Fascia, soffits and gutters

The fascia, soffits and guttering on your property all have a vital role in ensuring that it is dry and pest free, as well as helping your home look good too. Smart fascia and soffits that give the property elegance can help to entice buyers, so if you are looking to put your house on the market, you should give serious consideration to replacing fascia and soffits and find out the cost of replacing soffits fascia and guttering.

As well as making it more appealing purchase, replacing fascia soffit guttering can provide protection for the walls and roof from damp and other associated issues. Clean and brand new PVCU fascia soffits and guttering can increase your property’s value. To help you understand a little better why soffits, fascia and guttering are so important, we will look at them separately.

What are Fascias?

Traditionally, fascias boards are made from softwood and are mounted to a building’s exposed rafters. As softwood quite often rotted easily, UPVC fascia is more commonly used in modern properties. The fascia is there to form a protective seal for the interior of your property and the roof from the weather conditions and elements. It provides the roof tiles with support at eaves level and the guttering. As exposed rafters are not particularly attractive, fascias are also function aesthetically.

What are Soffits?

Soffits are a special covering that sits between the adjacent wall of your house and the roof’s outer edges. The seal and protect the rafter feet. Although not all have them, if your property does, it will be visible if you stand below the roof’s overhand and look up.

Similarly, to fascias, traditional soffits were made from wood, as their style looked better with the rest of a period property. However, just like is the case with fascias, wooden soffits rot and decay easier and this can cause problems for the structural integrity of the roof. So, modern soffits tend to be made from UPVC.

What is the Guttering?

The guttering is the part you are probably most familiar with. This important element collects rainwater from your roof and directs where the water flows as it drains away. That is, down piping and towards a drain, away from the foundations. There is a fall fixed into a guttering system that stops the water pooling where it shouldn’t, a problem that could lead to overflow issues.

Most Common Problems with Soffits and Fascias

Replacing fascias and soffits is crucial to ensure the structural integrity of your roof is maintained if they have been installed incorrectly or are simply old and in bad condition. Some of the most common signs that you need to replace your fascia and soffits are:

• Gutters Leaking – When they aren’t cleaned regularly enough, leaks can develop easily in guttering and start to cause serious damage. Leaves, dirt, balls and other types of debris clog them up and in winter, those watery pools that form freeze and then expand, causing damage.
• Damp and Rot – When there are of your roofline fascia and soffits that have damp and rot this can spread easily and damage the property. At the first signs of any rot, you need to contact a professional firm to help you solve the problem.
• Peeling and Flaking Paint – Ideally, you should sand and repaint any areas where the paint is falling apart to stop further damage from occurring. You really need to think about doing this on a yearly basis, especially if you still have wooden fascias and soffits as they will peel and flake because of the conditions they are constantly exposed to.

As well as the above issues, there are several other reasons why you may have to investigate the cost of replacing soffits, fascia and guttering, such as:

• Bird’s Nests – Unused chimneys and rafters are regular spots where birds make nests. You will find that many of the species that do this are protected and therefore, you need to take care when trying to move them. It is best to get in contact with the RSPB or RSPCA if you have a bird problem.
• Infestations – Aside from birds, there are many pests that live and breed in tight damp areas, and fascia that have started rotting are perfect for rodents and insects. Again, it is best speaking to professionals to help you get rid of any pest you have in your home and roof.
• Asbestos – If you have a newer home, asbestos is not a problem. If, though, your property was built before 2000, it could contain asbestos, as this was used frequently in the 1990s. Its main role was as a fire-retardant material, but it is actually very dangerous, and you can suffer from extremely severe lung problems if you are exposed to asbestos fibres over a long period of time. As with the above, you need to contact a specialist to have asbestos removed and disposed of correctly.

Installing, Fitting and Replacing

The process of installing or replacing fascias, soffits and guttering is very complicated and therefore should only be undertaken by a professional fascia installer. Existing roof tiles and felt should be inspected. It could be that the felt needs to be replaced or cut back, as it may be damaged. Work on a roof is dangerous for you and your home. Without the appropriate scaffolding, training and safety equipment there is a chance you might injure yourself or someone else.

What’s Involved in Replacing Fascias, Soffits and Guttering?

To begin with, the roof’s end tile needs to be removed and the rafters need to be inspected. This is to make sure the rafters are in reasonable condition and don’t need to be repaired. If everything is in relatively good condition, roofline installers will secure sprockets to the feet of the rafters to help ensure the fascia and soffits are properly aligned for a professional look.

Once the fascias and soffits are in place, the ventilation and guttering will then be installed. If your property has low profile tiles you may choose bird combs installed as a preventative measure to stop birds from accessing the roof.

After the soffit and bargeboard, that go on gable ends your home may have, box ends are designed and constructed to fit by the team on site.

We want to reiterate that fascia and soffit installation is not a DIY kind of project. As well as involving personal risk, you could also seriously damage your house and if there is any asbestos found in the building, you could face further health risks. It is therefore, best to hire a professional and reputable company to make sure the work is completed in a more affordable, timely and importantly, safe manner.

Choosing Fascia, Soffit and Guttering Style

As we’ve spoken about earlier, timber was normally used in soffits and fascia. As this increases the amount of maintenance required and as the material is prone to rotting and decaying over time, it may be better to invest in UPVC fascia and other components. Not only does it require less care, attention and maintenance, but it comes in a variety of different designs and colour schemes. You can even find fascia and soffits that have a wood grain effect to ensure your older property retains its traditional look.

You can even find guttering in various sizes and shapes, so make sure you consider all your options before settling on just the ordinary designs.

What Will it Cost?

Fascia soffit and guttering prices very much depend on your property’s dimensions and the choices you make for replacements. A full replacement will also obviously cost more than if you were just replacing the guttering.

Speak to LMG Home Improvements to find out more about their affordable prices, reputable service. Whatever you settle on, carrying out work, replacing fascias, soffits and guttering will not only make your home more comfortable to live, but will help to increase its value when it comes to selling.