Roof repairs

02/03/2012 - 11:11

We have a leak in our roof. We want to repair this as soon as possible obviously but we have decided to insulate at the same time. Do we need permission to do this from the Commune? The roof tiles will remain the same.

Topic

Renovating

Location

Tuscany

Comment

I'd just do it, if it looks the same on the outside after the insulation (good idea), I'm sure the Comune would be supportive. I like the idea of getting their permission tho' ! S

Things like roof repairs and placing extra insulation, as far as I'm aware, do not require permission as long as the exterior is not affected. Most roofs in Italy, especially old ones, will leak form time to time due to the extremes of weather here, when the heat of summer expands all the bitumen etc and the freezing temperatures in winter crack it.

Generally speaking you should have permission, it is in your case, just a formality, and can be done in a day, of course, if you are not in town, but in the countryside, I doubt anyone will notice.....

We refurbished our old terrace last summer and needed permission, and also had to stipulate the make of tiles which had to replicated the old cotto. The architect had to argue that cotto tiles would crack as the winter weather is more severe than in the past and that we needed to use a frost proof tile. This was because our house is very old, and here (Pratovecchio) the outside of the property must look the same. We also needed permission to renovate our bathroom as we were moving a wall a foot. We will not ask permission to renovate our second bathroom as the plan will stay the same. The comune have a plan of our house that has to be updated if we were to sell, now that we have moved an internal wall. One cannot of course generalise in Italy as each Region have different rules!

confused about the cotto tile? Our roof must consist of 200 plus year old clay tiles but these dont crack -they knew how to make them then! I always like to study old building materials as they were used for a purpose!For instance the choice of wood for the roof beams was based on type of wood that wood boring insects don't like.Now lots of softwoods are used and hey presto in come the insects!! www.myabruzzohome.blogspot.com

The cotto tiles are normaly used indoors, but in the past have also been used outside...in our case (like flowerpots in winter) they have cracked and tree roots had finished them off. They were originally made locally and are no longer made, neither was there a similar size in a new tile to repair the broken ones so the whole terrace had to be replaced.

Sorry, myabruzzohome, but wood boring (xylophagus) insects may attack all kinds of wood, including chestnut. Have a look at this old thread: http://www.italymag.co.uk/forums/building-renovation/10270-tarli-nelle-trave.html There are other threads on this same topic if you search through the archives. Lindsay, I would check with Council regarding their requirements. Better safe than sorry. And, as you are working on the roof when installing the insulation, have those beams checked for nasty little beasts. A professional inspection is not too expensive and it will give you peace of mind.

Thanks Gala We have chosen to take the formal route and advise the Commune. We may need to erect scaffolding and safety/insurance certificates will need to be produced by the contractor - just in case. Thanks for the advice though.

I do agree with you about complying. Its easier for the locals to get away with it. We Brits on the other hand need to do it the right way just in case.

You are doing the right thing. Peace of mind is most important. And proper insulation is great, it makes quite a difference. Good luck with the renovations!

Definitely better to get permission. If you have done obvious changes without permission it may make your property difficult or imposisble to sell. Also if you need to legalise it before selling it will cost three times a s much as the original permission would have cost. Lastly, if you get on the wrong side of the comune, it can come back and bite you. I knoe someone who upset the comune through doing illegal work and now can get no support from them about noise nuisance from a motorcycle cross track next to her house. IMPORTANT UPDATE I have been told that a new law has come into effect allowing 50% of the cost of restoring to be offset against tax. Obviously you have to pay for the work first and it doesn't help a lot if you don't pay much tax but hey- every little helps!

I strongly agree with you oldandbold. It is really better to get permission. It is also a sign of courtesy to the Commune. Whether you're a landlord who has discovered that your building's gutter is falling off, or you're a homeowner who has found streaks of mold in your attic, you may need to call a roofing contractor as soon as possible to stop the leak and fix the underlying damage.