Brandon Roofers carries out commercial roofing in Soham and the surrounding area, covering industrial units, warehouses, retail premises and office buildings of all sizes.
Commercial roofs are a different proposition from domestic ones. The spans are wider, the drainage systems more complex, and the consequences of a failure are far more serious - stock damaged, staff disrupted, trading interrupted.
Whether a roof needs a full replacement or a targeted repair to failing flashings and upstands, the process starts with a proper inspection. That means getting up onto the roof, not just looking from the ground. A visual survey from below will miss failed laps, ponding areas, and splits in the membrane that are already letting water through.
Most commercial flat roofs fail at the details rather than the main field of the membrane. Flashings where the roof meets a parapet wall, upstands around rooflights, outlets and drainage channels - these are the points where movement, frost and UV degradation work hardest. A mineral felt membrane may last fifteen to twenty years across the main deck, but a poorly finished upstand or a lead flashing that has crept away from the chase will let water in long before that.
Flat roofs on commercial buildings are particularly vulnerable to ponding water. If the falls were not laid correctly during installation, or if the drainage outlets are blocked, water sits on the membrane and works into any weakness. Over winter, that trapped water freezes and expands, opening splits that would otherwise have stayed sealed. On larger roofs, it is common to find outlets blocked by moss, debris and silt that has washed down from parapet walls.
Single-ply membranes have become the most popular choice for commercial re-roofing over the past decade. Systems such as TPO and PVC single-ply are welded at the seams rather than lapped, which removes one of the most common failure points in traditional felt. EPDM rubber is a well-established alternative, particularly on smaller commercial roofs and extensions, and when correctly installed it performs well for thirty years or more without the regular maintenance that mineral felt requires.
Commercial roofing costs vary considerably depending on roof area, access requirements, the system chosen and the condition of the existing deck. As a rough guide, mineral felt replacement on a commercial flat roof runs from around £45 to £75 per square metre for materials and labour. Single-ply systems typically cost £70 to £120 per square metre installed, depending on the membrane specified and the detailing involved. EPDM sits in a similar range. These figures do not include scaffolding or specialist access equipment, which on a large commercial building can add several thousand pounds to the overall cost.
For pitched commercial roofs - often profiled steel or fibre cement sheets on industrial units and warehouses - full re-roofing is costed differently, usually per square metre of sheet area plus fixings and ridge work. Strip-and-relay work on a mid-sized industrial unit might run to £15,000-£40,000 depending on size, access and specification, but a precise figure needs a proper measured survey before any quote is meaningful.
We can schedule work outside normal trading hours to reduce disruption to your business. For many retail and food-industry premises, that means early mornings or weekends for the noisier elements of the job.
Before committing to any roofer for commercial work, ask for a written scope of works - not just a price. You need to know what is being stripped, what the new system is, how upstands and flashings will be finished, and what happens if the deck boards underneath are found to be damaged. A price that does not address those details leaves you exposed to extras that were foreseeable from the outset.
Ask whether the contractor will provide a drainage survey as part of the specification. On flat commercial roofs, drainage is critical. If the falls and outlet positions are not checked before the new membrane goes down, you risk replicating the same ponding problem at your expense.
This is the section most commercial property owners skip, and it is the reason roofs fail earlier than they should. A commercial roof is not a fit-and-forget installation. The materials will last their expected lifespan only if a few simple tasks are carried out on a regular basis. Ignoring them is the single most avoidable cause of premature failure in commercial flat roofing.
Flat roof drainage outlets should be checked and cleared at least twice a year - before winter and again in late spring after tree pollen and seeds have settled. A blocked outlet does not just cause ponding during a downpour. It allows water to stand on the membrane for days at a time, and standing water is the enemy of every flat roofing system regardless of how well the membrane was installed. On large roofs with multiple outlets, walk the perimeter to check that every one is free of debris and that the grating is intact.
Gutters and downpipes serving the roof should be cleared at the same time. A downpipe blocked at the base will back up silently until water finds another way out - usually through a wall or under a flashing.
Flashings are where the membrane meets a vertical surface: a parapet wall, a vent pipe, a rooflight kerb or an expansion joint. These are the points of highest stress because the different materials move at different rates through heating and cooling cycles. A visual check twice a year takes only a few minutes and will catch a flashing that has begun to lift or a sealant bead that has cracked before it becomes a water entry point.
You do not need a roofer to carry out this check, but access must be safe. If the roof is only accessible by ladder and your staff are not trained for working at height, arrange for a roofer to do the inspection rather than improvising. A low-cost inspection visit is far cheaper than a ceiling collapse caused by a leak that was months in the making.
Mineral felt roofs and EPDM both attract moss and algae growth, particularly in shaded areas. Moss holds moisture against the membrane and accelerates degradation. It can be treated with a biocide wash applied in dry weather. Scraping is not recommended - it risks damaging the surface layer of a mineral felt cap sheet, which removes the very protection the membrane relies on. On single-ply systems, check manufacturer guidance before applying any treatment, as some biocide formulations affect the plasticisers in PVC membranes.
Standing vegetation - grass or weeds growing from silt that has collected against a parapet or around an outlet - should be removed as soon as it appears. Plant roots will find and exploit any weakness in the membrane, and by the time a plant is visible the root system has already caused damage below.
Some maintenance tasks are genuine DIY - clearing an outlet grating or walking the roof surface to check for obvious debris. Others are not. If you see blistering on a mineral felt surface, splits, open laps, or an upstand that has pulled away from the wall, those are jobs for a roofer. Applying roofing mastic or self-adhesive patches without knowing the cause of a failure is rarely a lasting fix and can conceal the extent of the problem from whoever does the proper repair later.
A maintenance visit from a roofer - typically £150 to £350 for a commercial flat roof of average size, depending on area and access - will include a written note of anything found and what action was taken. Keep those records. If you sell or relet the building, documented maintenance history is useful evidence that the roof has been properly looked after.
Keep a simple log for any commercial property you manage. It does not need to be complicated - a dated record of who visited the roof, what was found and what was done is sufficient. Include:
This record becomes valuable if you ever need to make a claim for weather damage or if a tenant disputes the condition of the roof at the start or end of a lease. It also helps any roofer visiting the building to understand what has been done before and to plan accordingly.
One advantage of planned maintenance over reactive repairs is that you control the timing. An emergency roof repair after a storm will happen when it needs to happen, regardless of your business calendar. Routine inspections and clearances can be scheduled during quieter periods - early mornings, between shifts, or during an annual closure. For retail premises and food production units near Soham, keeping maintenance predictable makes it far easier to manage the disruption.
For commercial roofing work in Soham, call Brandon Roofers to arrange a roof survey and discuss a maintenance plan that suits your building and your trading schedule.
No obligation · We usually respond within 2 hours
Storm damage, active leak, damaged ridge - we aim to be on-site within 24 hours.
