Repair and replacement of the metal at roof-to-wall joints, valleys and openings on older houses across Fairfield County and lower Westchester.
Fastest: call (833) 751-2102. Or send this and we call you back.
Flashing is the metal that seals every joint where a roof meets a wall, dormer, chimney, skylight or newer addition. Shingles and tile cannot seal those seams alone. A repair finds the joint letting water through, then replaces or re-forms the metal so water runs off the roof instead of behind it.
Flashing is the thin metal that keeps water out of every joint where a roof meets something that is not roof.
Across Fairfield County and lower Westchester the flashing question is usually a question of assembly.
A visit the same day is possible only when a technician is free, and no arrival time is promised, but phones are answered around the clock. Call (833) 751-2102 and describe where the stain is, whether it follows rain or wind, and whether it shows after a thaw.
Shingles and tile shed water across their surface, but they cannot close a seam where the roof stops and a wall or chimney starts. Flashing closes that seam with metal laid in layers, so each piece sheds water onto the next one below.
Roof covering works by overlapping in rows, so water runs down and off each piece. At a vertical face there is nowhere for the water to run, because the wall rises above the roof rather than sitting on it.
Every junction on a roof has this problem in a different form. A chimney has four sides, a dormer has cheeks, a valley has a channel, and a skylight has a curb.
A flashing leak usually appears first as a stain on the ceiling or wall nearest the joint, sometimes several feet away, because water tracks along framing before it drops. It tends to show up during wind-driven rain more than during steady rain.
Water that gets behind the covering runs down the outside of the sheathing and across the top plate of the wall before it finds a gap. The stain can therefore sit on a different wall or at the far end of a room.
Because the path is hidden, the first step is a careful look from both sides. From the attic, the framing around the suspected joint is checked for stain lines and dampness.
Houses in Fairfield County and lower Westchester were often built in parts and extended later, so one roof carries several planes and many junctions. Each one is a place for water to enter if the metal or its fixings have aged.
A single house can have a main gable, a rear ell, a side dormer and a chimney, each meeting the others at a different angle. Where a later addition was tied into an older roof, the two structures may also have different slopes and different covering ages.
Greenwich and New Canaan houses add complexity with multiple roof planes, dormers, valleys and chimneys, and the larger the house, the more joints there are to check. Downtown and South End multifamily buildings bring their own junctions, where a flat section meets a pitched one.
The metal should resist corrosion and should not sit against a different metal that will corrode it. The fixings matter as much as the sheet, because a corroded or undersized nail can let the metal lift and fail.
The National Park Service preservation briefs recommend copper, lead-coated copper or terne-coated stainless steel for flashing on historic tile roofs, and call for corrosion-resistant metal, ideally at least 26 gauge. The same guidance notes that fastenings are often where a roof fails before the covering does.
Where two metals meet, the Park Service's guidance is to match them or isolate them, because the junction is where corrosion tends to start.
The price depends on how many joints are involved, how high and how steep the roof is, and what is hidden under the covering. It is explained and approved on site before any work starts, and no figure is quoted on this page.
A single step-flashing repair on a low, walkable roof is a different job from the same repair at the peak of a steep Greenwich roof with slate or clay tile, where the covering has to be lifted and reset by hand.
The things that only show once the covering is lifted, such as rotted sheathing, a corroded valley, or a wall that was never properly flashed, are the usual reasons a repair grows. A technician reports what was found, explains what it changes, and gets approval before the next step.
Do not climb a steep or wet roof to look at a joint, and do not step onto tile, which breaks under a foot. Look from the ground and from inside the attic with a light first.
The technician checks the joint from the ground, from the roof where it is safe to stand, and from the attic side of the wall. The stain is traced back along the framing to the likely opening, because it is rarely where the water first got in.
Shingles or tiles are carefully lifted on either side of the junction so the metal and the underlayment underneath can be seen. Nothing is removed beyond what is needed to see the detail. Old sealant and patches are noted, since they often show where someone has already tried and failed.
Each piece is checked for corrosion, bends, gauge and the direction of its laps. The technician confirms that the step pieces overlap the one below them and that counter-flashing sits in a proper groove.
Damaged pieces are replaced with new metal, lapped so water sheds down and out over the covering rather than behind it. Fixings are chosen to match the metal, and the top edge is tucked under the wall cladding rather than nailed through the face.
Shingles or tiles are reset over the new metal, with the joint checked from above and below. The technician then runs water over the upper side of the joint while someone watches the attic, so the repair is tested rather than assumed.
Individual pieces of metal are woven between each course of shingles or tile where a roof runs up against a wall. Each piece has to lap the one below it so water sheds down the face of the roof. When a piece is missing, bent or set in the wrong order, water runs behind the wall covering at the first hard rain.
A valley is where two roof planes meet and carry the water from both. Open metal valleys and closed valleys with shingles woven across them fail differently. A closed valley tends to fail where the shingles were cut too close to the center line, and an open metal valley fails where the metal has corroded through or lifted at its edges.
Where a roof meets brick or stone, the base flashing runs up under the masonry and the counter-flashing is set into a groove in the mortar above it. The groove is usually the first part to deteriorate. Crumbled mortar, or a joint that was caulked rather than reset, lets water run behind the metal.
A newer addition built against an older house creates a long joint where two roofs of different ages and slopes meet. The joint moves as the framing settles and as the two structures respond to temperature and wind differently. Repairs there usually mean a continuous piece of metal with a proper lap onto both roofs, plus a check of the fixings along the whole run, not only the spot where the stain appeared.
If it's an emergency, call now. For non-urgent roof flashing repair, send the form and we'll call you back.
Stamford's roofs range from dense multifamily buildings to older single-family houses. Owner occupancy in the city is well below the state figure, so many flashing decisions are made by a landlord, a managing agent or a condominium board rather than by the person who lives under the roof.
On the western end of Long Island Sound, the houses take wind off the water, and the flashings on the seaward side of a house see the most of a nor'easter. Those storms run from September into April and are most frequent and most violent in that span, according to the National Weather Service.
Where a house sits across the line in Westchester, the permit office and the contractor rules are different. A Connecticut home improvement registration does not authorize work in Port Chester, and a Westchester license does not authorize work in Stamford.
Repair of counter-flashing, step pieces and the crown seal where a brick chimney crosses a roof in Fairfield County and lower Westchester.
Tracing where water enters a roof, whether it came in with wind-driven rain or meltwater backing up in winter, and repairing that point.
Repair of skylight curbs, flashing and seals, and installation of new units, for houses in Fairfield County and lower Westchester.
A written look at covering, flashing, decking and ventilation, used to decide between repair and replacement on Fairfield County roofs.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
This coast gets two storm seasons: nor'easters from September into April and tropical systems from June through November.
Sealant can slow a small leak for a season, but it cannot fix metal that has corroded, lapped in the wrong order or lifted away from its fixings. Sealant sitting on top of a failed joint also hides the problem from the next person who looks. A technician decides whether a seal is enough or whether the metal itself has to change, and explains the reason before any work is done.
Often not, but the answer depends on the town. Stamford's building department publishes guidance that ordinary repairs to structures do not need a permit, keeps a list of exempt work, and asks readers to confirm the current rules. Other towns in Fairfield County and across the line in Westchester have their own offices, so the building department for your address is the one to ask. The permit guide for Stamford explains the local track.
Wind drives rain sideways and upward, pushing water under laps that would hold in a steady downpour. A nor'easter also brings sustained easterly wind off the water, which is the load case on this coast. A joint that is marginal often fails only when that wind arrives, which is why the leak appears after a storm rather than during an ordinary rain.
Usually not. Flashing repair is targeted at the joint, and the covering around it is lifted and reset rather than removed. A roof whose covering is worn across most of its area is a different question, and a roof inspection is the step that tells the two apart. The technician will say which one the roof needs.
Call the number on this page. Phones are answered around the clock, and a crew is sent as soon as one is free, but no arrival time is promised. Move valuables away from the spot, set a container under the drip, and if it is safe to reach, switch off any light fixture in the wet area at the breaker.
That depends on the policy and on what caused the damage, and this page cannot settle it. The guide on storm damage and insurance claims in Connecticut explains how to approach a claim, and the policy wording is the document that governs.