Chimney repairs in Headington
I repair the shared stacks on Headington's semis and its older stone chimneys. In OX3 I've fixed a chimney leak another roofer's repair hadn't stopped.
Repeat chimney leak fixed in OX3, January 2025
For chimney repairs in Headington, I work on stacks right across OX3: the shared stacks of the 1930s semis and the older chimneys of Old Headington and Headington Quarry. In January 2025 I fixed a chimney leak in OX3 that had come back after another roofer's repair, and guaranteed my work. I'm Altin Lila, and chimney repairs come with a written guarantee of at least 5 years.
Headington chimneys: shared stacks and old stone
Most Headington semis were built between the wars with one chimney stack straddling the party wall, carrying the flues of both houses. Half the stack is yours and half is your neighbour's, so it ages as one piece but tends to be looked after in two halves. One side is often freshly and neatly repointed while the other crumbles.
Rain getting into next door's half can still show up as damp on your chimney breast, so talk to your neighbour before work starts. Bigger work to a shared stack, such as rebuilding or taking it down, comes under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, which means giving next door formal notice.
Old Headington and Headington Quarry are conservation areas with older chimneys, some of stone. Changing or removing a stack there may need the council's consent first: my guide to listed building roof repairs explains the rules.
I come and look at OX3 chimneys, usually the next day, and the visit is free.
The chimney work I do in Headington
A chimney leak that came back after a repair
When a chimney leak returns after a repair, the first fix usually went on the wrong spot. Water can get in at the top of the stack, through the brick joints or at the joint with the roof, and travel down inside the brickwork before it shows.
That was the case on a job I did in OX3 in January 2025: the leak had come back after another roofer's repair. I fixed it and gave the customer a guarantee on my work. Water coming in now? See what to do when the roof is leaking.
Repairing a shared stack on a 1930s semi
On a shared stack I look at both halves, even if only one is yours. If next door's pointing is what has gone, I'll tell you plainly, because that's where your damp is coming from.
Where both households agree, repointing and re-flaunching the whole stack at once gives one even finish instead of two half-repairs years apart. The general method is on my main chimney repairs page.
Chimney repointing on Headington brick and stone
Repointing means raking out worn mortar and refilling the joints. On a hard-fired 1930s brick stack a cement-based mortar is normal. On soft old brick or the rubble stone of Old Headington and Headington Quarry, the mortar should be softer than the masonry, usually lime-based, so the joints wear away instead of the stones. On chimneys like these I use lime mortar for pointing and bedding.
Chimney questions from Headington
Have you repaired chimneys in Headington before?
I've repaired a chimney in OX3, the postcode district that covers Headington along with Marston, Barton and Risinghurst. In January 2025 I fixed a leak there that had come back after another roofer's repair, and gave the customer a guarantee. I also repoint stacks and renew flaunching and flashing.
Who pays to repair a chimney shared with next door?
Usually both neighbours, because a stack on the party wall normally belongs to both houses. There's no single rule: your deeds and what you agree with next door decide it. You can repair only your half, but whole-stack work tends to last longer. Agree it in writing first.
Why is my chimney breast damp when the roof isn't leaking?
Usually because water is getting into the stack itself, through worn pointing, cracked flaunching or an open flue, and soaking down through the brick. On a shared stack it may be coming in through next door's half. A blocked-off fireplace with no airflow causes damp stains too, so a sealed flue still needs a vent.
More on chimneys and leaks
Send me a photo of your chimney
A phone photo of the stack from the street helps. WhatsApp it to 07306 077999 or call, and I'll come to OX3 to look, free of charge.
No call-out charge, day or night