Drive through almost any village between Norwich and the north coast and the roofline is red clay pantile. The single-lap S-profile has been used here for centuries because it is quick to lay, light on the timbers, and it copes with a modest pitch. It also has particular habits, and knowing them is most of the job.
How pantiles behave
Because they are single-lap, pantiles rely on the roll of one tile sitting over the pan of the next. Get the gauge or the setting-out wrong and the laps do not close properly, which lets wind-driven rain track through. The underlay beneath is doing more work on a pantile roof than on a plain-tiled one, which is why membrane condition matters so much on older properties.
They are also relatively light, which is a genuine advantage on older timbers, and part of why replacing a pantile roof with concrete tiles is rarely a good idea.
Where they fail
Pantile problems concentrate in predictable places, and they are almost all edge details.
- Mortar verges cracking on the exposed gable
- Cut tiles at valleys sliding once the bedding lets go
- Nibs breaking on old tiles, particularly after foot traffic
- Perished bitumen underlay letting through what the laps do not stop
- Frost damage on tiles that were already porous
Matching old pantiles
Norfolk pantiles vary in colour, size and camber depending on where and when they were made. A patch in the wrong tone is visible from the road for the next fifty years. We source reclaimed stock and sort it for colour and fit, and where a slope needs a large patch we will often take sound tiles from a rear or hidden slope and put the new stock there instead.
A pantile re-roof
Strip the covering, sort and stack the salvageable tiles, replace battens and membrane, address any timber issues, then re-lay with the salvaged tiles on the visible slopes topped up with matched reclaimed. New dry verge or a correctly formed bedded verge, new lead at abutments and valleys, ventilation set out properly. The roof ends up performing like a modern one and looking like it always did.
Common questions
Can pantiles be reused on a re-roof?
Usually a good proportion of them, yes. We sort on site and keep the best for the elevations that are seen.
Why does my pantile roof leak in wind but not rain?
Single-lap tiles let some wind-driven rain past the laps by design; the underlay catches it. If yours is leaking in wind, the underlay has usually perished or the verge detail has failed.
Can I put concrete tiles on instead?
Technically sometimes, but they are heavier, they look wrong on a period Norfolk property, and in conservation areas they may not be acceptable. We would talk you through it before quoting.
What pitch do pantiles need?
They work on relatively low pitches compared with plain tiles, but there is a minimum, and it varies with the tile and the exposure. On an exposed coastal site the safe minimum is higher than inland.