Can You Match New Tiles to an Old Roof?

Why an exact match is hard

A tile's appearance changes over its life. Concrete tiles lose some of their surface colour and gather moss and lichen. Clay tiles darken and mellow. The result is that a tile made last month and a tile made thirty years ago can differ in shade, texture and sheen, even if they are the same pattern.

On top of that, makers change their products. A profile may be discontinued, the dimensions altered slightly, or the colour range revised. A tile that looks the same in a catalogue may have a different headlap or width, and that matters for how it sits with the old ones. Fit is as important as colour, because a tile that is a few millimetres off will not interlock or lap properly.

Identifying what you have

The first step is to identify the tile. Look for a maker's mark on the underside, measure the width, length and thickness, count the nibs and check the profile. Plain tiles are a standard size in the UK, and interlocking tiles come in many types. If you have a spare in the loft, that is the best sample to carry to a merchant. Our guide to plain tiles versus interlocking tiles will help you tell which you have.

If the maker's name is gone, a roofer or a salvage yard can often identify it by eye. The more precisely you know the tile, the better the chance of a real match.

Reclaimed, new or mixed

Reclaimed tiles are the first choice for older roofs, because they have already weathered and will blend in at once. Salvage yards stock clay plain tiles and some concrete types, and a roofer who works regularly with them knows where to look. Quality varies, so check for frost damage and cracks before buying.

New tiles are an option when the profile is still made. Ask for samples and look at them on the roof, in daylight, beside the old ones. Some manufacturers offer a weathered or blended range intended to mimic ageing. A third approach is to mix: use reclaimed tiles on the visible slopes and new ones on the rear, or the other way round if stock allows.

Mixing batches and the effect of age

Even tiles from one maker vary from batch to batch, because the pigments and the firing change a little each time. Roofers deal with this by mixing tiles from several packs as they lay, so any difference is spread across the slope instead of showing as a block. It is a small habit that makes a patch repair much less obvious from the street.

Where to put the new tiles

A good trick is to take sound old tiles from a hidden slope, such as a back roof or an extension, and use them on the front, then fill the hidden slope with new ones. The street sees a uniform front, and the mismatch sits where nobody looks. This works best when the rear is not overlooked by neighbours.

Repairs to individual tiles, as in our answer on replacing a single roof tile, can use a spare from the loft or a reclaimed tile. Scattered replacements look odd, so grouping them in neat areas is preferable.

What to ask a merchant or roofer

Bring a measured sample and a clear photograph. Ask whether the tile is still in production, what the headlap and gauge are, and whether the colour range includes anything close. Ask to see the tile in daylight next to your sample, not under the shop lights. If a reclaimed yard is an option, ask how the tiles were stored and whether they have been checked for frost damage.

Also ask what the lead time is. Special-order tiles can take weeks, and a roof left half-repaired in the meantime needs temporary cover. We plan the order before booking the work, so the roof is not open longer than it needs to be.

When a match matters in planning terms

Where a house is listed, or lies in a conservation area, a close match may be a condition of consent, and the council may specify the tile type. Check with the council's conservation officer before ordering. Our page on whether roof tile colour matters covers the planning angle.

If a full re-roof is on the table, matching stops being a problem, because everything changes at once. We will tell you honestly whether a patch repair is likely to be a good visual match or whether you are better off re-covering a slope. See the pitched roofing page for more on our work.