Gable Vent Trim Replacement — Rotted Gable Vents and Louvers
The wood louver at the peak of the gable is gray, the slats are split, and the bottom rail is soft enough to push a finger into. We replace the vent and the trim around it so it stops feeding water into the wall.
Gable vent trim replacement is a one-unit job: JMB Builders pulls the rotted wood louver and the trim boards around it, checks the sheathing behind, sets a new PVC or vinyl gable vent in flashing tape with a drip cap at the head, and trims it to match the rest of the house. Done across the Twin Cities metro from a ladder or staging, priced per unit, quoted from your photos within one business day.
- Priced per unit (each gable vent)
- PVC or vinyl louver, trimmed to match the house
- Flashing tape and drip cap behind the trim
- Quote from photos in 1 business day
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
A gable vent is the highest piece of trim on the house and the last one anybody looks at. Wood louvers take rain and sun on the slats, the bottom rail holds the water, and the paint fails there first. Once the rail is soft, water runs behind the vent and down the sheathing. On a lot of older Twin Cities houses the stain on the siding below the gable vent is the first sign anybody notices.
The fix is not to paint the old louver. We pull the vent and the casing around it, look at the sheathing, replace anything soft, tape the opening, set a new louver that does not rot, and put a drip cap over the head trim so water goes out over the siding instead of behind it. The trim goes back in PVC or primed LP to match the width and profile of the other trim on the gable.
This is a ladder or staging job because of where it sits. That is most of the reason homeowners do not do it themselves and most of the reason a painter will not touch it. We do it as a half-day visit and can take care of the frieze board or the bottom corners of the gable trim in the same trip.
What you supply
- Photos: the vent from the ground, a zoomed shot of the bottom rail, and the whole gable so we can see the trim it has to match
- The size of the old vent if you can read it or measure it, or we take it from the photos and the siding course lines
- Louver shape you want back: rectangle, half round, triangle or octagon, in white or a stock color
- Your paint color if you want the new trim painted on the same visit
What JMB supplies
- Removal of the old louver, its trim and any rotted sheathing behind it
- New PVC or vinyl gable vent with a screen on the back, sized to the existing hole or the hole resized to fit a stock unit
- Flashing tape on the opening and a metal drip cap over the head trim
- Casing around the vent in PVC or primed LP to match the width and profile on the house
- Ladder or staging to reach the gable, stainless or coated fasteners, exterior sealant at the siding
- Photos of the finished vent in your job folder
- Painting the new trim and vent when you want it done, quoted as its own line
How it is priced: per unit
Quoted in writing from your photos within one business day. What moves the number:
- Height of the gable and whether a ladder reaches it or we set up staging
- Vent replaced in the same size vs. the opening resized for a stock louver
- Rectangle vs. half round, octagon or a custom shape
- Rotted sheathing or framing behind the vent
- Siding that has to be cut back and rewoven around the new trim
- Two or more gables on the same house in one visit
Send one photo from the ground and one zoomed in on the bottom rail. If the siding below the vent is stained, include that too; it tells us how far the water went.
How long it takes
One gable vent with new trim: half a day. Two gables or a vent with rotted sheathing behind it: a full day.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized quote within one business day. We only come out to measure first when the job needs a tape measure — no pressure, no games.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
Same-size louver swap
The most common job. The old wood louver comes out, the opening is taped, a PVC or vinyl unit of the same size goes in with a drip cap, and the casing is replaced around it. The siding is not disturbed.
Resize the opening for a stock vent
Old houses have odd-sized vents that no store stocks. We frame the opening down or cut it larger to take a stock louver, patch the sheathing, and trim it so the new size looks like it belongs.
Decorative vent with a closed back
When the attic is vented at the ridge and soffit and the gable vent is fighting that airflow, we set a closed-back louver that keeps the look and stops the draft. We confirm the attic still has intake and exhaust before closing one.
Vent plus gable trim
The frieze under the roofline and the trim at the gable peak are often rotted along with the vent. We replace all of it in one visit while the staging is up, so the gable is done once.
Gable Vent Trim Replacement — Rotted Gable Vents and Louvers: questions, answered
Why does a gable vent rot at the bottom?
Rain hits the louver slats and runs down to the bottom rail, which is flat and holds the water. The end grain of the slats sits in that puddle. Paint fails there first, the rail goes soft, and water starts running behind the vent and down the sheathing. Sun on a south or west gable speeds it up. Any wood louver on a Minnesota house eventually gets there; a PVC or vinyl one does not.
Can you replace a gable vent without removing the siding?
Usually, yes. We pull the vent and its casing, tape the opening, set the new unit and run new casing that covers the same footprint as the old one. If the old trim was thinner than what we put back, we cut the siding back a hair so the new casing sits flat. Siding only comes off when the sheathing behind it is rotted past the trim line.
What do you replace a rotted gable vent with?
A PVC or vinyl louvered vent with a screen on the back, in the same shape as the old one where a stock size fits. Rectangles, half rounds, octagons and triangles are all stocked in common sizes. The casing around it goes in cellular PVC or primed LP trim board to match the width of the other trim on the house, with a metal drip cap over the head. Nothing in the assembly is bare wood.
Do I still need a gable vent if I have ridge and soffit vents?
Often you do not. A ridge vent pulls air in at the soffits, and an open gable vent can short-circuit that by letting air in at the gable instead. If the attic has a ridge vent and clear soffit vents, we can set a closed-back decorative louver that keeps the look without the draft. If the gable vents are the only attic ventilation the house has, they stay open. We look in the attic before we decide.
How do you reach a gable vent on a two-story house?
With an extension ladder on a stand-off for most of them, and staging when the gable is over a deck, a walkout or a steep grade. Height is the main thing that moves the price, so the photo from the ground matters. We do not do it from the roof surface.
Does the new gable vent need painting?
A vinyl or PVC vent can stay white with no paint. If the trim on the house is a color, we paint the new casing and the vent to match as its own line on the quote, or you can leave it primed and caulked and paint it yourself. Primed LP trim should be painted its first season on the house, cut ends included.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough. You hear back within one business day. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
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Read morePage reviewed September 24, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All exterior trim pages
Where we work
Exterior trim near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: