Slate hanging a gable end wall

[geoff]

Has anyone ever slated a gable end wall? I want to hang slates on the end wall of a stone cottage (previous owner had nice rusty corrugated iron sheets....) to help stop water penetration as it points at the prevailing wind direction - I tried repointing and left it a couple of years but there's still problems. I've done slate roofing successfully but I was wondering whether there are any special methods for and secrets about hanging vertical slates (what to do at the edges and eaves for example). Do you just batten the wall and treat it as a vertical roof or is it more complicated? The wall, being rubble stone, is a bit uneven as well, which makes it more difficult. I've searched on the net but can't find any info at all.

Also, are there any ideas on leaving gaps or raising slates slightly to encourage bats? I like the little furry flyers.

 

[biffvernon]

Don't know much about slate hanging but these are the people to ask about bats:
Bat Conservation Trust. They have lots of local groups.

 

[Gervase]

To overcome the undulations I'd be tempted to counter-batten. Otherwise I see little difference from a normal roof. As for the edges, I'd use a vertical batten as the equivalent of a verge board and either use lead flashing or narrow-cut slates as they do here in West Wales