Roofing & Exterior
The First Board to Rot, and the One Holding Your Gutters
Fascia runs along your roof edge behind the gutter; rake boards run up the gable ends. Both take the Northwest's water first, and fascia rots from the back — where you never see it — until the gutters it carries start to sag. We replace them and fix the reason they got wet.
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Signs to watch
Is this you?
Gutters sagging or pulling away from the house
Gutters are only as solid as the fascia they hang on. When the board behind them turns punky, the spikes and hangers lose their grip and the whole run starts to drop — the sag is the fascia failing, not the gutter.
Peeling paint or dark streaks behind the gutter
Fascia hides behind the gutter, stays wet longest, and rots from the back where you never see it. Peeling paint on the face is the late warning, not the early one — by the time it shows, the back is often gone.
You can push a screwdriver into the board
Soft, spongy fascia or rake board means the rot is already advanced. Painting over it buys a season; the real fix is replacing the board and finding out why it got wet in the first place.
Streaking or rot climbing your gable ends
Rake boards run up the exposed gable edges with no gutter to hide behind, taking wind-driven rain head-on. When the drip edge or roof-edge flashing at the rake lets go, water gets behind the board and it rots from the top down.
Your options
Replace the board and fix why it rotted
We replace rotted fascia and rake boards in primed cedar, PVC, or fiber-cement trim where you want to stop repainting for good, and we re-hang the gutters on solid backing so they hold. But swapping the board is half the job — fascia and rake boards rot because water is getting behind them, so we chase down the cause: a drip edge that's missing or set wrong, a gutter overflowing and wicking back, or a flashing gap at the roof edge. We correct the drip edge and roof-edge flashing so water sheds off the roof and past the board instead of behind it, prime the new board on all sides before it goes up, and reset the gutter pitch while we're in there. Fix the board without fixing the source and you'll be back here in three winters.
The method
How we do it
- 01
Find the rot and the source
We pull back the gutter where needed, probe the fascia and rake boards to map how far the rot runs, and trace back to what's keeping them wet — drip edge, gutter pitch, or roof-edge flashing. Photos of everything.
- 02
Fixed-price scope
You see exactly which boards get replaced, in what material, and what we're correcting behind them — drip edge, flashing, gutter pitch — approved in writing before we start.
- 03
Replace, flash, re-hang, and finish
New boards cut and primed on all sides, drip edge and roof-edge flashing set right, gutters re-hung on solid backing at proper pitch, and the finish matched. Before/after photos for your records.
Straight numbers
What fascia and rake-board replacement costs
Most fascia and rake work we do runs from a few hundred dollars for a short spot repair up into the low thousands for a full roofline, depending on how many boards are gone, the height and access, whether the gutters have to come down, and the material you pick. Primed wood sits at the low end; wrapping the roofline in maintenance-free PVC or fiber-cement runs higher and ends the repaint cycle. Because this work usually rides alongside a roof, gutter, or trim project, bundling it saves the second mobilization — ask for the combined number.
Where we do this work
Fascia & Rake-Board Replacement: straight answers
Do you have to remove my gutters to replace the fascia behind them?
Usually yes — the fascia is the board your gutters hang on, so it comes down to get the new board in. It's the natural moment to check the gutters themselves and reset the drip edge and pitch, which is often exactly why the fascia rotted in the first place. We re-hang the gutters on the new board so they actually hold.
Should I switch to PVC or fiber-cement so I never repaint the fascia?
Often worth it on fascia and rake boards, which take the worst of the weather. PVC and fiber-cement don't rot and hold paint far longer than wood. We'll price both — real wood costs less up front and costs it back in repainting and eventual rot. On the roof edge, where water hits hardest, the upgrade usually pays off.
What's the difference between fascia and a rake board?
Fascia runs horizontally along the eaves — the roof edges where your gutters hang. Rake boards run up the sloped gable ends, where there's no gutter, so they take wind-driven rain directly. Both rot from water getting behind them, but the causes differ: fascia usually from gutter and drip-edge problems, rake boards from failed roof-edge flashing. We handle either and fix the specific source.
Why does my fascia keep rotting even after it was painted?
Because paint treats the symptom, not the cause. Fascia rots from the back — from a gutter overflowing, a missing drip edge, or water wicking off the roof edge. Until the water is redirected with proper flashing and gutter pitch, a fresh coat just hides the problem while the board keeps failing underneath. We fix what's wetting the board, not just its face.
Get the fascia & rake-board replacement conversation started.
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