by Kenton Shepard and Nick Gromicko

    

The purpose of the series “Mastering Roof Inspections” is to teach home inspectors, as well as insurance and roofing professionals, how to recognize proper and improper conditions while inspecting steep-slope, residential roofs. This series covers roof framing, roofing materials, the attic, and the conditions that affect the roofing materials and components, including wind and hail.

   

FLASHING, Part 4

  

Kickout Flashing

 

Where a wall extends past a roof eave, sidewall flashing stops at the edge of the eave, since this is where the sidewall condition ends.  At the lower roof edge, sidewall flashing should extend out from the wall at least a couple of inches and be bent to an angle. This is called "kickout" flashing.

 

Except for a few manufacturers whose requirements you won’t know about, there are no minimum size requirements.

 

 

 

This particular kickout is bigger than most you’ll see. Usually, the kickout is cut from a piece of the step-flashing.

 

 

This detail is kickout flashing, and its purpose is to prevent runoff from entering behind the exterior wall-covering where the flashing ends.

 

 

Kickout flashing is required regardless of the type of roof-covering material or exterior wall covering, with the exception of brick and concrete block, since sidewall flashing doesn’t penetrate the wall with those types of coverings.

 

Water cascading down the sidewall joint needs to be diverted to the exterior of the siding when it reaches the edge of the roof. This kickout needs to have a sealant applied to make the kickout waterproof.

 

 

 

Here are some examples showing kickout flashing that is missing.

 

 

A kickout is easy to fabricate on site. A piece of step-flashing is cut partially through one flange, and the corner is clipped off.

 

 

Then, it’s bent to shape and installed.

 

Changes in Roof Slope or Direction

 

As already mentioned, the IRC calls for flashing to be installed at areas in which the roof changes slope or direction. Here are examples of some of these areas.

 

Valleys

 

The ways that valleys are flashed often vary according to the method used for installing shingles in the valley.

 

Hips

 

Although hips are similar to valleys in that they’re oriented diagonally to the ridge and create a change of roof direction, hips don’t get flashing. This is because they tend to shed runoff instead of collecting it the way valleys do, so there’s much less chance of leakage with hips.