The Short Answer
Roof edge damage usually means the drip edge, starter shingles or the deck edge has failed, letting water run behind the gutter onto the fascia and into the wood. In Michigan, ice dams and overflowing ice at the eaves are a leading cause. The 2015 Michigan Residential Code requires drip edge at eaves and rakes of shingle roofs. A proper repair replaces rotted deck, drip edge, ice barrier and starter course together, not just the metal.
Key Points
- The roof edge is a system: deck, ice barrier, drip edge, starter course and first shingle course, with the gutter and fascia below it.
- Michigan's code requires drip edge at eaves and rakes of shingle roofs, overlapped, fastened at 12 inches or closer and lapped correctly with the underlayment.
- Rot at the eave is often caused by ice dams and missing or misinstalled drip edge, and it is invisible until shingles come off.
- Fascia and gutters belong to other trades; a roofer repairs the roof side of the edge and should coordinate with them.
What Makes Up a Roof Edge
From the outside, a roof edge looks like the last row of shingles and maybe a strip of metal. Underneath, several layers have to work together so water leaves the roof and lands in the gutter instead of on the wood behind it.
Roof deck edge
The last foot or so of plywood or OSB sheathing. It is the first wood water reaches if anything above it fails, and it sits right over the cold eave where ice forms.
Ice barrier
A self-adhering membrane (or two cemented layers of underlayment) at the eaves. Michigan's code calls for it on shingle roofs, reaching at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line.
Drip edge
An L-shaped or angled metal flashing along the eaves and the sloped rake edges. It directs water past the fascia and into the gutter and protects the edge of the deck.
Starter course
A row of shingles or starter strips under the first visible course, with sealant that holds down the first row of shingles. It fills the gaps under the first course so water does not reach the deck through the joints.
Fascia and gutters
The trim board on the ends of the rafters and the gutter hung on it. They are not part of the roof covering and are usually handled by carpentry, siding or gutter contractors.
What the Michigan Residential Code Says About Drip Edge
Section R905.2.8.5 of the 2015 Michigan Residential Code requires drip edge at the eaves and rake edges of shingle roofs. Adjacent pieces must overlap at least 2 inches. The drip edge has to extend at least a quarter inch below the roof sheathing and at least 2 inches back onto the deck, and it must be mechanically fastened at no more than 12 inches on center with roofing nails meeting the code's fastener section.
The same section sets the order of the layers. At the eaves, the underlayment goes over the drip edge, so any water that gets under the shingles runs on top of the metal and out. At the rakes, the drip edge goes over the underlayment. Getting those laps backwards is a common reason an edge leaks even though every piece is present.
The code also calls for an ice barrier where there is a history of ice forming along the eaves, as designated in the local climate table. Michigan's version of that table answers yes for ice barrier underlayment. Under Section R905.1.2, it runs from the lowest edge of the roof to at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line, and at least 36 inches up the slope on roofs of 8 in 12 or steeper.
These rules apply to new roofing work. Whether a particular repair must bring an older edge up to current code is a question for your local building department.
Why Many Michigan Roofs Installed Before 2016 Have No Drip Edge
If you look up at your eaves and see no metal at all, the roof may not have been built wrong by the standards of its day. The drip edge rule is newer than many people assume. The International Code Council's own summary of changes in the 2012 International Residential Code lists R905.2.8.5 as an addition and says drip edge was not previously required for asphalt shingles unless it was part of the roofing manufacturer's installation instructions, which installers have to follow under the code's general roofing section.
Michigan did not adopt the 2012 edition. LARA's Bureau of Construction Codes lists the 2015 Michigan Residential Code, which carries the drip edge section, as effective February 8, 2016, and it remains the current residential code. So a shingle roof installed in Michigan before that date was generally built under a residential code that did not name drip edge on its own. Many roofers installed it anyway, and many manufacturers' instructions referred to it, but plenty of West Michigan houses from the 1990s and 2000s have shingles that simply hang over the fascia with nothing underneath.
That history matters on a repair in three ways. First, a missing drip edge is not automatically a defect in the original job, so it is rarely something you can pin on the past installer or a warranty. Second, adding it at the eaves properly means lifting the first courses so the ice barrier and underlayment can lap over the metal, which is why it is usually done during an edge repair or a replacement rather than as a stand-alone item. Third, the code that applies to new work today is the 2015 code, so new roofing installed at the edge should meet R905.2.8.5 and the ice barrier rule, while how much of an existing edge must be brought up to date during a smaller repair is a question for your local building department.
Which code built your roof
How Michigan's residential code has changed over the years, and why an older roof can be legal but below today's standard.
Michigan code historyThe ice barrier rule
What R905.1.2 and Michigan's climate table require at the eaves, and what that means on a repair.
Michigan ice barrier requirementWhat Damages Roof Edges in West Michigan
- Ice dams. Meltwater refreezes at the cold eave and backs up under the first courses of shingles, right where the deck edge is.
- Missing drip edge. Without it, water can wick back around the edge of the shingles onto the deck edge and fascia.
- Drip edge installed in the wrong order with the underlayment, so water is channeled behind the metal instead of over it.
- Ice and snow sliding off the roof or loading the gutter, which bends drip edge and pulls gutters and their fasteners.
- Gutters set too high or pitched wrong, or gutter fasteners driven through the drip edge in a way that lets water in.
- Wind lifting the first course where the starter strip was missing, misplaced or never sealed.
- Rusted or deteriorated metal on older roofs, especially where the edge has stayed wet under debris.
How to Spot Edge Damage From the Ground and the Attic
You can check most of this without a ladder. Use binoculars from the yard and a flashlight in the attic, and look along every eave and rake rather than one spot.
- Peeling paint, dark streaks or soft spots on the fascia board.
- Water stains or sagging on the soffit below the eave.
- Shingles at the edge that droop, curl down over the gutter or have lifted at the first course.
- A gap where you can see wood between the shingle edge and the gutter, or no metal visible at the rakes.
- Bent, rusted or loose drip edge, often after a heavy ice or snow season.
- Gutters pulling away from the house or tilting outward.
- In the attic, stains, dampness or darkened wood at the very bottom of the roof deck near the outside walls, or frost and moisture there in winter.
Why Edge Rot Is Usually Worse Than It Looks
The bottom few feet of the deck are covered by shingles from above, by the gutter and fascia from the front, and by insulation in the attic from below. Water that gets in at the edge can soak the deck edge for years before anyone sees it, and the first visible sign is often the fascia or soffit, which are downstream of the real problem.
That is why an edge repair is hard to price precisely from the ground. A roofer can see the metal and the shingles, but the condition of the wood is confirmed only when the first courses come off. A fair estimate for edge work explains what happens if the deck turns out to be rotten, and how that additional wood will be priced.
What a Proper Roof Edge Repair Includes
Bending the drip edge back into shape or caulking the gap between metal and shingles does not fix an edge. If water has been getting in, the repair has to rebuild the layers in the right order.
- Step 1
Remove the First Courses
The shingles, starter and old drip edge come off along the damaged run so the deck edge can be inspected.
- Step 2
Replace Damaged Deck
Rotted or delaminated sheathing is cut back to sound wood and replaced so new fasteners have something to hold.
- Step 3
Install Ice Barrier
Ice barrier goes on at the eaves to the code-required distance, tied into the existing underlayment above.
- Step 4
Install Drip Edge in the Right Order
At the eaves the metal goes down before the ice barrier and underlayment; at the rakes it goes over them. Pieces overlap at least 2 inches and are nailed at 12 inches or closer.
- Step 5
Starter Course and Shingles
A proper starter strip goes on, overhanging the edge by the amount the manufacturer specifies, and the first courses are reinstalled and sealed. GAF, for example, calls for its Pro-Start starter to overhang eaves and rakes by a quarter to three quarters of an inch, or sit flush where the drip edge extends out.
In cold weather, the replaced shingles and starter need to be hand-sealed per the manufacturer's instructions, and self-adhering ice barrier has its own temperature limits.
Fascia, Soffit and Gutters: Who Fixes What
Edge damage often reaches past the roof. Rotted fascia boards, damaged soffit and bent or overflowing gutters are carpentry, siding and gutter work, and Stellar does not do gutters or siding. The roof side of the edge (deck, ice barrier, drip edge, starter and shingles) is roofing work.
Because the two meet, the order matters. If the fascia is rotten, it should be repaired before or alongside the new drip edge so the metal has something solid behind it. If gutters are fastened through the drip edge, they may need to come down and go back up. Settle who handles each piece, and in what order, before work starts, so you do not end up with new drip edge over a rotten board or a gutter rehung on the wrong line.
Ice dams
Edge damage that comes back every winter usually starts in the attic. Fix the cause along with the edge.
About ice damsRoof ventilation problems
Blocked soffit intake and poor ventilation feed ice dams at the eaves.
Ventilation problemsWorried About Your Roof Edge?
We will inspect the eaves and rakes, tell you what is roofing and what belongs to another trade, and explain what happens if the deck needs replacing. The inspection is free.
Related Guides
Roof Deck Rot
Causes, signs from inside and out, and what deck repair involves.
Learn MoreCan a Roof Be Repaired in Winter?
What the cold does to sealant strips, cements and ice barrier.
Learn MoreAttic Condensation or Roof Leak?
How to tell frost and attic moisture from water coming through the roof.
Learn MoreIce Dams in West Michigan
Why they form and how to keep them from coming back.
Learn MoreQuestions We Hear
Is drip edge required on a roof in Michigan?
For shingle roofs, yes. Section R905.2.8.5 of the 2015 Michigan Residential Code requires drip edge at eaves and rake edges, with set overlaps, projection and nailing. Older roofs installed before drip edge was required may not have it. Whether a repair must add it to an existing roof is a question for your local building department.
Can drip edge be added without replacing the roof?
Often, yes. At the rakes it can sometimes be slipped under the edge shingles. At the eaves it is harder to do correctly, because the underlayment and ice barrier are supposed to lap over the metal. Doing it right usually means lifting or removing the first courses, which is also the chance to check the deck edge for rot.
What is the difference between drip edge and gutter apron?
Both are metal edge flashings. Drip edge usually refers to the standard L-shaped or angled profile along eaves and rakes. Gutter apron is a profile shaped to extend down into the gutter at the eaves. Which one suits your eave depends on how the gutter is hung. The code sets minimum dimensions and nailing for drip edge regardless of profile name.
Why are my shingles hanging over the gutter?
A shingle edge that droops over the gutter can mean the deck edge underneath has softened, the shingles were set too far out, or ice has bent the edge down. Starter strip instructions call for a small overhang, measured in fractions of an inch. A sagging edge or a visible gap at the gutter is worth having inspected before the next winter.
Will homeowners insurance pay for a rotted roof edge?
Policies vary, and long-term rot from repeated leaks is often treated as wear or maintenance rather than sudden damage. A sudden event, such as a storm tearing off the edge, may be handled differently. Read your policy and ask your insurer or agent; we cannot predict how a claim will be decided.
What This Page Cites
- 2015 Michigan Residential Code, Chapter 9 Roof Assemblies, Sections R905.1.2 Ice barriers, R905.2.5 Fasteners, R905.2.8.5 Drip edge and R908.5 Reinstallation of materials, International Code Council (https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/MIRC2015P2/chapter-9-roof-assemblies), accessed October 2026
- 2015 Michigan Residential Code, Chapter 3 Building Planning, Table R301.2(1) Climatic and Geographic Design Criteria, International Code Council (https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/MIRC2015P2/chapter-3-building-planning), accessed October 2026
- 2015 International Residential Code, Section R905.2.8.5 Drip edge, International Code Council (https://codes.iccsafe.org/content/IRC2015/chapter-9-roof-assemblies), accessed October 2026
- Pro-Start Starter Strip Shingles installation instructions, RESGN853, GAF (https://pdf.lowes.com/productdocuments/67c14544-1597-4e9f-97e7-223009f07bb6/66739945.pdf), accessed October 2026
- Installing Timberline HDZ Shingles in Different Seasons, GAF (https://www.gaf.com/en-us/blog/residential-roofing/installing-timberline-hdz-shingles-in-different-seasons-884eb1bd-7164-4931-a1a5-2c9a6fcba712), accessed October 2026
- Significant Changes to the 2012 International Residential Code, R905.2.8.5 Roof Drip Edge (change type: addition), International Code Council (https://www.iccsafe.org/wp-content/uploads/errata_central/2012_irc_sigchanges.pdf), accessed October 2026
- Code Books (2015 Michigan Residential Code, current code, effective February 8, 2016), LARA Bureau of Construction Codes (https://www.michigan.gov/lara/bureau-list/bcc/rules-acts/codes/code-books), accessed October 2026