- Fill the gap between drip edge and gutter how to#
- Fill the gap between drip edge and gutter install#
Fill the gap between drip edge and gutter install#
So, in my opinion, there is only one way to install a drip edge properly, and it’s with the furring strip. I’ve watched the water run down fascia boards and rafter tails on rainy days with the drip edge doing little if anything. It creates soggy siding, encourages termite activity, and hugely increases any potential for rot.Ī lot of roofers may disagree with me on this, saying that the kick out on the drip edge does its job without needing the furring strip, but experience is the greatest teacher. This lazy installation causes all kinds of damage to much more than just the fascia. You want water to stay off your house if you hope to avoid rot. If the drip edge is laid right up against the fascia or rafters, then because of surface tension, the water runs right up against the fascia and underneath the soffit. The drip edge should be installed over a piece of 1×2 furring strip so that it stands off from the fascia or rafter tails.
This small little detail is incredibly important! I can’t stress this enough.
Look at the picture below and you can see the wrong installation on the left and the correct way on the right. Without proper installation, it is completely pointless.
Fill the gap between drip edge and gutter how to#
I haven’t seen a roofer forget the drip edge, but I have seen WAY too many who have no idea how to install it properly. Its purpose is to give water an edge to drip safely off your roof onto the ground or into the gutter. What is a drip edge you ask? It is a small piece of “L” shaped metal with a little kick out on the edge that goes around the perimeter of your roof. In fact, this issue is so common that a lot of the localities and even contractor training classes teach roofers to do this incorrectly.įor any asphalt shingle roof, a drip edge is required by most local building codes. It’s something so simple and it is blatantly obvious if you know what to look for. It’s not valley flashing or underlayments, though those are just as important. It gets baked by the sun, drenched in the rain, and covered by snow and ice. It is the workhorse of your house and does its job without complaint, but there is one little detail that is missed by way too many roofers that causes big time damage to your house. Your roof is your home’s main line of defense against water intrusion.