Metal Flashing
Metal Roof Flashing Fabricated for Dallas-Fort Worth Roofs
Most roof leaks in North Texas are not in the roof. They are at the edges, where a roof meets brick, a chimney, a wall or a pipe, and the fix is metal roof flashing bent to fit that exact spot. Architectural Metal Panels fabricates flashing in our Forney shop and installs it on new and existing roofs across Dallas-Fort Worth.
- 26+ years in business
- Lifetime warranty
- Free written estimates
What types of metal roof flashing do we fabricate?
Every piece a pitched or low-slope roof needs to turn water back onto the roof surface. The list below covers the standard parts; odd angles, bay roofs and historic details are drawn and bent to order.
- Step flashing: individual L-shaped pieces woven into each course where a roof meets a sidewall, so water steps down the wall and back onto the roof.
- Headwall (apron) flashing: a continuous piece where the top of a slope runs into a wall, lapped under the wall cladding or counter-flashed into brick.
- Sidewall flashing: continuous sidewall trim for metal roofs, where step flashing cannot be woven into panels, with a hemmed edge and a Z-closure.
- Valley flashing: W-profile or open valley metal with a center rib that keeps water from one slope from washing under the roofing on the other.
- Kick-out flashing: the small angled piece at the bottom of a sidewall that throws water into the gutter instead of behind the siding. Missing on thousands of DFW homes.
- Counter-flashing: the piece that covers the top of step or headwall flashing, cut into a mortar joint (a reglet) in brick or stone, or surface-mounted and sealed on stucco.
- Pipe boots and vent flashing: metal-base boots for plumbing vents, flexible aluminum boots for odd sizes, and flashing for furnace and water heater flues.
- Chimney crickets and saddles: a small peaked roof fabricated behind the uphill side of a chimney so water splits around it instead of piling up.
- Skylight and curb flashing: formed curb caps and counter-flashing for skylights, HVAC curbs and roof hatches.
- Drip edge, eave and rake metal: the trim at every roof edge, matched to the roof color.
Where DFW Roofs Leak
Where do Dallas-Fort Worth roofs actually leak?
At transitions. After storm inspections across the metroplex, the four places we find water most often are brick-to-roof joints, chimneys, dead valleys and HVAC penetrations.
Brick-to-roof transitions
Most DFW homes are brick veneer, and the joint where a lower roof meets a brick wall depends on step flashing under the roofing and counter-flashing let into the mortar. Builders in a hurry often skipped the reglet and caulked a strip of metal to the face of the brick. That caulk fails after a few summers of 100-degree days and the wall takes water. We cut a true reglet, insert new counter-flashing and seal the joint inside the mortar line.
Chimneys
A chimney on the downhill side of a slope dams water on its uphill face. Without a cricket, leaves and grit pile up, water stands, and the back flashing rusts through. The International Residential Code, as adopted with local amendments by Dallas, Fort Worth and most area cities, calls for a cricket on chimneys more than 30 inches wide. We fabricate the cricket, the cap and all four sides of the flashing as one set.
Dead valleys
A dead valley is where two roof slopes drain into a wall or into each other with nowhere to go. They are common on the complex hip roofs built across Collin and Denton county suburbs since the 1990s. The fix is a fabricated metal pan with soldered or welded corners under a high-temperature membrane, not another layer of roofing.
HVAC and plumbing penetrations
Rooftop units, exhaust fans and vent pipes are the leading leak source on DFW commercial roofs and a close second on homes. Cracked rubber pipe boots are routine after ten years of Texas UV; we replace them with metal-base boots. Curbs get formed caps and counter-flashing instead of a bead of mastic.
Our post on where Texas roofs leak and how flashing stops it walks through each of these with photos.
Which materials and gauges do we use for flashing?
The same metals as the roof it protects: 24- or 26-gauge painted Galvalume for most work, .032 aluminum where it meets aluminum gutters, and copper where the owner wants it to last a century.
| Material | Thickness | Where we use it | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Painted Galvalume steel | 26 gauge for step flashing and drip edge; 24 gauge for valleys, crickets and counter-flashing | Shingle and metal roofs | Kynar 500 finish matches metal roof panels; isolate from copper and treated lumber |
| Aluminum | .032 inch | Counter-flashing, drip edge with aluminum gutters, stucco details | Soft enough to tuck into reglets; painted stock only against fresh mortar |
| Copper | 16 ounce | Crickets, pans and chimney flashing on historic and high-end homes | Soldered seams; can stain light stone below |
| Flexible aluminum pipe boots | Varies by size | Odd-size vents and flues | Outlast rubber boots in Texas UV |
Metal roofs get high-temperature self-adhered membrane under every flashing, because standard underlayment softens beneath a metal panel on a Texas afternoon.
Why is flashing fabricated to the roof in our shop?
Because the angles on your roof are not the angles on a lumberyard shelf. Off-the-shelf flashing comes in a handful of bends for a square wall and a 4/12 pitch; your roof may be 8/12 meeting a wall at 97 degrees with a brick course every 2 5/8 inches.
- Measured on the roof: pitch, wall angle, brick coursing, panel rib spacing and the exact size of every penetration.
- Bent on the brake: continuous pieces for headwalls, sidewalls and valleys in lengths that keep splices away from the wettest spots.
- Hemmed edges: every exposed edge is folded back so it is stiff, safe to handle and does not cut the membrane or the installer.
- Color-matched: flashing for a metal roof is cut from the panel coil, so it does not stand out as a different shade in five years.
This is the same custom sheet metal shop that makes our metal coping and box gutters, and the flashing package for every standing seam metal roof we install comes out of it.
Can flashing be replaced on an existing roof?
Yes, and it is often the right repair instead of a new roof. Counter-flashing, kick-outs, pipe boots, crickets and valley metal can all be replaced on a sound roof with limited disturbance to the roofing around them.
On shingle roofs we lift the courses along the wall, slide in new step flashing and reseal them. On metal roofs we remove the sidewall trim, replace the closure and flashing and reinstall the trim with new fasteners. On brick we grind the mortar joint clean and insert new counter-flashing with a hemmed edge and sealant inside the reglet. Where a roof is near the end of its life we say so and quote metal roof repair or a new metal roof side by side, because new flashing on a failing roof is wasted money.
How we document storm damage at flashings
After hail or wind, flashings are where adjusters look first for lifted metal and separated sealant. We photograph and measure the damage for your claim, and as Texas law requires, we never waive or absorb deductibles. Crews work across the metroplex, from Forney and Rockwall to Plano and Fort Worth.
Metal Flashing FAQ
Roof flashing questions from DFW homeowners
What is the difference between step flashing and counter-flashing?
Step flashing sits under the roofing and against the wall and turns water back onto the roof. Counter-flashing covers the top edge of the step flashing from above, tucked into a mortar joint on brick or lapped under siding. A roof-to-wall joint on a brick home needs both.
Does a chimney need a cricket in Texas?
The residential code adopted by most DFW cities requires a cricket on any chimney more than 30 inches wide measured across the slope, and we recommend one on any chimney that sits on the downhill side of a roof. It is a small fabricated piece that prevents the most common chimney leak.
How long does metal roof flashing last?
Painted Galvalume and aluminum flashing commonly lasts as long as a metal roof, 40 years or more, when the joints are mechanically lapped instead of caulked. Rubber pipe boots are the weak point and often crack within 10 to 15 years of Texas UV, so we use metal-base boots wherever possible.
Can you replace flashing without replacing the roof?
Usually, yes. Counter-flashing, kick-outs, pipe boots, crickets and valleys can be replaced on a sound shingle or metal roof with limited disturbance. If the roof itself is at the end of its life, we tell you and quote the repair and the replacement side by side.
Why does my brick wall leak where the roof meets it?
Most often because the counter-flashing was caulked to the face of the brick instead of being cut into the mortar joint, or because the kick-out at the bottom of the wall is missing. Texas heat breaks down face-applied sealant within a few years, and water runs behind the brick.
Do you fabricate flashing for other contractors?
Yes. Roofing and remodeling contractors across Dallas-Fort Worth send us measurements, pitch and color, and we fabricate valleys, crickets, counter-flashing and custom trim for pickup in Forney or delivery to the site.
Get Your Free In-Home Estimate
Tell us about your project and a Architectural Metal Panels specialist will call you back within one business day. No pressure, no obligation.
Or text a photo of your roof to (469) 569-3956
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Stop the leak at the source
Send a photo of the chimney, wall or valley that is leaking, or book a roof inspection. We fabricate the flashing to fit and install it, or hand it to your roofer. Call (469) 569-3956 or request an estimate online.