# Flashing Peeling Up on New Roof



## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

Dear wonderful people of DIY Chatroom,

The flashing on my roof is peeling up and I’m wondering how to fix this.

About a year ago, I got a new roof. A few months ago, the apron flashing (or it could be headwall or endwall flashing, I’m not sure) began peeling up and water began leaking into my house. I called the roofer and they sent a worker to “fix it.” The worker pushed down the flashing, hammered a few more nails into the flashing, and put white caulk around the nail heads. 

A few weeks later, the flashing began peeling up again. The edge of the flashing is about 1.5 inches above the roof. I’m not sure what is under the roofing shingles, but when I went into the attic, I saw wood and some black goo.

I’m wondering:
(1) Was the roofer supposed to put nails into the flashing? 
(2) Did the roofer do anything wrong? 
(3) What is the proper way to install flashing like this and what should I tell the roofer to do to fix this? (Is there a roofing building code standard number I can refer to?)

Attached are some pictures that should help. The little nail/screw that has left a totally exposed hole is about 1 inch long. This peeling side is on the north-west, if that makes a difference. 

Thank you for any help.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Post up a picture.

Nailing through flashing is never ideal but unavoidable in some cases. Most times, apron flashing should be fabricated out of a coil stock gauge that is significant enough to hold itself down without having to be face nailed. 

Post up a picture if you can.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

So sorry, I guess I'm a bit new to this posting pictures thing. Sorry for the useless grey boxes in my first post. Let met try a different way.

Before the pictures though, I did a little bit more research and I think what's happening is that flashing is expanding and contracting as it heats up during the day and cools down at night. Since the flashing is secured on both edges, it doesn't have room to expand and contract and that leads to the edge peeling up . . . I think. Can someone confirm this?


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

LeakyHawaiiRoof said:


> I think what's happening is that flashing is expanding and contracting as it heats up during the day and cools down at night.


I doubt that, you guys don't have that much of a temperature swing. 

I looks to me that the metal is bent at the wrong angle. The only fix imo is to redo it.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

These roofers did not happen to be hanging out in a Home Depot parking lot. I would contact the shingle manufacturer and have them send someone to look at it. Also check with the Attorney General if anyone else has made complaints against this roofer.

That is from all appearances a roofing job that you would find in the backwoods of Kentucky.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

Thank you kwikfishron, that makes sense. So if I understand this correctly, the flashing was made at a 90 degree angle. To hold the flashing down, the roofer nailed it to the more horizontal part of the roof. This created downward pressure slightly bending the flashing to more than 90 degrees. Since the metal is naturally 90 degrees, it wants to get back to that shape and it exerts upward pressure on the nails; that's why the nails are coming off.

Instead, the roofer should have used a metal break (I think that is the proper name of the tool, please correct me if I'm wrong) to permanently bend the metal to match the roof angle and should have also add another bend to keep the metal straight. So it looks like this: 










If the roofer bent the flashing properly, he probably would not have needed to use nails to hold down the flashing and there wouldn't be holes in my roof leaking water. (ughhhhhhhhhhhh!) 

I also looked up some codes on flashing (Honolulu follows the 2003 International Building Code). Unfortunately, it just says:



> *1503.2 Flashing. *
> 
> Flashing shall be installed in such a manner so as to prevent moisture entering the wall and roof through joints in copings, through moisture-permeable materials and at intersections with parapet walls and other penetrations through the roof plane.*
> 
> ...


http://publicecodes.cyberregs.com/icod/ibc/2003/icod_ibc_2003_15_sec003.htm

And Gregzoll, thanks, I think. I did a lot of research on my roofer and didn't find any complaints. It is a pretty big company and I couldn't find anything wrong. It was also named a top roofing company in Hawaii by a contractor magazine. I guess sometimes I just get unlucky. Do you see anything else wrong?


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

There is no way that roof is going to stand up to high winds or a Hurricane. As for being named top roofing co in a magazine. That info can be falsified. I would be talking to a lawyer, and as I stated before, check with the licensing board in Hawaii, to see if this roofer is even properly licensed, or has ever had bad remarks against them.

Did they ever give you referral's on your Island, of other jobs they have done?


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

gregzoli, aww man, I don't want to sue them. I just want the roofer to fix what it did wrong. Can you explain more how the roof won't hold up to high winds?

Aside from the flashing not being properly bent, do you see anything else wrong? 

So I checked the licensing of the roofer. Everything seems ok. Contractor license is "current, valid, and in good standing." Insurance and bonds are current too. The Better Business Bureau of Hawaii Inc has no complaints against them. I googled <complaint name> complaints and didn't find anything either. Yelp has 9 reviews, each 5 out of 5 stars. I'm not saying that any of those alone are indicative of anything, just that I can't find anything that hints negative.


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Other than the roof to wall flashing and the fact the shingles should not have been used on those little walls the roof looks fine to me from what I can see but I'm not a roofer. 

I'm sure a few of our resident roofing Pros will chime in here shortly.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Personally that flashing should cover that whole section across the top and other areas that are peaks.

No one stated to go out tomorrow and sue the contractor. But you really need to talk to a lawyer and get your ducks in a row, if you are going to get them to correct the problem.

Also as for Yelp & BBB. Those can be manipulated. As for their record with the state. If no one complains and figures that the work is how it is supposed to be. Then comes a Hurricane or high winds and rips the roofing materials up, home owner just goes and gets it replaced without knowing first hand if installation was the issue.

You need to contact the manufacturer of the shingles and have them look at the job, to see if it even meets their standards. But as a fellow homeowner. I would not have handed over my hard earned money on how that peak flashing was done.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

Damn gregzoll, just kick me while I'm down. Really hurts. 

Sorry I didn't mention this before, but the roof has a 10 or 20 year warranty, I gotta check which one. The roofer is also very responsive and seems willing to honor the warranty, or at the very least stop the roof from leaking. I scheduled the roofer to come to my house on Monday to see the problem. I guess what I really need is to figure out what should I ask. From what you folks posted, I'm going to ask:

(1) The roofer to fix the peeling up flashing by asking them to remove the flashing (and everything above it), properly bend some flashing in the shape I posted above, and install that proper flashing; and 

(2) When the roofer installs the parts above the flashing, do not shingles because shingles generally are not supposed to be installed vertically. (maybe the roofer will say the shingles are rated for vertical use)

In the meanwhile, I'll do my best to contact the shingles manufacturer (I have a package of spare shingles in my basement that should have the manufacturer's name on it), but I'm not optimistic they'll be working on the weekends to answer my question. 

Any other ideas?


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

10 to 20 years if it is done properly. That roofing job will not last five years in the state that it is in.

There should be no shingles along that vertical area. It should all be flashing from the top to where it meets the roof.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

The shingles on my roof are Legacy AB by Malarkey Roofing Products. The Legacy AB shingles are the same as the regular Legacy except for the addition of copper roofing granules on the top surface for algae resistance. http://www.icc-es.org/Reports/pdf_files/ESR-3150.pdf

I didn't bother calling Malarkey because by the time I found my brand of shingles it was pretty late at their office in Oregon.

Anyway, I found a Malarkey shingle application instructions and details pdf file. The short answer is that their shingles shouldn't be installed vertically. It says: "6.6 Roof decks that are to be shingled must have a minimum of 2" of roof slope and a maximum of 21" of roof slope." I assume the roof slope is per 12 inches of horizontal roof. In any case, 21 inches isn't completely vertical. Here's the file: http://www.malarkeyroofing.com/wp-c...l/Malarkey_Specification_Manual_Section-6.pdf

Obviously, this assumes the vertically installed shingles are the same leftover Legacy AB I have in my basement and that the instruction pdf applies to the Legacy AB shingles.

Can you guys give me feedback if I'm moving in the correct direction here? Thanks!


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## hotrod351 (Jun 15, 2012)

looks like the screws are to short, or hit dead space. put a thick bead of henery's under it then use longer screws. that should do it. want to get fancy use some of those screws they use for metal roofs with the rubber washers to self seal them.


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## OldNBroken (Jun 11, 2008)

I've seen many a vertical application like that and none end well. Most had the laminate fall off the back due to heat and gravity. Such a small area it would have actually been easier to do it correctly in all metal. 
The existing flashing they installed will never lay down because it appears to be just a simple 4x4 bent at a 90. instead of fabricating a termination flashing to fit your roof they just used a stock roofing product. 

Don't waste any more time or effort trying to get that to lay down because it won't. Put screws in it will only make it a roller coaster because the overbend is not going to give. Only places it will be tight to the roof is where you put a fastener. 

They appear to have done a fairly neat job on the cap. Too bad they failed miserably on everything underneath.

Insist that your contractor remove everything from the flashing up and do it correctly. Fabricate a proper roof-to-wall that matches the pitch of your roof. Over that install a metal fascia, then put the cap back on. Very simple. 

Did I mention insist on that?
Also insist on a stiffening rib in the middle of the fascia. If they just slap flatstock on (that's what most would do) then it's going to oil-can and look like a wrinkled mess


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

Thank you to everyone for being so patient with me. I really don't know the first thing about roofing other than holes are bad. 

OldNBroken, can I get some clarification on "stiffening rib in the middle of the fascia"?

Does it mean, that after the roofer removes the two sets of flashing and the vertical shingles, and the roofer installs apron flashing like this:









The roofer should then install a piece of metal overlapping the apron flashing, right? And that piece of metal is called the fascia, right? And I should insist that the roofer put a long horizontal metal bend in that metal that kinda looks like a skinny U, aka a stiffening rib. And that stiffening rib should keep the fascia from warping and bending, right? And then the cap goes over that.

Sorry my roofing vocabulary is practically non-existent.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

This is about the closes I can find, to show how the layers of flashing should be done. In your case, the Z Flashing would be as high as the height between roof and flat peak section. http://www.roofkey.com/roof-to-wall-flashing.html


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

Hello, I thought I give you folks a little update. I called the shingles manufacturer first thing today (Monday) to ask if the vertically installed shingles are ok. 

The operator sent me to a technical services person. After looking at a picture I emailed to him, he said that the vertically installed shingles were ok. The tone of his voice was a "oh that's totally ok" instead of an "well, that might sort of be ok." I also confirmed that the shingle warranty would also apply to the vertically installed shingles and he said yes. 

The roofer comes over in a few hours so I guess I can't say "the manufacturer said . . . " I'm still going to ask for flashing instead of the vertical shingles, but now I have less ammunition and I might have to pay for it myself.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

You should not have to pay for their mistake in not properly installing the flashing. BTW, when they did the roof. Did you place Grace Ice & Water Shield on the bottom edge of the roof, same as on that vertical section, vs. just placing Tar Paper down.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

^^ I don't know. Is there a way I can check without removing or destroying anything?


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

LeakyHawaiiRoof said:


> ^^ I don't know. Is there a way I can check without removing or destroying anything?


Nope. That is why you stay on site while something like this is being done, or appoint someone else to supervise.


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## LeakyHawaiiRoof (Oct 21, 2014)

So the roofing company sent someone to my house today. I was under the impression that someone with real roofing knowledge would come, but I was wrong. 

I ended up getting a regular worker who really didn't know much. He said he was instructed to nail down the flashing. 

I explained that the problem is that the flashing is not properly bent to match the slope of the roof. He said (in a pretty strong Filipino accent) that the flashing is manufactured in bends of 90 degree or 45 degrees angles (I think he meant 135 degrees (90 + 45) or perhaps 120 degrees). He also said that they don't have a way to bend it. WHAT?!?!?! This is one of the largest roofing companies in the state and they don't have a way to bend flashing! Then he said he was just the installer and not the person who orders the flashing.

After some discussion with the roofing office of what to do, his boss said to take pictures (including pictures of the attic) and someone will look at it. Meanwhile, the worker removed the useless short nails and tried to re-secure the peeling flashing so at least it will stop leaking for now without making even more holes in my roof. I told him that its just going to peel up again because the flashing is naturally 90 degrees. 

Ultimately, the worker who came really didn't have authority to say it was ok to replace the flashing. Right now, I'm still a bit optimistic that someone at the office, who knows the first thing about roofing, will look at the pictures and see what's wrong. However, my patience is wearing thin.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

Time for you to go speak to a lawyer.


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