How Does Roof Flashing Work

Drip edges prevent water from seeping under roofing along the edges of rakes and eaves.

How does roof flashing work.

They are installed to overlap and form a gap that exposes the valley flashing. It s rolled out into place and then sealed in order to prevent issues like water damage and mold. Details concrete masonry roofing wrb flashing. Flashing helps close a joint in walls or roofing applications to keep water from seeping into the materials used in construction.

Roof flashing is material that covers joints walls edges and other vulnerable areas to protect against water and wind damage. Closer look at flashing. Virtually every house in america has at least one vent pipe or other penetration on the roof. Valley flashing is visible from the ground.

Two ways to flash roof edges. Cap flashing mortared or caulked into the chimney laps over the top edges of the other flashings to prevent water from running behind them. Simply put roof flashing is any piece of sheet metal that forms a joint between the roof and objects that protrude from the roof such as dormers chimneys and pipes in such a manner that they prevent water from leaking through the joint. One common method is to lay the edge metal under the eaves membrane and over the rake.

This allows water to run off the edges of each roof into the valley flashing and down to the gutters. Some of the different types are as follows. Protect the eave from ice dams and sideways rain step one in steep slope roofing is the edge flashing. While some skylight manufacturers include flashing in their products sometimes roofing professionals.

Roof flashing is commonly made with aluminum galvanized steel or copper but is sometimes formed with roofing felt rubber or plastic. Picture your house and the walls. Roof flashing is the unsung hero when it comes to roofing. Open valleys have metal flashing to protect this critical area of the roof.

For pitched roofs regardless of the application or type of flashing used the purpose of flashing is to direct the flow of water that leaks into the intersection down and away from the interior of the structure to the topside of the roofing material. It is strategically placed at joints such as where your roof connects with walls or around where your chimney protrudes. In this open valley style the shingles over each section of roof do not touch. The sidewalls are the vertical walls along the outer part of your house referred to as the valleys.

The edge of the roof has thin metal flashing that helps water drip off. Everyone thinks it is the shingles or other roofing material that makes the roof but that part couldn t do the job roof flashing does. Flashing can be made from a variety of materials such as copper roofs aluminum lead or galvanized steel roofing.