Last reviewed October 31, 2026.
After a hard rain, someone in the driveway spots a dark stain running down the fascia board, right under the gutter. The gutter is clean. The water is sneaking behind it, along the edge of the roof, and nothing up there is steering it into the trough.
That edge is where drip edge belongs. It is a long, bent strip of metal nailed along the roof’s perimeter. It is easy to miss from the ground, and just as easy to miss on a quote.
The bent metal along the roof’s perimeter
This Old House, in a drip edge article by Joseph Truini updated June 2, 2026, says the metal guides water into the gutters, protects the fascia boards and lowers the risk of ice dams in colder climates. At the bottom, a metal drip edge bends out into a lip called a kicker, which keeps water from running down the fascia board.
The same article names galvanized steel, aluminum and copper as the most common and durable metals. Plastic drip edge is lighter and will not corrode. The article says it may be less durable, though, and suits milder climates better.
Near salt water, the metal matters. Our Brookhaven town page suggests a quote for a bayfront house should name the metal used for flashing and drip edge. Rotted fascia, and how a failed drip edge feeds the rot, are on the soffit and fascia page.
Section R905.2.8.5, eave and rake
Section R905.2.8.5 of the state’s current residential code, the 2025 edition, says a drip edge shall be provided at eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs. The eaves are the level bottom edges where gutters hang. The rakes are the sloped edges that climb the gable ends.
The section also spells out how it goes on:
| Detail | Code minimum |
|---|---|
| Overlap where two pieces meet | 2 inches |
| How far it hangs below the roof sheathing | 1/4 inch |
| How far it reaches back onto the roof deck | 2 inches |
| Fastener spacing | No more than 12 inches on center |
The fasteners have to meet section R905.2.5, the same rule that covers shingle fasteners.
Which layer laps over which
The code sets the order: underlayment goes over the drip edge along the eaves and under the drip edge along the rakes. This Old House says the same thing in plainer words, with the metal under the felt at the eaves and over it at the rakes.
At the eave, the metal goes down first, right on the wood. The ice and water membrane or the first course of underlayment laps on top. Water sliding down the underlayment lands on the metal and drips off past the fascia instead of slipping behind it.
At the rake, it flips. The underlayment goes on first and the metal caps it, so wind-driven rain slapping the gable edge cannot get under the sheet.
The article also quotes This Old House general contractor Tom Silva. In areas with heavy snow, Silva advises bringing a self-sealing membrane from the roof down onto the fascia board before the drip edge goes on. What that membrane is and where else it goes is on the ice and water shield page. Felt and synthetic options for the main field of the roof are in the underlayment guide.
How the shingles sit at the edge
This Old House says the outer edge of the drip edge should sit about 3/4 inch past the fascia, with the flange slid all the way under the first course of shingles. At corners it describes overlapping the pieces about 2 inches with 45-degree miter cuts, then nailing every 12 inches.
Starter strips and shingle exposure follow the shingle maker’s instructions. Our shingle page covers which brands publish what.
When a roofing quote skips the edge metal
Our research turned up no Long Island roofer that prices drip edge on its own, or explains why some estimates leave the line off. The code, though, is clear: a new shingle roof needs drip edge at every eave and rake. A quote that never mentions it leaves three possibilities. It is included and just not listed. The old metal is being reused. Or it is being left out.
Do not count on the shingle warranty to sort it out. Owens Corning’s own system warranty, the August 2026 System Protection document, says it does not cover non-Owens Corning components such as flashing, fasteners, pipe boots and wood decking. Ask the roofer, in writing, who stands behind the edge metal.
Gutters hang right at this edge. If they are coming down for the roof work anyway, read the gutter page before the new metal goes on.
Edge metal questions for the roofer
- Is new drip edge included at every eave and every rake, or only the eaves?
- What metal is it, and what gauge or thickness?
- Is any old drip edge being reused?
- Will the membrane at the eaves lap over the metal, and the underlayment at the rakes go under it?
- If gutters come off, who puts them back, and is that on this quote?
For everything else a roofing quote should list, see roof replacement.
