What do metal roofers do that a general repair team does not?

Metal sheeting has its own failure pattern. Fixings, side laps, end laps and cut edges fail long before the sheet itself, and each needs different treatment. Metal roofers also know which profile they are looking at, IBR, corrugated or longspan, because the profile decides where the laps sit and how the sheets should be fixed and sealed.

Is a metal roof worth repairing or should it be replaced?

Repair while the rust is on the surface and the leaks are at fixings, laps and flashings. Re-sheeting a section makes sense when the failure is confined to one slope or one problem area. Replacement becomes the sensible answer when rust has gone through the sheets across the roof, when the fixings have lost their grip generally, or when the purlins and battens underneath have gone with it.

Do metal roofs last longer inland than on the coast?

Usually, yes. Inland the main enemies are hail and thermal movement. On the coast it is salt, which attacks the cut edges and the fixings where the protective coating is broken. A coastal metal roof needs rust treated earlier and its fixings checked more often, which is why Durban, East London and Gqeberha roofs age differently from Highveld ones.

IBR, corrugated and steel

Metal Roofers

When the rain gets in, we get to work.

IBR and corrugated sheeting covers more South African roofs than anything else, and the metal roofers who work on it spend most of their time on fixings, laps and cut edges rather than on the sheets themselves. A metal roof that looks sound from the ground can be leaking and barely attached.

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IBR sheetingCorrugatedRust treatmentRe-sheeting

What metal roofers work on

Metal roofing in South Africa is mostly IBR, corrugated and longspan sheet in coated steel, and the profile changes how a roof behaves. IBR is the stiffer of the common profiles and spans further between supports, which is why it became the default on newer homes, warehouses and carports. Corrugated sheet is the older profile and still covers a great many houses, with its shallower corrugation putting more laps into every slope.

Longspan sheet runs from the ridge to the gutter in a single length, so a longspan roof has no end laps partway down the slope. Fewer joints means fewer places for water to enter, and it is worth knowing which of the three you actually have before anyone quotes you.

Then there is what the sheeting is fixed to. Purlins, battens and the timber or steel underneath are part of the job. If what holds the sheet has rotted or lost its fixing, replacing the sheet on top of it settles nothing.

What to ask before you book metal roofers

Metal roofs leak at their fixings, their laps and their cut edges long before the sheet rusts through. So the first useful question is not what the roof will cost, it is where the water is getting in and why.

A quote that names a price and a date cannot be compared with anything. Ask what it covers, whether new screws and sealing washers are included, whether rusted sheets are being replaced or only treated, and whether the fixings around the leak will be checked at the same time.

Fixings checked by hand across the affected area, not only where the stain shows inside
New screws and sealing washers rather than reused ones
Laps and seams cleaned before they are resealed
Surface rust treated while it is still on the surface
Sheeting that has rusted through replaced rather than covered with sealant
Lifted sheets refixed, and the sheets beside them checked
Penetrations, flashings and gutters dealt with in the same visit

Salt air does more damage than the rain

A metal roof on the coast has a shorter life than the same roof inland, and it is not the rainfall that decides it. Salt in the air attacks the cut edges and the fixings, which are the two places where the protective coating is broken or missing altogether. Durban, East London and Gqeberha see this constantly, and in Cape Town the south-easter carries salt-laden air a long way inland.

That changes the maintenance rhythm. Rust is worth treating early on a coastal roof, because once it has eaten through the sheet it is a replacement rather than a repair, and it will usually have taken the fixings with it. A coastal metal roof that is checked every year costs far less over twenty years than one that is only looked at when it leaks.

Re-sheeting against replacing the whole roof

There is a middle option between repairing a few sheets and stripping the whole roof: re-sheeting the sections that have failed. It costs less than a full replacement and it is often the right answer when the rust is confined to one slope, one valley, or the strip below a gutter that has been overflowing for years.

It stops being the right answer when the metal across the roof has reached the same stage at the same time, when the purlins or battens underneath have gone with it, or when the roof has failed because of its pitch or drainage rather than its age. New sheeting over a drainage problem simply reproduces the problem, and that is worth establishing before the work is quoted rather than after.

What metal roofers take on

✓

IBR And Corrugated Sheeting

Leaks traced to fixings, laps and cut edges rather than the sheet itself, which is where they usually start.

✓

Leaking Fixings

Screws and sealing washers renewed across the affected area, which is both a leak and a wind risk.

✓

Seam And Lap Leaks

Side laps and end laps cleaned and resealed where water is getting through the sheet joint.

✓

Rusted Sheeting

Surface rust treated early, and sheeting that has rusted through replaced rather than sealed over.

✓

Lifted And Loose Sheets

Sheets that have lost their grip refixed, and the neighbouring fixings checked while the roof is open.

✓

Penetrations And Flashings

Vents, masts, flues and wall lines through metal sheeting, which is where a lot of metal roof water enters.

✓

Re-Sheeting

Sectional replacement when the rust is confined to one slope or one problem area.

✓

Coastal Rust Treatment

The shorter maintenance cycle a coastal metal roof needs, treated before the rust goes through.

✓

Full Metal Roof Replacement

Strip and re-sheet when the metal has reached the end of its life across the roof, purlins included.

See all roof repair services

Other roof repair services

Every service below is handled by the same team, so a leak that turns out to be a different problem is not a second appointment.

How urgent is your roof problem?

Choose the rating that best describes the problem. Ratings 7–10 enter the genuine emergency queue. For urgent jobs rated 1–6, Priority Booking can move you ahead by one standard booking when the next non-emergency slot is available.

10My roof has blown off and I can see the moon from my Lazy Boy in the lounge.

9Water is pouring into the house and causing active damage.

8Several rooms are leaking and buckets are everywhere.

7Water is coming through the ceiling whenever it rains.

6The leak is getting noticeably worse.

5New water stains are appearing.

4Damp patches are spreading.

3I have one small damp patch.

2Something does not look right.

1I have noticed a possible early warning sign.

Selected urgency rating: 7/10. Emergency queue

Priority Booking

Need a faster booking?

Genuine 7/10 to 10/10 emergencies always come first. If your job is urgent but does not qualify for emergency dispatch, Priority Booking can move it ahead by one place in the standard queue and secure the next available non-emergency appointment.

Standard BookingNo scheduling fee. Your report stays in the normal repair queue.Priority Booking from R1,000Move ahead by one standard booking and take the next available non-emergency slot.

How it works: this is a scheduling and dispatch fee paid to Leaky Roof Repair, separate from the repair quotation. It never moves a job ahead of genuine emergencies. We only charge it after we confirm that a priority slot is available.

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Areas we cover

Metal, IBR and corrugated roof work, routed to local teams across South Africa’s major cities.

Cape TownLeaky roof repair in Cape Town → DurbanLeaky roof repair in Durban → JohannesburgLeaky roof repair in Johannesburg → PretoriaLeaky roof repair in Pretoria → East LondonLeaky roof repair in East London → BloemfonteinLeaky roof repair in Bloemfontein → Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)Leaky roof repair in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) →

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Need help with a leaking roof?

Call Pete on 081 554 9231 or send a WhatsApp message with your location and photos of the problem.

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