Installation Gallery
Sparrow-proofing a pantile roof
There’s something very attractive about a roof covered with Roman pantiles. The sort of roof that might make you think of a sunny Mediterranean villa in Italy or Greece, perhaps. But unfortunately, pantiles are also very attractive to our friend, the house sparrow, as they make an ideal nesting place.
Summit Cladding has just completed an installation in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, where the house owner was facing just such a problem. Our client worked at the famous Pinewood Studios nearby, so he was familiar with dramatic situations – but he didn’t need the drama of birds’ nests in the roof!
The problem with double Roman pantiles is that they don’t lie flat like conventional roofing tiles but leave a small semi-circular gap above the gutter, allowing easy access for small birds. On some of our previous jobs, we have removed over 20 rubble bags full of years-old nesting material.
Maintenance-free upgrade
Summit’s task at this address was to upgrade the soffits, fascias and guttering and provide a solution to the bird nesting problem, so we began by removing all the original material from the roofline.
In place of painted timber we installed a black ash grained PVC fascia that looks exactly like wood but without the need for regular maintenance. We also replaced the black half round gutter with a deep glow guttering system giving double the capacity of the original and fitted all the roof verges with cement.
Keeping the birds out
Most important of all, we installed eaves comb protectors which are specially designed to fit under the contour of the roof tiles. These have a double function: they are solid enough to stop birds getting in, but permeable enough to allow air flow into the roof space and avoid any problems with condensation.
This relatively simple job has transformed the look of the house by keeping the attractive pantiles but with no more rotten timbers or leaking gutters — and certainly no more feathered friends in the roof.