Fixing Dry Rot

[doitmyself]

Originally Posted By: sleddriver
Those are some very deep gutters!! Never seen that before. Like a gutter & fascia board combination unit!


I missed that! I thought there was a 2 x 6 front facia board.

Heck, you could cut that protrusion completely off with a sawzall, and add some drip edge/flashing.

 

[JHZR2]

Originally Posted By: doitmyself
Originally Posted By: sleddriver
Those are some very deep gutters!! Never seen that before. Like a gutter & fascia board combination unit!


I missed that! I thought there was a 2 x 6 front facia board.

Heck, you could cut that protrusion completely off with a sawzall, and add some drip edge/flashing.


Looks like a gutter back fit for a modern craftsman type home..

Still no idea why it extends so far..

 

[ArcticDriver]

L
Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: doitmyself
Originally Posted By: sleddriver
Those are some very deep gutters!! Never seen that before. Like a gutter & fascia board combination unit!


I missed that! I thought there was a 2 x 6 front facia board.

Heck, you could cut that protrusion completely off with a sawzall, and add some drip edge/flashing.



Still no idea why it extends so far..


I would bet that if you looked in the endcap of the gutter you will find it is fastened to the rafter tail. If you cut the tail back then the gutter will lose structural support.

Flashing is the easiest solution. Tuck the flashing several inches under the drip edge of the shingle and extend it past the end of the rafter tail. Bend a 90* lip on the flashing where it meets the gutter.

 

[ArcticDriver]

There is atleast one and arguably two flaws with this installation diagram. Can anyone find it?

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2


Still no idea why it extends so far..

Probably just for looks on the gable end, and it covers the end of the gutter.
I doubt the gutter relies on the gable fascia boards for support so you could cut it back but it probably wouldn't look that great.
I would put some aluminum on top of the good ones to keep them dry and solid and maybe cut out a short piece of the bad one(if you can make a clean cut, maybe a pull saw for trim would work?) and replace it with wood again with an aluminum shingle to keep it dry.
I'd assume they used western red cedar so maybe your rot isn't that bad? Maybe you can just make an aluminum cap and just cover it?

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: ArcticDriver
I would bet that if you looked in the endcap of the gutter you will find it is fastened to the rafter tail. If you cut the tail back then the gutter will lose structural support.

The end of the gutter is not fastened to the facia board. I think they extended the end of the fascia board to cover up the end of the gutter to make it look more "finished".

Yeah, there should have been flashing or shingles extended over the protruding end to protect it from the elements.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Here's a photo of the bad board. Photo always wants to post in landscape even it I rotate it before posting - posting from my cell phone.

I got 3/4 of it filled and will do the finish fill tomorrow, then caulk and paint it well. I mixed the wood filler with a bunch of small wood chips I chipped off a board in the garage with a hand axe to give it some volume since the cavity was so big.

Don't know how long the patch will last, but it should look normal again. It's basically just a "bandaid on cancer" fix. It should at least seal the whole end well and help keep water out of the board.

Like I mentioned before, when he roof gets replaced this board can be replaced so it's done right. Doing this stuff on a 24 ft ladder is danger city, I'll be glad to get it finished. I'll get a photo after it's finished.

 

[ArcticDriver]

That rot should be sprayed with borate ( boric acid) before filling and painting.

But more importantly, if you are not comfortable working at height on ladders then you should not be risking your neck for a rotted board.
Are you properly securing your ladder?

The architect who designed that was an idiot who puts form over function and the carpenter who built it was a "paint by numbers" hack who doesn't even know not to trust architects and the roofer who failed to flash it should not even be called a roofer. It has no business anywhere but certainly not in a heavy rainfall climate like the PNW.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: ArcticDriver
That rot should be sprayed with borate (boric acid) before filling and painting.

Too late now - this board is rotten pretty bad and this "repair" is just to make it look Ok for now. When the house needs a roof I'll have it replaced since the roof edge is nailed into the top of this board so doing it then would be much easier.

Originally Posted By: ArcticDriver

But more importantly, if you are not comfortable working at height on ladders then you should not be risking your neck for a rotted board.
Are you properly securing your ladder?

My ladder is pretty secure and I'm being as careful as possible. Still don't like working that high.

Originally Posted By: ArcticDriver

The architect who designed that was an idiot who puts form over function and the carpenter who built it was a "paint by numbers" hack who doesn't even know not to trust architects and the roofer who failed to flash it should not even be called a roofer. It has no business anywhere but certainly not in a heavy rainfall climate like the PNW.

All the houses in this neighborhood are by the same designer & builder, so I'm betting mine isn't the only one with some dry rotting facia boards like these. Amazingly all the rest of my facia boards aren't bad, so I'm thinking this board had some kind of flaw on the exposed part that let moisture in for years.

 

[funflyer]

All those fascia ends could benefit from piece of flashing slipped under that roofing.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Here's a photo of the "fixed" dry rotted board. It looks good, but will see how long it stays that way - time will tell. This house has 13 of these protruding facia boards. I preped and painted all 13 over the last week, and fixed the dry rotted one. I'm so sick snd tired (and sore) from all the ladder work, but I didn't fall and end up in the hospital so that's a plus. My next house is going to be a rambler!

Whoever installed the gutters on these houses left zero space between the inside face of the fascia board and the end of the gutter, so there's no room to paint that part of the board. That leaves an area susceptible to dry rot too. They could have left a 1/2 inch gap and it would have looked fine, and it would give enough room to paint with a small brush.

 

[doitmyself]

Looks good, and is what many of us would have done in spite of all our arm chair quarterbacking.

Holmes on Homes.......would have been a complete roof removal and rebuild.

 

[funflyer]

Looks like new. Now slip a piece of flashing under all the fascia ends to help keep rot away, simple and cheap. You can buy reverse flashing or make your own.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Originally Posted By: funflyer
Looks like new. Now slip a piece of flashing under all the fascia ends to help keep rot away, simple and cheap. You can buy reverse flashing or make your own.



Thanks, the reverse flashing looks like it would work well if the dimensions are meant to cover up a 2x6 facia board like what I have. I did some searching on line and didn't see what the dimensions are.

If the long side slips down between the facia board and the gutter it would work well and look decent too. I'll see what I can find at the local hardware stores.

 

[BrocLuno]

Boy, this thread is all over the place

1.) The treatment for rotted wood is to expose it (paint has to come off), then remove loose wood and probe to find limits of active rot (ice pick). Once all that has been exposed, soak with Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer (AKA CPES). Available at most boat yards and big builder centers.

Use foam brush and keep applying until wood will not absorb any more. It will get tacky in 10 minutes or so, so while tacky, fill with thickened epoxy. Trowel it in. Trowel it smooth as it sets up. When hard, wash with water to remove any amine blush. Sand flat and true. Prime and paint.

Add small piece of copper flashing exposed about 1" out from under shingle line and on top of extended wood. The copper will slowly leach and there will be no future rot. Microbes can't live in a copper rich environment.

If you want to make this really "hidden" when you re-roof, add a copper flashing at the ridge cap so that you have 2" of exposed copper on each side of the ridge line. You will never have any issues with future rot on the roof or the exposed ends of any lumber getting run-off from the roof

 

[ArcticDriver]

Congrats on not falling and doing a very nice job.

There are several interesting suggestions on how to repair rotted wood. No disrespect but that must be the difference between homeowners and pros.

The thought of patching never even crosses my mind...rotted wood gets replaced. And a thorough investigation ensues to trace just how far back the rot extends.

Your work is quite good.

 

[ZeeOSix]

Thanks AD, as mentioned earlier I just wanted it patched & sealed to look Ok for now, and that might also help slow down any future rotting out. There's no real structural loads in these fascia boards. When the house needs a roof job the board can be replaced. It wouldn't be easy to do it now since the roofing covers up the areas the roof's plywood base boards nail into the top of the fascia board. When the roofing is removed is the easiest time to do a total board replacement, or a cut out and partial board run replacement.

Looking at available flashing, think I'll get some 5-1/2 in x 8 in long "step flashing" and cut it with tin snips to fit over the top of the board ends and also slip down between the board and the end of the gutter, and well up under the shingles.