Roof Torching Mortar

Roofers who can do this are normally to be found working on heritage properties.

Roof torching mortar.

This may applied as either a repair to hold slipping slates or pre emptively on construction. It is not uncommon to find that bats use a roof space. Renewing torching is a specialist task. This system was commonly known as torching and was used before the introduction.

The torching on clay tile roofs contributed to securing them in the days before nibs were added to hold them on the wooden battens. Where slates are particularly heavy the roof may begin to split apart along the roof line. Torching on pitched roofs is not to be confused with torch on felt used for flat roof construction. Bats do not pose a significant threat to the building fabric or the health of the occupants and under section 9 of the wildlife and countryside act 1981 it is an offence to intentionally damage destroy or obstruct access to any place used by bats even when bats are apparently absent or to disturb bats while roosting.

Originally the only recognised roof under coating was the application of sand lime mortar reinforced with animal hair applied to the headlaps of double lapped slates or tiles. A mix of lime mortar mixed with horse hair is often used for this task. This mortar and the process is called torching. A common repair to slate roofs is to apply torching a mortar fillet underneath the slates attaching them to the battens.

Main office the forge brightling road robertsbridge tn32 5hd phone. Instead a soft sticky mortar mix was used both to help secure the slates and also prevent draughts.