If it's dripping right now
Catch the water
Put a bucket or tub under the drip and move furniture and electronics out of the way. A towel in the bucket stops the splashing.
Check the ceiling and the power
Keep out of a room where the plaster is sagging. If water is getting near a light fitting or power point, switch the power off at the switchboard.
Write down what you see
Note the time, how heavy the rain is and where the water appears. Melbourne leaks are often intermittent, and that detail helps a roofer find the source on a dry day.
Stay off the roof
Never climb up in rain or wind. For storm damage emergencies, the SES is on 132 500.
How Melbourne's rain finds the weak spots
A modest yearly total, with a wet spring
The Bureau of Meteorology's Olympic Park station averages 577.7 mm a year over 88.3 days of meaningful rain. October (64.2 mm) and November (64.4 mm) are the wettest months, so spring is when a slow leak usually makes itself known.
Summer storms are the real test
February is the driest month on average, yet it holds Melbourne's wettest day on record (113.4 mm on 3 February 2005) and its wettest month (238.2 mm in February 1972). In March 2010, central Melbourne took 19 mm in under 18 minutes. Rain that heavy overwhelms valleys and gutters that cope with normal showers.
Downpours follow the same tracks
Narrow streams of heavy showers often hit the same places, usually the south-eastern suburbs, while the rest of the city stays dry. In the Dandenong Ranges, rainfall averages 1000 to 1500 mm a year and rises with elevation, so roofs in the hills simply get more chances to leak.
Overflow or a hole? Why it matters
If your ceiling only stains in the heaviest storms, suspect water backing up and spilling over: a valley clogged with leaves, a gutter that can't keep up, or a box gutter on a terrace that's blocked at its outlet. If it drips in light, steady rain too, a cracked tile, gap in the ridge mortar or failed flashing is more likely.
Our leak finder asks a few questions and points you to the likely cause. It won't replace a roofer looking, but it'll help you describe the problem.
Questions to ask before you book
- How will you find the source: a look in the roof space, a hose test, or both?
- Do you think this is overflow from a valley or gutter, or a break in the roof itself?
- If it's a flashing, gutter or box gutter, are you licensed or registered for roofing (stormwater) plumbing work, as Victoria requires?
- Will you show me photos of the cause and the fix?
- What happens if it leaks again in the next big storm?
Where we'd start
Before calling anyone, we'd note exactly when the leak shows: every shower, or only the big summer downpours. That one detail can save a roofer an hour of searching. Then we'd book the repair for a dry day soon after, rather than waiting for spring to prove it. Our national roof leak repair page explains the usual culprits, and the Melbourne hub has the wider local picture.
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.
