New Roof Installation: Flashing and Drip Edge Matter

Roof Drip Edge

Have you ever watched one of your neighbors get a new roof?  Wow, that house always looks so much better with a new roof than it did with the old roof.  There is much more to a roof than just new shingles though; but shingles are the only part you see from the ground.  Architectural shingles sure look nice though.

Flashing, while critical, isn’t something homeowners are likely to think about.  Do you have a fireplace and associated chimney?  What about a gas furnace or hot water heater?  Do you have indoor plumbing?  What about skylights?  Do you have a valley where different roof pitches meet?  What about areas where a wall meets a roof?  What all of these have in common is that metal flashing is used to seal these areas.  Without proper use and installation of this metal flashing, you are likely to have roof leaks.  Your home is your most valuable asset, and your roof is your first line of defense to protect this asset.  Leaks due to improper flashing is not how you protect this asset.

Drip Edges are installed at eaves and gables, and prevent any moisture exposure to the exposed edge of the roof decking material (either plywood or oriented strand board – OSB).  They also deflect rainwater from the exterior surface, such as your fascia board and into your gutter.  There are different profiles of drip edge, depending on application and how much protection you want and how much you want to spend.  A lot of roofing contractors will use an L-shape drip edge of the cheapest material, because that is all that is required by code (drip edge is a recent addition to the International Residential Code, depending on the age of your roof you may not hava a drip edge at all).  I like to install a DL-lip type overhang profile drip edge.  Also, there is some discrepancy on proper installation of drip edge; I install drip edge under the overlayment at the eave, but use drip edge over the underlayment as the gables.  The price difference between a stick (10 linear feet) of L-shape drip edge and the overhang profile is about $0.50 more per stick. 

On a typical house, the cost increase between minimum flashing and drip edge vs. upgraded flashing and drip edge is negligible; but it is the minor details that ensures your new roof will be trouble-free for a very long time.  Ask your roofing contractor about flashing and drip edge details before, not after, installation of your new roof.

 

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