Disley: gritstone, stone slate and high ground

Disley skylights and rooflights for gritstone houses in the Goyt Valley

Disley sits in the Goyt Valley at about 200 metres above sea level, and Pennine-edge houses are commonly local gritstone under stone-slate or Welsh-slate roofs. We fit rooflights that sit well in those roofs and are easy to open, shade and clean.

Stone-slate and Welsh-slate roofs: flashing and fixings chosen to match the covering
About 200 metres up: glazing and seals talked through for wind-driven rain
Disley addresses checked with Cheshire East Council before we quote

7 road miles south-east of Stockport

Disley is a village and civil parish in Cheshire, in Cheshire East rather than Greater Manchester. It sits in the Goyt Valley, and the River Goyt and the Peak Forest Canal, which opened in 1800, pass along the edge of the village. The fountain in Fountain Square, donated in 1837, was built of stone from the Jacksons Edge Quarry. Houses in Pennine-edge villages like this are commonly built of local gritstone, with stone-slate or Welsh-slate roofs.

Disley had at least one cotton mill by the middle of the nineteenth century. As cotton declined, work became more varied, and most people now travel out to work. A house that is empty from morning to evening, at about 200 metres above sea level, sets the questions for a rooflight. Can it be opened without a ladder, will the blind work, and what happens to the glass when the weather turns? We start with those and write a fixed written quote once we have seen the roof.

Rooflights for stone houses on high ground

These five suit older stone roofs and the glazing that high ground asks for. Choose the nearest to your room, then read the page behind it.

A man holding a sample of triple glazing at his kitchen table

Living with a rooflight on Disley's high ground

A roof window high in a gritstone cottage is opened with a handset or a solar motor, so the rod stays in the cupboard.
With a house empty from morning to evening, a VELUX electric or solar roof window with a rain sensor closes itself when rain starts.
A bedroom under a stone-slate roof wants a blackout blind that runs from the same handset as the window.
Wind and rain leave marks on the outer glass, so we pick a window you can wipe from inside wherever the slope allows.

What a gritstone village asks of a rooflight

Four questions about stone roofs, the high ground, the empty house and planning on the edge of the Peak District.

What kind of rooflight sits properly on a stone-slate roof?

Gritstone walls under a stone-slate or Welsh-slate roof are a familiar pairing on the Pennine edge. A stone-slate roof is heavy, uneven and made of pieces of different sizes, and a window set into it has to be flashed with care so that water runs round it rather than under it. That is a job for a roof that has been looked at, not one that has been guessed from a photograph.

Why the covering comes first

The flashing kit is chosen to suit the covering, and the width of the window follows the rafters behind it. On stone slate we read both on the roof. Our page on roof windows and flashing explains why the kit is the first choice rather than the last.

A rooflight that looks at home

A conservation rooflight sits low in the slope and can have a slim central bar. From the lane it blends into the slope, which suits a stone cottage. Ask which opening types the model you like offers. What a conservation rooflight is sets out the idea.

The room underneath

Under a cottage roof the ceiling may follow the slope, and the window can be close to your head or well above it. Say which at the survey. We choose the opening method for the actual height, and the blind to match it.

Fixing into old timber

Rafters in an older roof are not always where a drawing says they are, and the opening for a window is cut to the timber that is really there. We open up the surround carefully, trim the lining to suit and explain at handover how the new window is kept dry, shaded and clean. A good surround is what stops a draught on a cold morning.

A stone cottage loft window, set out

Roof: Local gritstone with stone-slate or Welsh-slate covering
Window: Low-profile roof window, sized to the rafters
Flashing: Kit chosen to match the covering, read on the roof
Opening: Handset or solar motor if the window is high
Blind: Blackout for a bedroom, on the same handset

Does living about 200 metres up change how we choose the glazing?

Disley stands at about 200 metres above sea level, and that is high ground. High ground takes more wind-driven rain, so the way a window is sealed and flashed matters. That is a reason to be careful with the fitting, not a reason to avoid a rooflight.

Glazing and the seal

Makers offer different glazing options on the same window, and a cold, exposed roof over a bedroom is a good reason to compare them. We compare the options for your room at the survey. Our page on triple-glazed rooflights explains what an extra pane adds and what it costs in weight.

Condensation on the inside

A cold roof and a warm room are where condensation forms. It shows as misting on the inside of the glass on cold mornings. Choosing the glazing, ventilating the room and fitting the window properly all help, and the condensation page goes through the causes.

A rooflight you can reach in all weathers

On a gusty day nobody wants to wrestle a pole against the wind. A motor-driven window opens at a touch, and with a rain sensor on a VELUX electric or solar model it closes if rain starts. The sensor is the maker's feature and it is fitted only to those products.

High ground, plainly

At about 200 metres the weather is a design input. Talk through glazing and the seal before you talk about the size.

We are out all day. What happens if a window is open and it rains?

Most people in Disley now travel out to work, so a house can stand empty from the morning until the evening. If you leave a roof window open to air a bedroom, the weather may change before you are back.

What the sensor does

Some VELUX electric and solar roof windows carry a rain sensor. When it feels rain, it closes the window. It is the maker's feature, and it is on certain products only, so it is chosen at the start rather than added later. Our guide to rain sensors says clearly what a sensor does and does not do.

Manual windows

A manual window has no sensor. Closing it when you leave is a habit and not a system, so ask yourself honestly whether you will remember. If you will not, the electric or solar version is the one to pick. The electric and solar guide covers the choice.

Fixed or opening

Some rooms do not need to open at all. A landing or a bathroom with a mechanical fan can take a fixed rooflight, which avoids the question. Others, such as a bedroom, are better with a window that opens and closes itself.

Switching it off

The controls can be overridden. Press the button, or the handset, and the window does what you tell it to. We run through all of this at handover.

Being on the Peak District edge, are there planning rules we need to know about?

Disley is on the edge of the Peak District, with the village centre outside the National Park boundary. Inside the park the National Park Authority is the planning authority, but the park does not by itself take away permitted development for a rooflight, so for a house that is not listed a rooflight is usually a matter of permitted development. The planning guide sets out the limits, and a roof slope that faces the side carries extra conditions that the guide explains.

If your house is on the list

Historic England lists the Church of St Mary at Grade II*, along with The Chantry House and The Malt Cottage at Grade II. Work on a listed house will almost always be subject to listed building consent, which shapes the design. See rooflights for listed homes for the steps.

The address check

We check every Disley address with Cheshire East Council for a conservation area before we quote, and tell you what the check found.

Loft rooms and escape

If a loft becomes a bedroom, the new floor needs a safe way out. The Building Regulations guide explains it, and building control sits with Cheshire East's building control service or with a registered building control approver.

Words from a planning check

National Park: A protected landscape with its own planning authority. The centre of Disley lies outside the Peak District National Park.
Rights without an application: National rules that allow some work without a planning application, within limits.
Consent for a listed house: Consent needed to change a listed building in ways that affect its character.

Goyt Valley roads

Disley

Disley falls inside the ring we draw around Stockport, and every address in the village is within the area we survey and fit.

Check a Disley postcode here

Disley is 7 road miles south-east of Stockport. Our surveys cover the whole village, including the homes near the River Goyt and the Peak Forest Canal along its edge. Enter your postcode to check.

Nearest town pages

Questions about stone roofs and high ground

Is Disley in Stockport for planning?

No. Disley is in Cheshire East, so Cheshire East Council deals with planning and we check your address with it. For building control you may pick Cheshire East or a registered building control approver.

Can an old roof window in a stone cottage be replaced like for like?

It can be. A replacement the same size as the old unit goes into the existing opening, so the lining inside is left alone. The size code on the old label tells us. See replacing an old VELUX window for the steps.

Will a rooflight make a cold bedroom colder?

It depends on the glazing and the fitting. Different glazing options exist for the same window, and a properly flashed and insulated surround matters as much as the glass. We compare options for your room at the survey and explain what each changes.

Can I clean a roof window on a stone-slate slope safely?

Choose one that you can clean from inside where the slope allows. Some roof windows turn so the outer pane faces into the room. We check whether that suits your roof and show you how to do it before we leave.

Do you work near the canal and river?

Yes. The River Goyt and the Peak Forest Canal pass along the edge of the village, and the houses near them are within our area. Type your postcode into the box above and we will confirm it. The survey is free, and we look at how the room is used, how high the window will sit and what the roof covering is before we say what we would fit.

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Tell us about the room and the roof. We visit, measure and send a fixed written quote for the job in Disley.

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