A brief Tile history
If you compared British roofs to our counterparts in Europe you would find a marked difference in their construction. Today most of our modern roofs, 60% have concrete roof tiles, those with slate roofs make up 20% and clay tiles are only used on 10% of new building.
It hasn’t always been this way. Britain has a mixed history with regards to the type of roofing medium used. Slate was widely used for hundreds of years. Slate can be cut to various sizes, is easy to fix and works well to keep out the elements. Slate quarries occur in many areas of Britain but it is extremely heavy to transport so initially was only used locally.
Thatch on the other hand can be grown nearby, is a good insulator and was widely used throughout the Country. It has one major downfall and that is its vulnerability to fire. Following the Great Fire of London in 1666 thatch was banned from the city.
An alternative was needed and clay tiles were an attractive choice. Clay is found in many areas of Britain, including London. The Romans had used clay tiles extensively but once they returned home the skills and techniques needed to make a quality tile were lost. The industry was reintroduced around the 12th Century. A standard tile was established 10 1 / 2 ” x 6 1 / 2 ” this was the perfect size not only to make but to handle and use on the roofs. The size was written into Law in 1477 by an Act of Parliament after some manufactures tried to charge the same price for smaller, thinner tiles of inferior quality.
The next innovation was the introduction of a new kind of clay tile by the Dutch in the 16th century. These tiles were called pantiles and instead of being flat they were shaped like an ‘s’ and could be overlapped vertically and horizontally which meant better weather proofing, plus fewer tiles were needed to tile the same area. Although innovative at the time, the skills required to produce a quality tile repeatedly was still not available and consequently the tiles at this time were mainly used for low quality farm buildings where a leaky roof was not such a problem!
Once the railway was developed it became possible to move large heavy loads around the country. This meant that Slate, particularly welsh slate was made available throughout the country. Slate, which had always been considered expensive was now used on mass housing as well as the quality housing it had always been used on.
Following the Second World War there was a massive rebuilding programme throughout the Country and a cheaper more readily available roof tile was required. Concrete tiles had first been introduced in the 1920’s but had not been popular. Now they came into their own. The skill shortage in Britain at this time meant that Builders were looking for solutions for their lack of skilled labour. These larger concrete tiles were easier to fix and due to their large size it was quicker to complete a roof, resulting in a cost saving.
Today there is a huge range of roofing options available, so for all your Roof repairs in Lincoln call Allen Roofing.