Kickout Flashing Missing — Water Stain on Siding Below the Roof Edge
There is a dark streak or a soft spot on the siding right below where the garage or porch roof ends against the house. That is a missing kickout, and the rot goes deeper than the stain.
When kickout flashing is missing, water runs off the roof edge where it dies into a wall and down behind the siding, leaving a stain and rot below. JMB Builders opens the siding there, repairs the rotted sheathing and framing, adds step flashing and a kickout flashing under the house wrap, and puts the siding back. Twin Cities and north metro, priced per project from photos.
- Priced per project, one wall intersection
- Kickout added under wrap and siding
- Rotted sheathing and framing repaired
- Quote from photos in 1 business day
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
A kickout is a small bent piece of flashing at the bottom of the step flashing where a lower roof edge runs into a taller wall: a garage roof against a two-story wall, a porch roof, a dormer, a bump-out. It turns the water out into the gutter. Without it, every rain sends a stream down the wall behind the siding, right where you cannot see it.
The signs are a stain or streak on the siding below the roof edge, peeling paint, a swollen trim board, a soft spot in the wall, or a leak inside the garage or house at that corner. On a garage roof it often shows as water on the garage floor where the roof meets the house. By the time it shows outside, the sheathing and the bottom of the studs are often wet.
Current code calls for kickout flashing, but many houses were built before builders paid attention to it, or the siding crew skipped it. The fix is to open the siding below the intersection, replace what rotted, and flash it the right way from the roof down: step flashing woven with the shingles, the kickout at the bottom, house wrap lapped over it, and the siding back on.
What you supply
- Photos of the roof edge where it meets the wall, and of the stain or rot below it
- A photo from inside the garage or room at that corner if there is a leak or stain
- Leftover siding pieces if you have them, or the siding brand and color
- Your paint color if the siding or trim is painted, or we leave it primed
What JMB supplies
- Siding removal below the roof-wall intersection
- Rotted sheathing, rim or stud bottoms cut out and replaced
- New step flashing woven with the last shingle courses where it is missing or rusted
- Kickout flashing at the bottom of the step flashing, sealed and lapped under the house wrap
- House wrap and flashing tape lapped shingle-style, and the siding reinstalled or matched
- Gutter end checked so the kickout drops water into it
- Photos of the rot and the new flashing before the siding goes back, in your job folder
How it is priced: per project
Quoted in writing from your photos within one business day. What moves the number:
- How far the rot runs down and across the wall once the siding is open
- Siding type: vinyl comes off and goes back on; wood, LP or Hardie may need new pieces
- Whether the step flashing up the wall also needs replacing
- Siding match when the old product is no longer made
- One-story versus a second-story intersection
- Interior drywall repair where the leak came through
Send one close photo of the stain and one wider photo showing the whole roof edge and wall. Most retrofits are quoted firm with a per-sheet line for extra rot.
How long it takes
One intersection with minor rot: half a day to a day. Rot that runs down to the sill or a second-story intersection: one to two days.
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.
Kickout Flashing Missing — Water Stain on Siding Below the Roof Edge: questions, answered
What is kickout flashing and why is it missing on my house?
It is a bent piece of flashing at the bottom of the step flashing where a roof edge ends against a wall, and it turns the water out into the gutter. Many houses were built before it was common practice, or the siding or roofing crew left it out. Current code calls for it on new work.
Why is there a water stain on my siding below the roof edge?
Water running off the roof edge is going down the wall behind the siding because nothing is turning it out. The stain is the part you can see; the sheathing and framing behind it are often wet or rotted. Pushing on the siding at the stain usually tells you if it is soft.
Why is my garage roof leaking where it meets the house wall?
Usually the step flashing up the wall is missing, rusted or was never woven with the shingles, or there is no kickout at the bottom. Water gets behind the siding and runs into the garage at that corner. The fix is new step flashing and a kickout, with the siding opened so the house wrap laps over the flashing.
Can kickout flashing be added without a new roof?
Yes. The siding below the intersection comes off, the last few shingle courses are lifted to slip in step flashing where needed, and the kickout goes in at the bottom. The rest of the roof is not touched. It is a common small job on its own.
Can you just caulk the spot where the roof meets the wall?
Caulk fails in a season or two and traps water behind it. The water path has to be fixed with metal: step flashing lapped with the shingles and a kickout that turns the water into the gutter. Caulk is a sealer at the edges, not the flashing.
How much rot is usually behind the siding at a missing kickout?
It depends on how many years it leaked. Some walls have only a stained sheet of sheathing; others have rotted studs and a soft rim or sill below. We price the likely repair from your photos and show you photos of what we find before it is covered.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and for the builders and dealers we sub for. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
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.
Related jobs we do
Porch Roof Replacement — Front Porch Roofs Torn Off and Redone
The main roof is fine, but the small roof over the front porch leaks at the wall, sags between the posts, or has shingles curling on a slope too flat for them.
Read moreRoof Leak Repair — Pipe Boots, Valleys and Chimney Flashing
A brown ring on the ceiling, a drip down the furnace flue, water in the attic under a vent — we find where it gets in and fix that spot, not the whole roof.
Read moreRotted Sill Plate and Rim Joist Behind Siding — Repair
A screwdriver sinks into the wood just above the foundation, behind the siding or under the deck. That is the sill and rim, the part the whole wall sits on, and it gets replaced in sections.
Read moreSiding Repair — Storm, Hail and Woodpecker Damage
Wind took a run of siding off the gable, hail cracked the west wall, or a woodpecker found the LP — we repair the section, fix what is under it, and match it as close as the product allows.
Read moreAdd Drip Edge to an Existing Roof — Retrofit at Eaves and Rakes
Water drips behind the gutter instead of into it, the fascia is going soft, and the roofer who put the shingles on never installed drip edge.
Read moreChimney Flashing Repair — Step and Counter Flashing Rebuilt
A stain on the ceiling next to the fireplace, wet brick in the attic, a ring of roof cement around the chimney — the flashing rebuilt in metal, cut into the brick, so it stays fixed.
Read morePage reviewed September 26, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All roofing pages
Where we work
Roofing near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: