The short answer
It depends on the job and the access, not a fixed number. A few slipped tiles reached by ladder is a short visit. Ridge, flashing and valley work takes longer because more is taken apart and made good. Rain and wind can stop work, and scaffold has to be arranged first. The quote after the survey sets out the days.
Slipped tile or rebuilt valley, here is what decides the time on site and what to allow before and around the work.
Small repairs: tiles, slates and tracing a leak
Replacing a handful of slipped or broken tiles is the quickest roof repair there is. The roofer raises the courses above, eases the broken tiles out, checks the batten, hooks in matching ones and fixes them down. With a clear ladder run it is a short visit, not a project. Slates take a little longer because each replacement needs a metal strap, and our answer on slate tingle repair shows why.
Time stretches when the cause is not obvious. A stain on a ceiling may come from a tile, a flashing or a hole in the underlay somewhere up the slope, and finding it means looking, not rushing. The roofer may lift several courses, check the loft from inside and sometimes run a hose to trace water. Mention any tile you can see on the lawn or in a gutter, since it tells us where to start. Telling them where the stain is, and when it appears (only in wind-driven rain, say), shortens the hunt.
If a leak is active, we make the roof safe first. A temporary cover or quick patch protects the house while the proper repair is planned. That is a stopgap, and the permanent repair waits for dry weather and a safe roof.
Ridge, flashing, verge and valley work
Repairs along a line of the roof take longer, because more is dismantled and rebuilt. Re-bedding or replacing ridge tiles means lifting each cap, clearing old mortar, and either re-bedding with mechanical fixings or fitting a dry-fix system. The work runs the length of the roof, so a long ridge takes longer than a short one.
Flashing is lead or another metal worked into the joint at a side wall or around a chimney stack. Stepped lead up a gable wall is cut and dressed piece by piece, and the heavier lead codes are shaped by hand. A valley is the trough formed where two slopes join and water runs down between them, and it is the most involved: tiles either side are lifted, the old lining comes out, the timbers beneath are checked, and a new lining and tiles go back. On many houses a valley rebuild is a multi-day job.
Our answer on mortar valley cracking explains the commonest older valley fault. Whatever the job, Checkatrade's June 2026 guide gives a typical UK roofer day rate of £280 to £360, which gives a sense of how time turns into cost.
Weather, access and scaffold
Weather decides the order of work. Roofers do not open a roof in rain, and strong wind makes lifting tiles and handling lead unsafe. A job planned for two dry days can stretch across a week of showers, and a careful roofer makes each area watertight before leaving, so a break in the weather does not leave an open roof.
Access is the other variable. A bungalow reached by ladder is quick to set up. On a two-storey house a tile mid-slope, or any work by the chimney, tends to call for a tower or full scaffold. Scaffold has to be booked and erected before the repair begins and taken down afterwards, which adds days around the work, not just during it.
Scaffold that obstructs the highway needs the highway authority's licence. West Sussex wants at least 10 working days of notice before erection. Surrey wants applications in 10 working days before the planned start. Kent expects the scaffolding company to apply, with 5 working days allowed. Wherever you live, ask who applies; we and the scaffolder work out the licence together. Private land is different: scaffold set up there needs no licence.
How the timing is agreed
The job opens with a survey, and the photographs we take of your own roof are shared with you. The written quote is one total, and it comes with the plan for the job: how many days we expect on site, what the first day covers, and what happens if rain stops us. A roofer who cannot give a duration after looking at the roof is guessing, so ask for the days as well as the price.
Ask what the plan includes. Does it cover tidying and taking waste away? Will you be told each day what was finished and what follows? Is scaffold part of the booking, and when does it go up? These are fair questions, and a good contractor answers them without fuss.
Preparing for the work helps too. Clear the ground beneath the roof, move cars, warn neighbours about scaffold and keep pets indoors. Our pitched roofing page lists the jobs we take on. To get a duration as well as a price, send ground-level shots of the damage, give the house's number of storeys and tell us where the leak appears. That lets us plan access before we arrive.
More on this in Pitched Roofing Services in Crawley
Two more timing questions
Will I be without a roof overnight?
No. A roofer should leave every area watertight when work stops for the day, even if the job continues tomorrow. If a section has to stay open for a short spell, a temporary cover goes on. Ask how the roof will be protected overnight and in the forecast before work begins.
Can I stay at home during roof repairs?
Usually yes. Expect noise from tiles being lifted and, with scaffold, people moving past windows. Mention night shifts, young children and pets to the roofer. For loft work, clear stored items so the team can reach the roof from inside, and plan for access to the garden and front of the house.