How Much Does Fascia Board Repair or Replacement Cost?
Is your home starting to show a little evidence of wear and tear after a rough winter? Maybe it simply needs a bit of a spring clean to get it back to looking its best? Whatever the condition of your home, if you want to keep everything in perfect condition, you’re going to want to start with the fascia boards.
The fascia on your roof isn’t just about improving the overall curb appeal of your home, it’s about protecting your roof from leaks, pests, birds, insects, dust, debris, and general wear and tear. As fantastic as fascia boards are, because they are constantly exposed to the elements, they can begin to break down and deteriorate over time. When this happens, they will quickly need to be repaired, or replaced.
Repairing or replacing a fascia board is all well and good, but considering the fact that everything is seemingly so expensive these days, not everybody has an infinite amount of disposable income handy.
To help you get a better understanding of the costs, here’s a look at everything you need to know about repairing and replacing fascia boards on your home, including the cost.
What Do Fascia Boards Do in the Home?
Before we can even think about repairing or replacing the fascia on your roof, we must first ensure that we understand why the fascia is so important.
Fascia boards play a key role in your home’s roofing system. They are straight, elongated boards that stretch along the lower edge of your roof, where your roof meets your walls. They can be made of many different materials, though the most common are wood, PVC, or aluminum.
Not only can fascia boards look good as they neaten and tidy up the join between the walls and the roof, but they also help to provide structural integrity and ensure that your roof remains watertight.
While fascia boards are fixed firmly in place, as time progresses, they can start to degrade and break down. This can be down to the weather, it can be down to nature, or it can simply be down to the passage of time itself. No matter what causes it, if you notice your roof fascia is damaged, it will need to be repaired or replaced immediately.
How to Spot Damaged Fascia Boards
Of course, in order to determine whether your roofing fascia boards need to be repaired, or replaced entirely, you need to diagnose the problem to learn the extent of the damage.
That’s all well and good, but how exactly can you spot a damaged fascia? It turns out, in plenty of ways, a few of which we’ll be highlighting below.
Sagging guttering
A very simple way of spotting damaged roof fascia is to examine your guttering system. If you can see that your guttering is loose, sagging, and coming away from the fascia and roof, this could be down the fascia.
The most common cause of sagging guttering, when linked to damaged fascia, is when wooden fascia has rotted away due to prolonged exposure to moisture. When this occurs, repair is not an option and the fascia itself will need replacing.
Peeling paint
Another sign that your fascia is suffering from water damage is when the paint begins to crack and peel away. This occurs when water is able to penetrate beneath the surface of the paint and prevent it from adhering to the board. When this happens, it loses its waterproofing, and nearly always needs replacing, rather than re-treating.
Visible damage
Perhaps the most obvious sign that your fascia has seen better days is if you can see visible damage to the exterior. If you can see damp patches, mold, cracks, splits, breaks, discoloration, or signs of damp or rot, this clearly indicates that there is a problem.
Leaking
If you can see water pouring out of your gutters and overflowing when it rains, or signs of leaks or damp in your home, this could be down to the fascia coming away from the roof and allowing water to get inside.
Signs of wildlife
Finally, if you can see signs of wildlife on or around the fascia on your home, chances are it will have resulted in some form of damage or another.
Whether it’s bird nests, wasps, bees, woodworm, or any other creatures, if they are feasting on, or setting up a home in your fascia, you will need to have them removed safely by experts, before then examining the damage.
How Much Does Fascia Repair or Replacement Cost?
Once you’ve examined your fascia to determine the extent of the damage, you can then put the necessary steps in place to repair or replace the board/boards in question.
While prices vary from company to company, case to case, and state to state, here is a general overview of what kind of expenses you can expect when it comes to a fascia board repair or replacement.
The exact amount you spend will depend upon things such materials, the work required, and labor costs. This could range from around $1,000 to as much as $3,500 on average, for a complete fascia replacement.
When it comes to repair work, however, you could potentially save money, if you take care of small problems before they have the chance to turn into bigger issues. DIY repair work for example, could save as much as $20 per foot as far as labor goes, but again, it’s down to you to source the materials and carry out the work. If you do wish to keep labor costs low, try booking off-season, I.E in the early spring or late fall, when demand for fascia replacement or repair services will not be as high.
Materials used is also a driving factor when it comes to the price. Wood for example, may be cheaper upfront that materials such as PVC and aluminum, but it will need to be replaced quicker as wood tends to rot. It will also need painting and/or oiling and treating to make it waterproof. If you do it yourself, you will need to buy the treatments.
