What is a roof soffit?

The soffit is the material beneath the eave that connects the far edge of your roof to the exterior wall of your house. They are often vented. Besides being underneath your eaves, soffits can also be on the underside of a porch roof.

What is the purpose of a soffit?

Like many parts of a home's exterior, soffit serves both an aesthetic and a functional purpose. Functionally, the basic mission of soffit is to protect rafters from the elements. Keeping moisture away from the rafters reduces the chance of mold, and helps preserve the life of the materials.

What is the difference between the fascia and the soffit?

An exterior soffit is located on the span beneath the rafter tails, while the fascia is the exposed horizontal band you see at the end of the rafters. These architectural elements found along the eave area do more than just add visual interest and give a finished look to your home.

Where is the soffit on a roof?

The soffit is part of the overhang where your roof meets your siding. When rain or snow hits your roof, it runs down, and the overhang allows the water to flow away from your house. The soffit is underneath the overhang, between the roof's edge and side of your home—the bottom of the triangle, if you will.

What does the soffit look like on a house?

According to Qualityedge.com, the easiest way to tell if your home has soffits is to walk around it look up at the roof. If you can see the underside of the eaves, but you can't see the rafters, your home has soffits. The soffits will most likely be constructed of short planks.

Fascia vs. Soffit (What's the Difference?)

Do all roofs have soffits?

Soffit is the material between the roof's eaves where the fascia and gutters are placed to the wall. Roofs that do not have overhangs do not have soffits. Stand just outside your front door and look up.

Is soffit open to attic?

Soffit vents are roof ventilation devices installed underneath the eaves of a roof that extend past the warm wall line. When properly combined with other roof ventilation devices, soffit vents allow fresh air to enter into an attic creating air flow.

What is the difference between an eave and a soffit?

To summarise, an eave is part of a roof system and a soffit is part of the eave. In simple terms, eaves and soffits are two different parts of the same structure.

How are soffits attached?

On narrow eaves the rafter ends serve to fasten the soffit and fascia. A ledger plate is fastened to the wall to attach the soffit at that location. Wide eaves require additional nailing supports running from the rafter-ends/fascia board and back to the house wall. These are called lookouts.

What is inside a soffit?

A kitchen soffit is usually a boxy structure built to hide wiring, pipes, or other mechanicals, or to fill the space between the top of your cabinets and the ceiling. Depending on the age of your home they may be very large and perhaps even extend out past the cabinets.

What is the trim around the roof called?

Fascia: Vertical roof trim located along the perimeter of a building, usually below the roof level, to cover the rafter tails at the eaves and to seal off the top of the siding along the rake; also called gutter boards.

What is the overhanging edge of a roof called?

What Is a Soffit? Your roof by necessity, will often times extend over the walls of your home. This overhang can go by a few names, such as the house eaves or the rafters of your roof. The underside of this overhang, when given a finished appearance, is known as the soffit, which means “something fixed underneath”.

What is the area under the gutters called?

Specifically, used to describe the horizontal "fascia board" which caps the end of rafters outside a building, which can be used to hold the rain gutter. The finished surface below the fascia and rafters is called the soffit or eave.

What is the difference between soffit and ceiling?

“Soffit” refers to the visible underside of any architectural element; a ceiling, on the other hand, is technically the uppermost surface.

How much does soffit cost?

Soffits are relatively cheaper at about $1 to $3 per linear foot. The total cost will depend on the type of material. Hardware retailers usually sell soffits in 12-foot sections that cost between $10 and $23 each. Choose between vinyl, aluminum, PVC, and wood.

Should soffits be sealed?

Soffit allows air to circulate in and out of the attic through the rafters and is available in both aluminum or vinyl. One important aspect of any home is making sure it is sealed and secure. After soffit is installed, it is important to properly seal it from the many outdoor elements it can come across.

Can you put new soffit over old?

If you happen to be working on an older home, most contractors and homeowners find that they will need to install their vinyl soffit over top of old wood. This can definitely be done, but you will need to take several precautions to prevent the wood from rotting beneath this new layer.

Do I Install fascia or soffit first?

Once you have installed the soffit, you can finish the job by installing the fascia. The fascia will cover the outer edge of the soffit and protect the sub fascia.

How do you fix a soffit?

What is a building soffit?

Head outside and look up at the underside of your roof wherever there is an overhang. The material that connects this piece of the roof to the side of the building is the soffit. Technically, a soffit is any piece that is the underside of any part of your household, including ceilings, stairs, and cornices.

What is a soffit slab?

Soffit Slab consists of a non-combustible rigid ROCKWOOL® board with a variety of facings and is particularly suited for providing cost effective fire resistance and thermal insulation through concrete car park soffits and similar applications.

What is the difference between eaves and fascia?

Eaves—The lower edge of a roof (often overhanging beyond the edge of the house). Fascia—A decorative board extending down from the roof edge either at the eave or at the rake. Felt—The bituminous paper used by roofers, usually made of a combination of asphalt and either paper or rags.

What happens when soffit vents are blocked?

If your soffit vents are blocked, this can cause many problems. The first problem is that the temperature in your attic will increase. It can cause the shingles on your roof to deteriorate and can also lead to ice dams in the winter. Another problem is that the moisture in the air will increase.

Do old houses have soffit vents?

Older homes frequently did not have soffit venting but just a solid, usually plywood, soffit surface. Modern houses usually have a prefinished material, vinyl or aluminum, that's perforated for venting used as soffit material.

How do you clear a blocked soffit vent?

Use Compressed Air for Soffit Vent Cleaning

One of the most effective ways to clean a blocked soffit vent is to use compressed air blasts. A blast of air can easily blow out any debris in the vent. To use this cleaning method, you'll need to place a ladder and an air compressor in the area of the soffit vent.