# Cedar shake drip edge at gable end?



## loneframer (Feb 13, 2009)

How old is the roof? I've seen 10 year old cedar shake roof that are completely shot. Mushrooms growing out of the shakes, fungus, brittle, you name it. The last one I saw was over firring, open to attic. Plenty of air circulation on the back side and still, completely at the end of it's useful life at 10 years.


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## MAULEMALL (May 16, 2010)

I'm not trying to be a smartalex but why didn't you take a hose to it from the get go...

I fixed a slate roof leak about a month ago where the water was running in from the rake.. 


We sprayed it down for about an hour with a man inside..


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## sky jumper (Apr 24, 2008)

I'm not sure how old the roof is. but to my untrained eye it appears to be fine. the ends of the shakes are straight & square (not jagged & rotting like some I've seen) and I didn't see any moss or fungus in the area I was working. I think they replaced the ridge caps earlier this year because they look brand new. again the only thing that stands out to me is the gaps along the rake. 

Maulemall - i'm interested in your experience with that leak along the rake. can you tell me more? I never thought of taking a hose to it. not sure i'd want to either - you have to get up on a lower roof to access the wall. not keen on walking on wet shakes.


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## OCRS (Apr 29, 2008)

sky jumper said:


> ...... there's a sizeable gap in some areas where the shakes overlap, especially at the ridge caps.....





sky jumper said:


> ...... I think they replaced the ridge caps earlier this year ......


This may be something. Was one of the roofers who said the roof is fine the same one who replaced the caps? Maybe it's nothing. 

If, in fact, the water is coming from the roof, there will be obvious signs of leakage in the attic. 

Pixs (once the roof dries a bit), wood be good. Ridge, rakes and your wall.


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## jmiller (May 14, 2010)

sky jumper said:


> ...you have to get up on a lower roof to access the wall. not keen on walking on wet shakes.


Now it sounds like there is a wall flashing below this gable end. Is it leaking 'all along the wall' below this wall flashing, or above it? Below means look into the wall flashing above where it's leaking. If leaking above the roof you'd be walking on, look into the drip at the rake edge.

Most rake edge leaks go into the soffit though (if there's an overhang at all), not down the entire length of a wall.


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

are there windows, doors, vents in the wall where water could be coming from?:blink:


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## MAULEMALL (May 16, 2010)

sky jumper said:


> I'm not sure how old the roof is. but to my untrained eye it appears to be fine. the ends of the shakes are straight & square (not jagged & rotting like some I've seen) and I didn't see any moss or fungus in the area I was working. I think they replaced the ridge caps earlier this year because they look brand new. again the only thing that stands out to me is the gaps along the rake.
> 
> Maulemall - i'm interested in your experience with that leak along the rake. can you tell me more? I never thought of taking a hose to it. not sure i'd want to either - you have to get up on a lower roof to access the wall. not keen on walking on wet shakes.


Put a helper in the attic with a flashlight and apply a mist with a hose.... 


Work in sections a few feet at a time from bottom to top... 

On this particular roof it took most of the day to find the leak but the repair was a tube of NP-1


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## sky jumper (Apr 24, 2008)

jmiller said:


> Now it sounds like there is a wall flashing below this gable end. Is it leaking 'all along the wall' below this wall flashing, or above it? Below means look into the wall flashing above where it's leaking. If leaking above the roof you'd be walking on, look into the drip at the rake edge.
> 
> Most rake edge leaks go into the soffit though (if there's an overhang at all), not down the entire length of a wall.


yes - there is flashing at the lower roof, but the leaks are hapening well above that, all the way to the top roof. so yes leaking above where i'm walking. 

no windows, vents, or anything. just a solid wall of cedar lap and typical soffit construction with about 12-14" overhang. the soffit is all 1x cedar that is in fine shape.

if I had to envision what is happening inside the wall I'd say water is getting in and spreading out over the building paper, and then wicking up the nails into the studs - that is why the inside wall is wet only around the studs. but it would have to be a lot of water. to do that.


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## TimelessQuality (Sep 23, 2007)

A fart fan vented to the attic will condense on a cool wall


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## sky jumper (Apr 24, 2008)

ok - I think I'm going to run a bead of clear NP1 along the shake/deck junction for her free of charge and hope that solves it. 

Now -- does anyone know where I can buy NP1 in Chicagoland?? richards and ABC don't carry it.


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## Tom M (Jan 3, 2007)

Take a picture with the cell phone. Maybe some shakes are not lapped properly and allow water in. Sometimes things like this take a long time to leak like an all day rain yet a 20 minute thunderstorms shows nothing. Or a slow leak that never gets to dry out between rains.

If you have shakes on a wall they are likely tucked behind a fascia and a crown or other moulding. ADD in the roof overhang and even those gaps stand a good 3-4" away from the wall so........It sounds like it would take a garden hose to get water in there sideways.


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