Six common problems a drone survey inspection can help you spot
The average house price in the UK currently stands at around £270,000, according to the Land Registry. That’s a lot of money. So, it’s critical to make sure you get the best deal possible for your money.
And when it comes to buying a house, it pays to take extra precautions, especially for the areas hidden from sight. Roofs, chimneys, gutters and solar panels can harbour costly issues if left unchecked. The current homeowner might try to disguise problems under new paint jobs or ceilings or may never even have known they exist.
While traditional RICS Home Surveys do an excellent job, there’s a limit to what’s physically possible for the chartered surveyor to see. Luckily, drone inspections offer a comprehensive solution. They can help you spot these common issues that aren’t usually visible from ground level…
Damaged roof tiles
Roof tiles are the main protection against the elements getting inside a home. Over time, they sometimes crack or become dislodged due to weather conditions or age.
The only way to spot this in a traditional inspection is for the surveyor to find a nearby vantage point (like a hill) or climb ladders or scaffolding. Even then, they can be impossible to spot on steep or complex roof structures.
A drone survey inspection is the best way to check of the entire roof from every angle. Our surveyors use drones equipped with high-resolution cameras to capture detailed photographs of the roof. Once they upload these to the computer back at the office, they’ll examine them for any signs of damaged roof tiles.
Chimney stacks
Many homes in the UK come with chimney stacks. In the modern era, central heating has all but eliminated the need for fireplaces, so most new builds don’t have them. However, anything built pre-2000 – and definitely those built pre-1980 – will likely come with some kind of brick chimney.
Since chimney stacks stick up out of the building, they’re more susceptible to wear and tear from the elements. They often suffer from loose bricks, damaged flashing or structural issues like leaning. However, it’s almost impossible to spot a compromised chimney stack unless it’s obvious from the ground.
Drones, on the other hand, have no problem inspecting chimney stacks. They can get as close as needed and assess the brickwork and flashing from various angles. With the images uploaded to the PC, the chartered surveyor can give you solid advice on the chimney’s condition.
Blocked guttering
In Britain, we hold a worldwide reputation for rainy and wet weather. As such, a home’s gutters play a vital part in directing rainwater away from the property’s foundations.
However, over time, gutters tend to clog up. Most often, the culprits are leaves, twigs and other plant (especially tree) material. Bird’s nests, broken roof tiles and even excessive dust or litter can also build up and prevent water flow. The danger here is pooling and overflow, which causes damp issues and potential structural damage at either the roof or foundation level, or both.
Sometimes, you can see blocked gutters from the ground. There might be certain areas where water is dripping, for example. And if the sun is at the right angle above a plastic gutter, you can sometimes see straight through. A drone survey inspection offers a much closer and more comprehensive look at these hard-to-reach areas. If there’s a blockage, your chartered surveyor can’t miss it.
So why aren’t we all swapping our gas boilers for heat pumps?
Well, the decision isn’t as straightforward as it might seem.
For the heat pumps to work efficiently, they generally need two criteria:
The property being heated needs to be very well insulated – floors, walls, windows and roof – and reasonably airtight, all of which reduces heat loss from the property.
A heating system that doesn’t require high temperatures, such as underfloor heating, operates at much lower temperatures than a system with radiators.
In the rest of this article, I’ll explore the pros and cons of heat pumps by answering some common questions.
Structural roof defects
Have you ever stopped to consider the incredible forces a roof has to deal with?
Not only does it have to support its own weight and hold fast the outer walls, it’s also exposed to high winds, rainfall, snow and thermal expansion.
As time progresses, these strains inevitably lead to structural issues like sagging (a visible dip in the roofline) or warping (when rafters, joists or battens twist instead of lying flat).
A traditional home survey might not detect these subtle problems. After all, they’re almost impossible to see from a distance. A drone, on the other hand, can fly over the roof and capture detailed images, revealing any irregularities in the structure. Ask your chartered surveyor what they recommend doing next.
Solar panel damage
Did you know that 1.76 million homes in the UK have solar panels, according to Government data? That represents about 5% of total residential buildings in our country. So, you’re more than likely to see a few homes with solar panels on the market.
Solar panels are designed to withstand harsh environmental conditions, and modern developments mean they’re increasingly durable. However, by nature, they must still be exposed to the elements as much as possible, to capture the sun’s UV rays and cool properly. As such, over time, they’ll eventually develop issues like cracks, dirt accumulation, shading from overhanging branches or even broken mountings.
A dedicated solar panel inspection is sometimes a good idea. In the meantime, though, a drone survey inspection the hands of an experienced RICS chartered surveyor is a great way to identify any glaring damage. The last thing you want is to take on solar panels with your new home, only to find that they don’t work properly.
Leaks and water ingress
We’ve touched on our world-renowned rainy weather several times on this page, and with good reason. It’s a problem. Thankfully, because we don’t have to deal with the same weather extremes as some tropical countries, we’re pretty good at dealing with a bit of rainfall.
Unfortunately, when things go wrong and water gets into a home, it can lead to serious damp-related problems like mould and structural rot. This most often happens in older homes, built when damp-proofing technology wasn’t anywhere near as effective as it is now.
When a chartered surveyor finds water inside a home, they’ll need to know where it’s coming from. If there are no leaking pipes nearby, it must be coming from outside. Sometimes, a drone survey inspection can help uncover the culprit, like blocked gutters or pooling water on flat roofs.
Get a drone survey inspection for peace of mind
GB Home Surveys is your trusted local RICS chartered surveyor. All our team members adhere to the highest professional standards and go the extra mile to produce home survey reports you understand, along with actionable insights.
Adding a drone inspection can take your RICS Home Survey Level 2 or Level 3 to new heights, quite literally. So, get in touch today to book your survey and gain a better understanding of your potential new home.
