Re-Screw or Replace? How to Decide on an Ageing Colorbond Roof (Northern Rivers)
If the sheets are sound but the screws are rusting, leaking or backing out, a re-screw (from about $2,000 for an average home) is nearly always the right call. Replacement only makes sense when the sheets themselves are rusted through, holed or badly cut-edge corroded. On the Northern Rivers we see far more roofs that need the first than the second.
Why coastal screws fail before the sheets do
Colorbond steel is built for salt air, but the original fixings on many roofs are not. Standard screws have a rubber washer under the head that perishes with UV and salt, and a coating that gives up long before the sheet does. Once the washer cracks, wind-driven rain gets pushed under the head, and once the screw shank rusts it loses grip in the batten and starts to lift. That is why a 20-year-old roof from Lennox Head to Byron Bay can look fine from the street and still leak in every east-coast low.
Signs you only need a re-screw
Rust spots in a neat grid pattern (one at each screw), screw heads sitting proud of the ridges, little rust streaks running down from each fixing, and leaks that only show up in wind-driven rain. If the sheet surface between the screws is still smooth and the colour is intact, the steel is doing its job. Our guide to the signs your roof needs re-screwing covers what to look for from the ground without climbing up.
Signs the sheets themselves are done
Rust that spreads across the flat of the sheet rather than sitting at the screws, holes you can see daylight through from the roof space, flaking or blistering paint over large areas, and rust along the cut edges at the gutter line that has eaten well into the sheet. Sheets closest to the ocean and the lowest course above the gutter usually go first. Sometimes the answer is to replace two or three of the worst sheets and re-screw the rest, which costs a fraction of a full re-roof.
What a proper re-screw involves
Every old screw comes out and is replaced with a Class 4 (AS 3566) coastal-rated screw with a new EPDM washer, going one size up so it bites into fresh timber or steel batten. We check each batten as we go, treat any surface rust around the old holes, reseal laps and flashings that have opened up, and photograph the finished roof so you can see it was done properly. Half-day to a full day for an average single-storey home.
What it costs on the Northern Rivers
A metal roof re-screw on an average single-storey home starts from about $2,000 and rises with roof size, pitch, height and how many screws the roof has. Replacing a few rusted sheets is usually quoted alongside the re-screw. A full Colorbond re-roof on the same house is typically well into five figures once you include sheets, flashings, gutters and labour, which is why we always check whether a re-screw will get you another 15 years first. Every price is confirmed on site before we start. See the full cost guide for the other common jobs.
Not sure which one you need?
Book a roof report and we will photograph every problem area, tell you plainly whether the sheets are worth keeping, and credit the report fee against any repairs booked within 30 days. Or call 0412 483 911 and describe what you are seeing. We cover Lennox Head, Ballina, Byron Bay, Alstonville, Lismore and everywhere in between.
Common questions
Need this checked on your roof?
We're local to Lennox Head and cover the whole Northern Rivers. Every job is photo-documented and warranted.
Coastal Roofing Repairs
Local Northern Rivers roofers · 28 years on the tools · licensed & insured
Written by the Coastal Roofing Repairs team, 28+ years roofing on the NSW North Coast. We work on coastal metal and tile roofs every day — these guides come straight from what we see on the tools, not a marketing desk.