Fascias & Soffits - to cloak or not to cloak!

[Poole791]

We are in the process of getting quotes to renew our existing wooden fascias, soffits & guttering with uPVC.

The existing wood appears to be sound from ground level & we don't have any leaks. However, it looks unattractive & we don't want to have to repaint it annually.

So far, the tradesman I have spoken to have said it would be sufficent & less costly to 'cloak' or 'cap' the existing fascias & soffits with uPVC rather than remove & replace with new. However, one salesman has said we should not do this because it could lead to problems with rot and in the event of selling our home we would have a problem. Also, that an insurer would not pay out in the event of a leak. I imagine he was employing scare-tactics to get the sale but what are your experiences? Have you had any problems as a result of 'cloaking' and what would you advise?

Also, can anyone tell me what I should expect to pay for this sort of work? We have approx. 8m in all (front and back).

 

[2scoops0406]

Have it done properly, do not have it capped, this will trap moisture and cause the underlying wood to rot.

 

[big-all]

definatly scare tactics

you either clad with around 9mm thick
this reqiures removing replacing and treating any timbers that have any rot or decay

or fully replace the soffits and bargeboards with around 16mm plastic

now the theory is if you clad the wood it will sweat if water does get in[trapped between the faces of the wood and plastic] but in my opinion it would only make the decay happen slightly quicker
providing you repair any leaks as they happen the wood will dry out in good time before decay can set in

 

[noseall]

cap it.

i have removed capped fascias 8 years down the line, with no detriment to the underlying timber.

 

[In Your Face]

I agree, cap it. As long as you have no rotting or damp timber. Have you got air vents in your loft space, I highly recommend this, use four roof tile vents and keep your loft insulation away from the fascia boards

 

[sky high]

PVCu does not last forever. the UV deterioration on most plastic used for this 'improvement' actually start to dry out within 12w months and within 10 years the plastic is brittle and faded. My mate across the road always cut away any rotting timber (remember most houses having this 'improvement' are 30-40 yrs old + and wood has lasted that long.) as pvc alone has less rigidity than the timber it replaces, the effect is then spoilt by ripples appearing in the soffits etc: The debate will continue but as I am not a pro roofline man I can only give the chemists thoughts (phd in carbonised polyenduromatics and BA Hons in cress management.
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[noseall]

PVCu does not last forever. the UV deterioration on most plastic used for this 'improvement' actually start to dry out within 12w months and within 10 years the plastic is brittle and faded. My mate across the road always cut away any rotting timber (remember most houses having this 'improvement' are 30-40 yrs old + and wood has lasted that long.) as pvc alone has less rigidity than the timber it replaces, the effect is then spoilt by ripples appearing in the soffits etc: The debate will continue but as I am not a pro roofline man I can only give the chemists thoughts (phd in carbonised polyenduromatics and BA Hons in cress management.
[img][/img]

it is a pity that your knowledge of clay roofing products is nill.

 

[^woody^]

A few years back, when PVCu was relatively new, the manufacturers were giving 'expected' life cycles of 50-100 years, based on accelerated exposure tests.

But after being in use for a few years in real situations, the plastic was found to be degrading quicker than thought, and so nowadays the life of the plastic can be as little ass 20 years - certain not the lifetime which people think.

And once the surface starts to degrade, its very hard to get that clean look back, so it just looks old and tatty.

Anyway, cut out and replace any rotten timber and just over clad. Timber will not rot unless it is getting constantly damp - in which case you have a bigger problem anyway

 

[Mw Roofline]

If you have only 8 metres then get it replaced, the difference between the two costs won't be too drastic for such a small amount.