Tempe roofing on the flats beside the Cooks River

River flats, a reserve and a highway

Tempe occupies the low ground where the Cooks River meets the bay, with Tempe Reserve along the water, the Princes Highway and Unwins Bridge Road cutting through, and Tempe station in the middle. The housing is a mix of Federation cottages, inter-war brick bungalows and post-war infill — mostly detached or semi-detached with eaves and tiled hip roofs, rather than the parapeted terrace rows further north.

Being on the flats next to a tidal river is the defining condition for roofs here.

What the location does to a roof

Volume, not wind. Short intense storm cells drop a lot of water fast onto low, flat ground. Stormwater lines can surcharge, and a downpipe discharging into a full line backs up. We check where your water goes after the gutter, not just the gutter itself.

Some salt. The river is tidal at this point, so there is more salt in the air than inland. Ferrous fasteners, gutters and flashings have a shorter life, and dissimilar metals in contact corrode faster.

Leaf load. The reserve and the river corridor plantings drop steadily into valleys and gutters, and a valley holding wet litter rusts from underneath.

The regular job list

• Rebed and repoint ridge and hip capping on tiled roofs
• Replace rusted valley irons and clear the valleys properly
• Replace eaves gutters and re-hang them to a correct fall
• Clear and resize downpipes against the actual catchment
• Replace cracked and chipped tiles
• Re-cover low-pitch rear additions in sheet metal

That is largely restoration and gutter work territory, with storm response when water is already inside.

Access

Generally easy. Side access and driveways on most blocks, single storey, modest pitch. That keeps the quote proportionate to the roof area rather than to the scaffolding, which is not something we can say about the terrace suburbs.

Nearby suburbs

St Peters, Sydenham, Marrickville and Earlwood across the river. The full list has the rest.

Get a free quote

Call (02) 8000 1103 or send the details.