The Church Roof

The roof is probably the most critical part of any building.  It keeps in the heat and keeps out the weather.  Without the roof, we would be worshiping in the open air – in all weathers – and the rain would get into the building structure and cause it to rot.  The roof has to endure extremes of everything the weather can throw at it; from the weight of winter snow to the heat of the summer sun; from the drying blast of the wind to the constant washing with rain water.  It’s no surprise that maintenance of the roofs of our church, hall and cottage are one of the most costly and frequent items in our repair bills.

The greater part of our roofs are made from natural slates, though we do have a couple of sections of flat roofing in areas that are not easily visible.  These slates suffer from two main problems: weathering and vandalism.  The slates themselves deteriorate over the years and can get broken by falling twigs blown in the wind.  They are also secured by steel nails which rust away allowing the slates to slip.  There are a couple of areas where slates are missing which need attention currently, on the hall roof and the vestry roof.  Vandalism is unpredictable, and we hope will be reduced by our recent installation of video recording equipment.

Another persistent problem, has been the scourge of metal theft.  Many churches have large expanses of lead roofing, which is worth quite a lot, even as scrap.  We don’t have much lead, but we do have some narrow strips called “flashing” which prevent water from running down between the wall and the edge of the roof.  In the past we have had quite a few instances of strips of flashing been stolen.  The thieves, of course, don’t care what damage they do in removing their plunder, so it can leave a big and expensive repair job.  We’ve recently taken a few precautions to avoid this theft:  The more accessible pieces of flashing have been replaced with non-metallic alternatives which have no scrap value, whilst the larger pieces on the main roofs have been coated with a forensic device called “Smartwater”.  This makes them unique and traceable back to Holy Trinity.  The police can bring successful prosecution against anyone caught in possession of any of our lead.  We’ve also installed, as already mentioned, a video recording CCTV system to provide more evidence should anyone steal our lead in the future.

So next time you’re in church, spare a thought for the roof.  Have a look at the size of it.  It’s really quite impressive.  Think about how the church would look (and feel) without it.  And while I’m thinking of it: I’ve often thought that with the main roof slope facing due south and being inclined at a really good angle towards the sun, there must be a great opportunity to generate our own electricity from photovoltaic cells.  But that’s going to be another story…

In the service of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour

David Brown (assistant to the churchwarden)

Light Bulbs, Light Bulbs, Light Bulbs

I once worked with a chap who was a churchwarden, many years ago.  I remember asking him about the job and what it involved.  He said it was mostly changing light bulbs.  I thought he was joking, but looking around the church I’ve found how big a job that is.  There are a lot of bulbs in the church, hall and cottage, and if we don’t keep on top of them we can end up with a big job of replacing them all at the same time.

A lot of the issues with the church bulbs are that they are high up in ceiling and you need a long ladder to reach them.  There are two blown bulbs behind the chancel arch, for example, and I’m going to need a very long ladder to get up to them.

In my first survey round the buildings I have discovered:

• Blown fluorescent tube in the vestry and two other missing bulbs
• Blown fluorescent tube in the hall store room and one missing tube
• Five blown spotlights at the end of the hall
• Blown bulb in the cottage courtesy light
• Blown starter in church porch light
• Blown starters in the hall kitchen, one in the store room and one in the cottage upstairs
• Blown light in the ladies loo.  Also found we had a very bright 20 W bulb in one of the cubicles and a rather dimmer 11 W lamp in the main wash/baby changing area.
• Big powerful 100 W spotlight in the smallest room in the cottage.

I think if we’ve got bulb holders, they should have the correct bulbs in them.  Having dead bulbs and empty bulb sockets seems very untidy to me, and if we’re letting the hall to outsiders it doesn’t create a great impression.  So I’ve replaced every dead bulb I’ve come across.  Of course light bulbs use electricity when we turn them on, and electricity costs money.  So we must always remember to use lighting only when we need it.  On bright sunny mornings, do we need to have all the lights in the church switched on?  Using the big floodlights costs the same as a large electric fire, while the wall washers add another 50% to this cost.  But on dark evenings, the lighting in the hall can be barely adequate and the spots at the north end are really useful.  At least if the bulbs are all working, we can make choices about how we use them.  So please let me know if you notice any other missing or dead bulbs around the place and I’ll do my best to replace them as quickly as possible.

In service of our Lord, Jesus Christ,

David (assistant to the Churchwarden)

Prompted by the Spirit

Followig the last PCC meeting I felt a very strong prompting from the Spirit to step up and take on the Churchwarden's role at Holy Trinity.  Since Alan left we have only had Vince to cover the work of two wardens; and Vince has always been very clear that he did not have the capacity to cover the whole job on his own.  Despite Su's poster campaign, no one has come forward, so I phoned Su and said I'd be willing to fill the void.  She was of course very pleased to have a full complement of churchwardens again.  We agreed to speak to Vince and Sheila at the weekend.  As it transpires, I can only officially become churchwarden by election at Parishioners’ Meeting, which will be in March.  Until then I can assist Vince as churchwarden with the PCC's approval.  I want to start this blog to keep everyone up to date with the challenges we face as a church, both in terms of maintaining our building structures and financing our mission.

I hope this can help us all to feel more connected as a community, and better informed of opportunities to volunteer and get involved with some of the more practical aspects of our church.  So if you have some DIY skills or perhaps you enjoy gardening, I hope I can find you something to do round the church that can be of benefit to all of us.  Please do let me know if you have skills that I might be able to employ from time to time.

My first couple of weeks have been spent with familiarising myself with the role I've taken on; with the church buildings and outstanding items, and with the most recent architect's inspection (called the "Quinqennial Report").  I'm pleased to find that my predecessors have left the church in a very good state of repair with no urgent work waiting to be done (and with a full tank of heating oil!).  There are, of course, many smaller and less urgent tasks to be seen to, and this where volunteers will be helpful in keeping down costs.  There is some gardening and painting of woodwork, though most of it will need to wait for more clement weather.  Beyond that, there is the long-term future of the church hall, which continues to require costly repairs beyond its ability to earn us letting fees.  We'll need to take a long and serious look at how we manage this facility and how it fits into our mission plan for our parish.

The next couple of weeks are going to be consumed with getting to know the record books, working out which keys fit which locks and prioritising the work that needs doing.  I've already started a list of current issues which runs to 4 pages.  I'll keep you all posted as I continue on this voyage of discovery.

In service of Our Lord Jesus

David Brown(Assistant to the Churchwarden)