Leak coming through stairwell ceiling - multiple roofers contacted, but no clear solution?

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Hi all,

In recent months, I noticed a leak coming through the middle of our house whenever the rain was heavy and constant.

Our house is an old Victorian House with a slate roof, which is pitched, with a chimney in the 'gulley' in-between where the two roofs meet. One roofer said it was likely my eaves, and so installed a drip tray, to the cost of £650, which turned out to do nothing and the leak still came in next time it rained heavily. They said they'd give me a 10 year guarantee on it, so I'm not sure what to do now regarding the £650. Maybe someone can advise?

Since then, I've had 3 other roofers look at the situation. One said that he would repair some of the slates around the chimney and do lead work renewal for around £1,700, whereas another said to repair the chimney would cost between £2,000 - £3,000. A more recent one, who appears to be a no-nonsense kind of roofer with a good reputation, has said that leadwork is fine and he try and use Stormguard on the entire chimney for a smaller fee (with no guarantee, but worth a go in the first instance to see if that wards off the heavy rain). If that doesn't work, then the cause may well be the valley in-between the roofs. Therefore, the best solution would be to redo the entire area and replace the slates and valley in that vicinity. For that, a cost of a few thousand he said or more. Might be worth it as the roof is probably as old as the house is anyway.

Finding the source of a leak in a roof is a tough job, I absolutely appreciate that, but I'm just concerned that I'm going round in circles trying to find a solution. What would you recommend I do? Part of me thinks I should try the cheaper fix first (Stormguard the chimney, as it only leaks during heavy and driving rain), then if it doesn't work, move onto the next option. What do you think?

Thanks all
 
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The leak comes through the top bit of the photo (next to the hook) - you can see a stain. It appears to be coming through the left side, hence the crack, and comes through across the beam and down where the stain is, onto the stairwell.
 
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Is the chimney still in use?

Are there any good roofers in your town?
 
Is the chimney still in use?

Are there any good roofers in your town?

Chimney is still in use, and we would like to keep it as a good feature of the house (log burner)

I've contacted a fair few roofers, everyone gives me different causes and answers. I just want to try and avoid paying for a fix which might not work, like last time
 
I am not a roofer, but I can see the various people who've bodged up your roof over the last 50 years, also weren't.
 
A leak on a chimney, be it the top, the masonry or the flashing, tends to run down the chimney and not sideways to come through the roof.

You have a horizontal valley gutter there, and that would be the main suspect.
 
A leak on a chimney, be it the top, the masonry or the flashing, tends to run down the chimney and not sideways to come through the roof.

You have a horizontal valley gutter there, and that would be the main suspect.

Interesting - so because the valley appears flat, do you think the water builds up there during heavy rain and seeps through?
 
As your lead Valley is over 100 years old, it may have leaks in it. There might also be dirt and moss blocking drainage.
 
As your lead Valley is over 100 years old, it may have leaks in it. There might also be dirt and moss blocking drainage.

Good idea that - when you mean dirt and moss blocking drainage, do you mean in the guttering leading off the roof, causing the water to build up in the valley?
 
Thanks so much for your responses guys. Hope to get it sorted soon
 
'Leadwork is fine on the chimney'. Yeah right, don't think there is any lead under all that Acrypol.
Whoever mortared in the gap between slates and valley hasn't done you any favours either.
The valley will be the main suspect given the scale of your leak (failed chimney flashings tend to weep rather than pour in).
 

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