Roofers aim to call you within the hour.
Find my roofer
Goulburn, New South Wales

Roofers in GoulburnCold winters and a lot of history on the rooftops.

Goulburn has a long building history, and its council has clear views on heritage roofs: don't paint slate or terracotta, and if an old iron roof is painted, choose from a short list of period colours. At 640 m above sea level, the airport has recorded minus 10.9 °C, so frost is a real factor for ridge mortar. Many post-war homes were built in brick veneer and asbestos fibro, which changes how any repair is done. Tell us about your roof and, if we have one, we'll match you with a licence-checked Goulburn roofer who specialises in that kind of roof.

Find a specialist roofer in Goulburn

  1. Your postcode and three quick questions
  2. We match you with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in your job
  3. They call you to arrange a quote. No obligation to go ahead.

What's different about Goulburn roofs?

Cold. Goulburn Airport has a mean daily minimum of 6.1 °C and a record low of minus 10.9 °C, set in August. Snow falls now and then but rarely amounts to much, because the hills around Crookwell put the city in a rain shadow.

Dry, but often damp. The airport averages 575.2 mm of rain a year spread over 129.2 days, with November the wettest month at 61.3 mm. Frequent light rain and cold nights suit moss on shaded roof faces, and water that freezes in cracked mortar opens it further.

Many eras on one street. Goulburn Mulwaree Council's heritage colour guide lists five local periods: Georgian (c.1820 to c.1840), Victorian (c.1840 to c.1900), Federation (c.1900 to c.1915), Interwar (c.1915 to c.1940) and Post War (c.1945 to c.1970). Each brought its own roofs.

Goulburn's roofs, era by era

Georgian

The council notes Georgian-era roofs were hipped and traditionally had shingles. If your roof still has that original hipped form, any work on it is a job for a roofer with heritage experience.

Iron roofs

Roofs without tiles were traditionally short-sheet galvanised iron, left unpainted, though some were later painted dark reds, greens and greys. For heritage roofs, the council's recommended colours are Red Oxide, Bottle Green, Holly, Basalt and Lightbox Grey.

Interwar Spanish Mission

These homes had unpainted ochre-coloured terracotta tile roofs, and the council says terracotta and slate shouldn't be painted. Be wary of a restoration quote that includes spraying them.

Post-war, c.1945 to c.1970

Built amid material shortages, these houses most often used brick veneer and asbestos fibro, according to the council. Treat fibro as asbestos until a lab confirms otherwise.

Fire history

Tallong, a village in the Goulburn Mulwaree council area, was destroyed in the Chatsbury bushfire of 1965. The council prepares the bush fire prone land map, so check your block on the RFS online tool if you're on the edge of town.

Jobs that come up most in Goulburn

Heritage-sensitive repairs and re-roofs. The heritage conservation areas are set out in the Goulburn Mulwaree Local Environmental Plan 2009, and the council runs a free heritage advisory service with a consultant who visits monthly. Slate and heritage restoration explains the approach.

Rebedding and repointing ridges that frost has cracked. See rebedding and repointing.

Fibro roofs and gutters on post-war homes. Once more than 10 square metres of non-friable asbestos is coming off, NSW law requires a licensed removalist. Asbestos roof replacement covers the process.

Repainting iron roofs in a heritage colour. Metal roof painting covers preparation and paint systems.

Where we'd begin in Goulburn

If the house is in a heritage conservation area, we'd book the council's free heritage advisor before getting quotes. We wouldn't paint slate or terracotta at all. On any ridge that needs rebedding, we'd ask for a modern flexible pointing compound, which Monier recommends for repairs because old pointing cracks and loosens with the weather. On a post-war fibro home, we'd get a sample tested before anyone touches it.

Want a roofer to take a look?

Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.

Find my roofer
Questions

Straight answers.

Can I paint my terracotta roof in Goulburn?
Goulburn Mulwaree Council's heritage guidance says slate and terracotta tile roofs shouldn't be painted. Monier, a tile maker, also says terracotta doesn't need respraying because its colour is fired in.
Is my fibro roof asbestos?
If it went up before 1990, it probably contains asbestos, and the council says asbestos fibro was one of the two most common materials in Goulburn's post-war homes. Only a lab test can confirm it, so don't drill, cut, sand or water-blast it in the meantime.
Can you find me a roofer in Goulburn?
If we have a licence-checked roofer who works your part of Goulburn, we'll pass the job to them. If not, we'll say so straight away, so you're free to look elsewhere.

Ready for a roofer to look at it in Goulburn?

Your postcode and three quick questions. We match you with a local roofer who specialises in your job, and tell you straight away if we don't have one near you.

Related help

Helpful next

Slate and heritage roofsHow slate and heritage roofs are repaired, why fake slate can be asbestos, and when council rules apply.Rebedding and repointingRebedding vs repointing explained, the warning signs, and how a roofer redoes the ridge capping.Asbestos roof replacementLicensed removal, testing, disposal and the new roof: how an asbestos re-roof works, step by step.Is my roof asbestos?Build date, Super Six, cement slates and eaves: how to tell if your roof could be asbestos.Metal roof paintingWhen rust can be painted over, what BlueScope says about painting its steel, and the warranty catch.Roofers in New South WalesThe $5,000 and $20,000 lines, HBCF cover, deposits and roof licence categories in NSW.

Where this information comes from

Every fact and rule on this page comes from the sources above, checked on the dates shown. How we write and check these pages.

Find my roofer