Twinkle Canelli

Does anyone have any opinions to share on the best type of roof tiles for a new build? It's going to be a modern house in a traditional style, and both myself and OH were shocked when second hand tiles started to go on.

The architect and builder are both insisting that they are the very best and that they are what everybody wants (and therefore they assumed it's what we would want too), but we are not happy and think that new tiles are more uniform in shape (athough we want the ones with colour variants) and would look far better.

I'm meeting the architect tomorrow to discuss, and hopefully he will have come up with some photos of other houses, but in my research so far I have not found a new house with second hand tiles, only restorations (where there would have been existing tiles to be reused). Any comments would be appreciated thank you!

Isakat

I would imagine if you do a restoration project you might want to use old tiles.
By old tiles you do not mean 'anticato'look ones? When we bought the house, half the roof was with the old look tiles-anticato'( brown terracota) and half was with red tiles with small grooves on them-Portogese. The old tiles were cracked and I threw them away, so now the roof is uniform, although looking more red than brownish, but it matches the red brick walls.
I would deffinitely use new tiles on a new house and if I was building a new house now, I would also do a 'tetto ventilato'.

37100

Hi Twinkle. It's normal to use old tiles. They are considered better because they have already been 'tested' and won't crack when it is icy or snows etc. In fact, I only know one person -in Turin- who used all new tiles and their roof leaked the first winter. And in IMO, old tiles look nicer.

Isakat

Did he have an old house 37100? The newly built houses have a concrete roof, plus a 'guaina', so leakage is almost imposible if a tile cracks.

Twinkle Canelli

Thanks ladies.... I just needed some other peoples' opinions - it's very difficult when OH isn't here to give his thoughts and all the responsibility is down to me.

I agree, the rustic character of old tiles on old houses undoubtedly looks best, but this being a new house, with crisp new edges, solar panels, UPVC windows, anodised shutters etc, and the irregularities of the tiles just feel wrong.

The method used is with a nasty bright red corrugated material underneath, then these old tiles laid on top on the ridges in rows. The bright colour of the corrugated material shows a little between the rows of tiles, and a lot of the tiles are damaged and have corners missing. This is the garage roof, and we will have a balcony on the main house that closely overlooks this roof, and also another balcony will actually be set into another similar roof over a portico.

I can see myself spending the next 20 years on the balconies, every time memorising the pattern of the broken tiles, and trying to work out the exact percentage in my head (crazy I know - but it's the sort of thing that entertains me), or maybe working out which tiles you could move to make them more evenly spaced! I could spend the next 20 years doing that instead of enjoying the view of the Alps!!!

I could ask that they replace every chipped tile with an undamaged one, but I don't even know if that will make it look better, and I've been told these tiles cost double the price of new ones!

37100

Don't know Isakat, but my point was that old tiles do the job jsut as well as new if that was what twinkle was worried about.

Twinkle, I think that you should go with what you want and at the most, cry over your mistake rather than accepting what you know you don't like. Must admit, old tile yes, chipped tiles no, me neither. And yes, old tiles cost a lot more! At least they aren't putting in those metal ridged roofs that have become popular in.

My personal bug is UPCV windows. We have them in To and I swear at them every time I shut them so I can fully understand what you mean about the broken tiles driving you crazy

Isakat

Twinkle, it is what you want and not what the architect or builders want. I'd ask them to get the tiles off and change them for uniform ones. As you say, it will bother you everytime you look at it.

Patty

I remember watching a Grand Design episode - it was in Italy and the couple (expats) had to really be firm on what THEY wanted cos the architect was trying hard to get his own way - they knew exactly how they visioned their home and in the end they got their wish - but they sure had to fight for it.
So Twinkle - you go girl and tell them what YOU want Its your home, you have to live in it and you are the one paying them !

Twinkle Canelli

Thanks Isakat and 37100 too.

Stressful day, and just had to e mail everything that was said to OH so he can give me his opinion before I talk to the architect and builder again tomorrow. Not made a decision yet and too tired to think anymore about it.

Goodnight girls x

Twinkle Canelli

Oh Patty

That's just how I feel... briefly, cos I'm so tired, our architect has left the practice we originally employed and set up on his own, but he's so busy that he's making mistakes and it's his lack of communication that has made this such a big problem.

And no matter how loud I shout, they are carrying on regardless. I think they both think that if they carry on building it as fast as they can, changing it will mean such a delay that I will cave in and keep it as it is. And then of course there is the cost issue.....!

I'll let you know what happens