Roof tiles have been a popular choice in building design throughout history partly due to the fact they have an extremely long life span. In fact they can still be found on Ancient Greek, Egyptian and Roman buildings. Reclaimed roof tiles can be salvaged from demolished buildings or recovered during re-roofing projects. So it makes perfect sense to reclaim and reuse them.
 
Reclaimed roof tiles make the most sustainable choice for any new build or renovation. In a recent survey by Salvo, Roofslates.com, a salvage business in Ashton-under-Lyne saves enough energy in one year to offset the building of eighty houses. Salvo found that the reclamation company saved around 650 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2e) annually which is the equivalent energy needed to build 80 new houses made with reclaimed building materials for the walls, floors and roof. Alternatively, it would be enough to run two indoor civic swimming pools, build 8 new houses using new materials, manufacture 2 large wind turbines, or make 50 new electric cars. Over the past twenty five years the company has saved more than 16,000t CO2e.
 
Reclaimed roof tiles may have been handmade or machine made and come in many different materials from clay to slate or concrete and in styles such as Roman, Keymers, Marley, Sussex Peg, Kent Peg, Rosemary, Silverdale, Somerset, Cambridgeshire, Marseille and Dreadnought etc. Older tiles will have usually been cut by hand from local stone and clay. Handmade tiles varied according to firing and manufacture: Doubles, Pans, Pooles and Triples vary according to manufacture. When ordering always give the height and width of the tile you are trying to match. In addition to the natural colours of the tile such as orange or red slips and glazes were also applied. Slips were applied before firing such as plum or dun (dark brown). Glazes were applied before final firing at a much higher temperature to form molten glass coating to the tile. Glaze collars included light and dark green, turquoise, black, blue, yellow and brown. They were usually only applied to Pantiles and Double Romans.
 
One of the other main benefit is their aged weathered beauty. This cannot be reproduced even using modern techniques. It is especially difficult to match new tiles to the original roof tiles for a repair job.
 
Salvo code member, Cawarden Brick & Tile states, 'We have been supplying and advising architects, builders, craftspeople and interior designers looking to buy reclaimed roof tiles and more for over 25 years. Reclaimed roof tiles have all the added benefits of traditional newly sourced roof tiles but with an interesting twist. The main distinction between these highly sorted after building materials is that each reclaimed roof tile has a historic story attached to it that new roofing tiles simply do not have. Because of this, it is making these building materials incredibly popular among building designers not just for its practicality, but for its affordability and character when they are installed.'
 
Source from a selection of reclaimed roof tiles for sale on the SalvoWEB marketplace or the Salvo dealer directory. Roof tiles can often be found in larger quantities from reclamation dealers. Prices can vary according to the quantity being supplied. Many dealers will also source tiles on request. Look out for the crane logo to find Salvo code members following good practice in buying and selling.
 
Online forums often debate whether to reuse old tiles or buy new. Here is an example of one online thread to the question, ' I have asked if the slate tiles can be reused as the house is Victorian and in a conservation area so I want it to be in keeping and not have modern tiles - at the front at least. The roofer says there is absolutely no way the tiles can be re-used. Is that true and is my only option to have new ones?'
 
Interestingly the thread replies include this:
 
'Welsh Slate roofing is commonly removed from roofs after 100 years not because they have failed but because the roof timbers holding them up have failed. The Welsh slates may then be reused. Penrhyn slate, for example, was removed from St Asaph Cathedral after 400 years in use and reused and this practice also applies to civic buildings as far away as Australia.'
 
New roof tile manufacturer, Wienerburger states, 'new tiles are always best. There are risks to reusing old tiles, as there are no guarantees on their performance, remaining lifespan and quality.So when it comes to achieving a heritage look with roof tiles on both historic and modern projects, it is better to fake it with new tiles instead of old reclaimed originals.'
 
Alternatively Roman values of nature in harmony with design can be found in the series of books, 'On Architecture', by Vitruvius, a Roman architect and engineer. He wrote a detailed account of how Romans planned and built their great buildings and cities, still valued today. In his books Vitruvius supports the idea of reuse and considers, 'old roof tiles, especially, will have great strength' their durability having been tested already by winter storms and summer heat.
 
Conservation News recently explored the history of clay tiles, 'It’s a well established fact that clay tiles have been a fixture of our local landscape for hundreds of years. In fact it’s probably fair to say that clay has been a staple of the roofing industry across the world for about as long as people have been putting roofs on their dwellings.' and 'Plain clay tiles are a sustainable product, the longevity of clay means that the energy and raw materials used in their production are offset over the whole life of the roof, which in the case of most clay tile roofs, is over 100 years.' See more at the link below.
 
To sum up the main benefits in the reuse of reclaimed roof tiles are environmental, aesthetic and durability. But they can often make the most cost effective choice too.