Proofing is described as a permanent repair, which invites a fair question: permanent for how long, and what happens to it.
The honest answer separates into two parts, because the closed points and the rest of the roof behave quite differently.
The closed points
Heavy galvanised or stainless steel mesh, mechanically fixed and dressed into the surrounding detail, is a permanent repair to that opening. Steel is outside the range of materials a squirrel can work, and a closure with no exposed edge gives nothing to start on. There is no wear mechanism in normal use.
What can degrade, over a long period:
- Fixings, if they were the wrong specification for the exposure. Stainless or properly galvanised fixings in an exposed position
- Galvanising, eventually, where a coating has been damaged during fixing
- The substrate. Mesh fixed to sound timber lasts; mesh fixed to timber that later softens comes away with it
- Mortar repairs, which have the same life as any mortar — long, and not infinite
The rest of the roof, which is where the change happens
This is the part worth understanding. The proofed points stay closed; the roof around them carries on ageing.
- Mortar cracks at verge and ridge over twenty or thirty years
- Dry-verge and dry-ridge caps lift or go missing in gales
- Tiles slip as nibs fail or nails corrode
- Underlay perishes — traditional bitumen felt has a finite life
- Fascia and soffit move. Timber rots from behind, uPVC joints open with temperature
- Trees grow. A route that did not exist ten years ago does now
Which is why the answer is a habit rather than a promise. Ten minutes each September, from the ground, with a camera — and last year's photographs to compare against. That is what keeps a closed roof closed indefinitely.
The annual look, specifically
- Photograph each closed point at full zoom, and compare with last year
- Check the fixings are still tight and the mesh has no lifted edge
- Look for fresh pale gnawing at the margins of any closure — rare, and worth knowing about
- Then survey the rest of the roof line as if for the first time
- Look at the trees, and at what has grown in twelve months
After a gale
Worth an extra look. Wind is what lifts verge and ridge caps, slips tiles and pulls at boards, and a single severe night can open a detail that has been sound for years. It takes five minutes and it catches the openings that would otherwise be found by an animal first.
What would genuinely need redoing
Very little, in practice. Where a closure has to be disturbed it is usually because the roof around it is being repaired — new fascia, a re-tile, a verge rebuilt — in which case the closure is reinstated as part of that work. It is worth telling a roofer that proofing is present before they start.
Questions
How long does proofing last?
The closed points are a permanent repair to those openings. What changes is the rest of the roof, which is what the annual look is for.
Will the mesh rust?
Properly specified galvanised or stainless mesh and fixings are chosen for the exposure. Damaged coating is the thing to watch.
Do I need to tell my roofer about it?
Yes. If a closure is disturbed during roof work it should be reinstated as part of that job.
Squirrel Control Brandon
Squirrel control in Brandon is £280 fixed cost. Proofing work, where it is needed afterwards, is £180. Call 01502 630 122 and tell us what you have heard or seen.
For squirrel control in Brandon, call 01502 630 122, or read the Brandon squirrel control page.