First-year roofing apprentice tool list

What your employer usually supplies

Expect the business to own the big, expensive and safety-critical kit. If an employer expects you to buy any of this, ask how the award's tool allowance or reimbursement rules apply.

• •Ladders, scaffold, edge protection and roof brackets
• •Harnesses, lanyards, rope lines and anchor systems, which must be maintained and inspected
• •Wet saws and cut-off saws for tiles, and nibblers or power shears for metal
• •Brakes and folders for flashings, gutter machines and crimpers
• •Tile elevators, hoists and material handling gear
• •Consumables: screws, rivets, sealants, mortar and pointing compound

First-year buys for roof tilers

• •Tiler's or roofing hammer with a comfortable grip
• •Pointing trowel and a bedding trowel
• •Tape measure, chalk line and carpenter's pencils
• •Tile nips or tile cutters for small trims
• •Spirit level and string line
• •Knee pads and gloves, because tiles shred hands and knees

First-year buys for roof plumbers

• •Aviation snips in left, right and straight cut
• •Hand seamer for bending flashings on the roof
• •Cordless impact driver with tek and hex sockets
• •Rivet gun and silicone gun
• •Tape measure, chalk line, scriber and marker
• •Cut-resistant gloves, because sheet edges are razor sharp

Budget versus pro options

You do not need the top brand on day one, but cheap snips and hammers wear out fast on a roof. Spend on the tools you use every hour and save on the rest. For cordless gear, ask your boss which battery platform the crew runs before you buy, so you can share chargers and batteries.

Brands widely sold in Australia include Malco, Wiss and Stanley for snips and hand tools, Estwing for hammers, Ragni and Marshalltown for trowels, Sutton Tools for drill bits and driver bits, and Makita, Milwaukee, DeWalt and HiKOKI for cordless. Ryobi and Ozito are budget cordless options many first years start with.

PPE that actually matters on a roof

Under the awards your employer must supply or reimburse required protective equipment, and the Building and Construction award requires employers to reimburse steel cap boots where they are required. Check the clause that applies to you.

• •Soft-soled work boots with grip that suit roof surfaces, and check what your employer requires
• •Broad brim hat or legionnaire cap, long sleeve shirt and SPF 50 sunscreen, every day
• •Safety glasses, especially when cutting tiles or metal
• •Hearing protection for saws and grinders
• •A fitted P2 respirator for tile cutting, because dry cutting concrete tiles makes silica dust
• •Your harness only if your employer has not supplied one, and only after training on how to fit and anchor it

Tool allowance under the award

The Building and Construction General On-site Award (MA000020) includes a weekly tool allowance for roof tilers and roof fixers. The Plumbing and Fire Sprinklers Award (MA000036) requires the employer to either reimburse you or pay a weekly tool allowance when you have to supply your own tools, and builds the tool allowance into plumbing apprentice rates. Amounts change each year, so check the current figure and how it applies to apprentices on the Fair Work Pay Calculator, and make sure it shows on your payslip.

Tax deductions and rebates

Tools you buy for work are generally tax deductible. Under ATO rules, items costing $300 or less can usually be claimed straight away, and dearer items are depreciated over their effective life. Keep every receipt and claim only the work-related part.

We could confirm one state construction tool rebate open as at October 2026: Western Australia's Construction Training Fund Apprentice Tool Allowance, which reimburses up to $1,000 for tools and safety gear when you start and another up to $1,000 when you finish, for apprentices commencing or completing between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2029. Outside WA, ask your Apprenticeship Connect provider whether anything is running in your state, because past schemes have closed.

What not to buy yet

• •Expensive folders, saws and power shears: the boss owns those
• •A full height safety kit: it must suit your employer's system and be inspected
• •Big tool kits sold as apprentice bundles, which are often full of things you never use
• •Anything your tradie has not told you to get. Ask first, then buy.