Fascia and soffit repair in Lewiston, ID

The fascia is the board along the edge of the roof that your gutters screw into. The soffit is the panel that closes in the underside of the eave. When water gets behind a gutter for years, the fascia rots, and a gutter can't stay up on rotted wood. Lewiston Rain Gutters replaces damaged fascia and soffit and rehangs the gutters on solid wood.

How to tell fascia or soffit is damaged

Rot usually starts behind the gutter where you can't see it. By the time it shows from the ground, the board is often soft for several feet.

Fascia

Peeling or bubbling paint along the board, especially near corners and downspout outlets
Dark stains or streaks running down the face of the board below the gutter
The gutter tilting outward or pulling away even after new fasteners
Screws that spin without tightening when a hanger is replaced
Soft wood that a screwdriver pushes into with light pressure
Gaps or splits where two boards meet at a corner

Soffit

Sagging or loose panels under the eave
Water stains or mildew on the underside of the overhang
Holes or chewed edges where birds, bats, squirrels, or wasps have moved in
Daylight visible at the eaves from inside the attic where it shouldn't be
Painted-over or blocked vents that no longer let air into the attic

What causes it

Almost all fascia rot comes from water that should have gone into the gutter but didn't. The common reasons:

Clogged gutters overflowing over the back edge instead of the front
Missing or short drip edge, the metal flashing at the roof edge that should direct water into the gutter
Gutters hung too low, leaving a gap where water runs down the board behind them
Leaking corners and end caps that drip onto the same spot for years
Ice dams pushing meltwater back under the roof edge
Failed paint that let moisture into bare wood

Fixing the board without fixing the cause means doing it again in a few years. Each of these is checked as part of the repair, and leaking gutters get gutter repair at the same time.

Replacing fascia means taking the gutter down first

Take the gutter down

The gutter has to come off the damaged section. There's no reliable way to replace fascia behind a gutter that's still attached.
Find where the rot ends

The board is probed along its length to find sound wood. The ends of the rafters behind it are checked too, since water that rotted the fascia can reach them.
Cut out and replace

Rotted fascia is cut back to solid wood or replaced for the full length of that side. New boards are primed on every face and cut end before they go up, so water can't wick into raw wood.
Repair the soffit

Damaged soffit panels are replaced with wood, vinyl, or aluminum, matching what's there or upgrading it. Vented panels are used where the attic needs airflow.
Flash and finish

Drip edge is checked or added so water clears the board. The new wood is finished with paint or wrapped in aluminum fascia cover.
Rehang the gutter

The gutter goes back up on hidden hangers screwed into the new wood, with the slope reset toward the outlet.

Wood, wrapped, or composite fascia

Painted wood matches older homes and is the simplest to replace in short sections, but it needs repainting over the years. Wood wrapped in aluminum covers the board with a bent metal cover that doesn't need paint; the wood under it still has to be sound and dry. Composite or PVC trim boards don't rot, but they cost more and expand with heat, so they need proper fastening and joints.

Soffit and attic ventilation

In many houses, the soffit is where fresh air enters the attic. Blocking it with solid panels or paint traps heat and moisture up there, which can contribute to ice dams in winter. When soffit is replaced, it's a good time to make sure vents are open and not covered by insulation from inside.

How long it takes

A few feet of fascia at one corner is often part of a single day's gutter work. A full side of the house, rotted rafter tails, or soffit replacement along several runs takes longer.

Why fascia repair is hard to price before the gutter comes off

The amount of rotted wood is the biggest factor, and it isn't always known until the gutter is off. We tell you what we can see beforehand and what could change once the board is exposed.

Length of damaged fascia, from a short patch to a full side
Rafter tail damage behind the fascia, which adds carpentry
Material: painted wood, aluminum-wrapped wood, or composite trim
Soffit area and material, and whether vented panels are needed
Height and access at second-story eaves
Gutter removal and rehanging, or replacement if the old gutters aren't worth putting back
Lead-safe work practices on older painted trim, explained below

If the gutters that came down are old and leaking, this is the natural time to put up new ones instead. Replacing the gutters while the fascia is open avoids paying to rehang a system that'll need replacing soon. See replacing the gutters with seamless for how that works.

Older Lewiston homes and painted trim

A large share of Lewiston's housing is older. U.S. Census Bureau survey data for the Lewiston School District area shows about 47 percent of homes were built before 1970. Original wood fascia on those houses has often been painted many times, and paint applied before 1978 can contain lead.

Federal EPA rules cover renovation work on homes built before 1978. When work disturbs more than 20 square feet of painted exterior surface in total, the EPA's Renovation, Repair, and Painting rule requires lead-safe work practices, such as containing paint chips and debris and cleaning up properly. Replacing a full side of fascia can easily pass that 20 square foot line.

What that means for you: if your house was built before 1978, mention the year when you call. It affects how the old trim should be removed and how the job is planned and priced. You can read more on the EPA lead renovation page.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2019 to 2023 via NCES; U.S. EPA Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program.

Fascia and soffit damage that needs fast attention

Rotted fascia is usually a planned repair. Call us at any hour when the damage has turned into a hazard or is letting water into the house.

A section of fascia has let go and the gutter attached to it is falling or hanging
Wind has torn soffit or fascia loose and pieces are hanging over a walk or entry
Water is coming in at the top of an outside wall or through the ceiling near the eave

Keep people and vehicles away from the area below. A gutter on rotted fascia can drop without warning, especially when it's full of water or snow. If animals have moved into the soffit, keep the attic hatch closed and call a wildlife removal service first, since openings shouldn't be sealed with animals still inside.

Call (208) 858-8002

Keeping new fascia sound

New trim lasts as long as it stays dry. Keep the gutters flowing, since a clog is the most common way water gets behind them again; a yearly gutter cleaning takes care of that. Repaint painted fascia when the finish starts to crack, before water reaches bare wood. After a hard rain, look along the board for fresh streaks below the gutter.

Related work

Older homes with original fascia often have half-round gutters or steel gutters that were hung on brackets or spikes. If you're replacing both the trim and the gutters, that's the time to decide on profile, size, and metal. On Normal Hill, where the typical house dates to 1938, trim work is especially likely to be part of a gutter replacement. We do fascia and soffit work throughout the Lewiston neighborhoods we serve.

Fascia vs. soffit and other trim questions

What's the difference between fascia and soffit?

Fascia is the vertical board along the roof edge that the gutters attach to. Soffit is the horizontal panel underneath the overhang, between the fascia and the wall of the house. Both protect the ends of the rafters and the attic from weather.

Can rotted fascia be replaced without taking the gutters down?

Not properly. The gutter is fastened through the fascia, so it has to come off that section to remove the bad wood and fasten new boards. It goes back up on new hangers afterward.

Should I cover my fascia with aluminum?

Aluminum wrap ends repainting and protects the face of the board, which many owners like. It only works over sound, dry wood, though, and it can hide rot if water gets behind it, so the wood has to be repaired first and the gutters have to work.

Do I need new gutters if my fascia is rotted?

Not always. If the gutters are in good shape, they can be rehung on the new fascia. If they're old, leaking at several joints, or the wrong size, replacing them at the same time saves rehanging gutters you would replace soon anyway.

Why are birds or bats getting into my soffit?

Rot, loose panels, or gaps at corners give them a way in. The opening has to be repaired, but only after the animals are out. A wildlife removal service can handle that part before the soffit is closed up.

Does soffit affect attic ventilation?

On many houses, yes. Vented soffit is where outside air enters the attic. When soffit is replaced or painted, vents need to stay open, or the attic can hold heat and moisture.

Get solid wood behind your gutters

Call Lewiston Rain Gutters at (208) 858-8002. Tell us where you see peeling paint, stains, or a gutter that won't stay tight, and roughly when the house was built. We'll look at the trim, tell you how far the damage seems to go, and give you a price for the repair.