and perhaps I should not have enquired about the odd pattern of new slates that had clearly been installed recently. Apparently, they had had a chap come along to replace a lost slate near the ridge and were puzzled by that fact that when he went up the ladder he took more than the one slate needed to fix the problem. They understood why after they had watched him go up and come down again - while replacing the slates he broke on his way to and from the lost one.

Seems to me you have to be light on your feet when tackling jobs like this, definitely not a task for me. Have you had any training from the Bolshoi Richard?

Good luck with the repairs and be safe,

Cheers,
Steve

 

[RBailey]

Thanks Steve.
Hopefully not, just this slate 500 x 400 mm was 30 quid
I'm also planning to hire a proper roof ladder (the type with the under supports as well as the wheels / hook) and I may even add some pipe insulation to the support bars for more padding.

For safety I will probably also use a harness and clip it to the roof ladder. Not great practice to tie into what you are climbing on but it should give me some protection for for the transition between the "vertical" and the roof ladders which is the worst bit.

Cheers,
Richard B.

 

[Cubist]

Ouch. Just make sure that any injuries are restricted to your wallet.

You/re going to have some challenges just getting the new slate into position. Have you considered the kind of kit and assistance used by 'theatre fliers' in productions like Peter Pan?

 

[88v8]

I have a broken tile on my garage roof (that I built) and hesitate to replace it for just that reason, even though I am only 10 stone.

Alloy roof ladders, even with rubber bars, do concentrate the load. At our previous house when we moved, I foolishly left a roof ladder I made from lengths of 2"x 2" screwed together. I had an alloy roof hook that bolted onto it. Being flexible it distributed the load, and I never broke a tile. The only padding I used was at the eaves where I had to climb onto the ladder.

It would worth your while to do the same.

Ivor

 

[CliffordPope]

but it should give me some protection for for the transition between the "vertical" and the roof ladders which is the worst bit.



I've always chickened out of that bit and constructed a scaffolding tower first, then erected the sloping bit.

Getting back down off the slope and fumbling for the treads on the ladder up the wall had me terrified. Now I tie each ladder to the tower.

 

[RBailey]

Thanks all, I might increase the surface area at the eaves with a bit bit of plywood and foam.