Seems like a large proportion of my exclusion work involves the construction gap at the gutter line. I can't seem to find much on the forums about how others are sealing this gap. Would love to see some pics or hear your explanations as to how you do it. More often than not I fabricate 22 gauge galvanized metal bent to approximate roof pitch angle. Top leg goes under the shingle and bottom leg behind the gutter if possible. Usually I put these up in sections a couple or three feet long. Width depends on size of gap and whether more of the gap is due to short decking or fascia. Some situation I install commercial galvanized drip edge from Lowes. Sometimes I screw it to the decking and sometimes to the fascia depending on various factors. The most difficult for me seems to be houses with heavy architectural shingles that are old and brittle with gutters mounted high up on the fascia. Any good tips out there? A lot of you experts must have run many miles of construction gap exclusion!

I think what you are talking about is a missing drip edge. I dont see it much in my neck of the woods, but in the north east I did. Sometimes the whole house was missing the drip, and the gap was 4". Just a shingle covering the gap, and lapped into the gutter. We used trim coil custom bent, about 2.5' long and pretty much attached it the way you discribed.

Yep...I almost never see drip edge installed. Of course I only see the houses with critter problems so I'm sure a lot of houses do have it.

That area is about 60% of our squirrel entries in this area. A common short cut done by builders, the homeowners never think about it or know that it is a potential problem, and then I get a call...

Barehunter sounds like you are doing it correctly make sure you overlap the seams a couple of inches and make sure you are up and over the roof decking. Do you bend the metal on location with a metal brake or purchase pr-bent metal?

Very few of the homes I come across have pre installed drip edge and the ones that do are not fastened in the front and critters slide up and under into the attic.

Thanks Rick. I feel that what I'm doing is effective...just looking for tips and tricks that might make it easier. I have access to a sheet metal shop and I keep a stock of several different widths etc made up. I am equipped with a small brake and can custom make on site if necessary. Sometimes the gap is such that I can just install galvanized drip edge from Lowes.

The roof ply should be nailed tight to the fascia board or better yet the sub fascia . So ether the carpenter dint do his job right or the over hang is saging . There could be some dry rot from not having drip edge as well . I would sight down the over hang and see . If you dont have a eye like a eagle you could run a string line down the bottom edge of fascia . If it saging then I would jack it back up and run 2+4 truss tails or 2+4 down the rafters and nail them to the look out blocks in the over hang . The look outs should line up if it was layed out right before constuction , everything stacks in the carpenter world .There could already be tails with nails so you will need to cut them with your saws all before you jack it up . Might be not be able to swing a hammer ether so just glue and screw . If its just a gap running from one end to the other that means the carpenter didn't figur his pine line right . If the drip edge won't cover the whole gap you can just extend it by running a strip of medal behind the drip edge and behing the gutter . Run screw into the drip edge and the gutter that will work well on rot to. If you notice the nails holding the gutter there will rot from the water running down the nail . The nailed on gutter system really doesn't work because in time it rots out the fascia . If the singles can't be lifted to nail the drip edge on the just screw it right threw the shingle and explane to the customer why there's little tarred screw heads all along the edge . I would also explane the problem to your customer in great detail so when they do get a new roof this gap can be corrected . If they get a new roof and the roofer removes your fix and animal problem returns it will be your name there bad mouthing to there friends . Also explane that when they get new ridge vent that ether they need solid metal vent or run strips of hardware cloth down before the vent . If they dont understand just tell them to call you before the new roof goes on , they won't call but when the animals return they will Blaim the roofer because he said he had 30 years exp and knows all about it . Then they will just call you back . Drip edge is code here so it's on all the edges even the rakes . Most aluminum some galvanized

Thanks Pesky. You would be shocked at what we see here in the Atlanta Metro area. Apparently somewhere along the line somebody got the crazy idea there NEEDED to be a gap there. Plywood (or OSB) decking is very commonly started 2" up the rafters (or trusses) and on top of that the fascia commonly doesn't go to the top of the rafter tails. This leaves a huge gap that nothing covers but shingles. And of course on hip and valley corners and over gutter spikes there is nothing covering it at all. Critters running in the gutters have unlimited access to the attic. I see this on construction from fairly recent to decades old. This isn't a matter of saggy soffit etc. They start out that way. I guess I shouldn't complain about it as there is a lot of money to be made excluding these houses, but I did carpenter work/ framing etc for many years and just can't understand why they are being built this way. Mainly I want to learn every trick of the trade I can to facilitate excluding these areas.

Maybe add a 2" rip of plywood (OSB) so it will go all the way to the fascia , this would act like a shim , then bend metal over the whole thing . Then to attach it at the top using glue . I dont care what people say todays glues are stronger than any nails or screws .Screw the bottom of the metal . Might need to invest in a pick as well . I think them house down your way are stick framed mostly . I think they add the plywood and over hangs , siding , windows to the walls after the roof is sheated with plywood . They most likely hold the plywood up some because of the skill the guy has that's sheating the roof . The better guys on the crew are running around doing punch out and stuff . That's just a guess . There's most likely a differnt reason they would give but that would be the real reason . up here we frame the walls laying down , and add the windows ,overhangs , siding , some even paint it , then stand the wall up all a done deal . The plywood is started at the fascia . There should be no gaps but still there is . This gap is also on my exclusion check list and can be hard to find at times

I ran into that all the time in the Raleigh/Durham area in NC. Especially in the nicer homes. Flying squirrels loved it.

The homes in the ATL market are large and real nice to look at but most are built like [Please excuse my language... I'm an idiot]. On the bigger gaps I still use galv valley flashing just a wider piece of it. Most homes I do 4 inch flashing works fine and I keep a hefty supply of six in handy and even a few rolls of 14inch for the real crappy built homes.

I have seen home that the gap in the front was maybe 1/4 of an inch or less and in the back of the home be 8 inches.....really!!

Holy cow watch your step . You could have a Canada goose come nest in a gap that big . That's a joke but could true some day . The geese are trying to learn . I see them standing on roof tops like there a dove or something . That kinda gap or any gap wouldn't fly up here because of the ice daming . To the north of me in the snow belt areas they have exposed metal roofing for the first 4 foot . This helps the snow slide off better . Sounds like the twp inspectors need to take a closer look In Atlanta . I would like to buy a peace of land north of Atlanta up in them foot hills . Some place to do a little gold mining In the winter time . Pop a few deer catch a few cats . Nice part of the country and the yellow gold from that area is breath taking . I have a few nuggets I found in that area and some wire gold to

Come on down Pesky! Thars gold in them thar hills!

Yeah, I've heard that that gap was intended to vent the attic!

I've heard that one too. Of course it makes no sense as the shingles largely cover the gap as far as air flow is concerned plus these houses all have some type of soffit, gable and ridge vents.

Here is a pic of a typical construction gap. I've seen them a whole lot worse than this!

There's no way for the air to flow in that gap . Sofit vent is made to catch the air when it hits the side of the house . Thats why it faces in so acts like a funnel to catch the air after it hits the house . That's some hack and gash carpenter work in that picture . How would one find a good place to mine gold in GA .do you know of any creeks I could lease or something like that

You can pan gold anywhere in the Chattahoochee National Forest from what I understand.
http://www.fs.usda.gov/detailfull/conf/recreation/?cid=stelprdb5120146&width=full

This is a 750,000 acre national forest so there is a lot of wilderness back country!

That's some good info but I'm looking to dredge or hard rock mine

Barehunter:

We do exclusion work in the Richmond and Charlottesville, Virginia areas and see these gaps all the time.

--Eddie