How to fix cement fiber siding touching roof shingles
Cement fiber siding installed directly against roof shingles without the required one to two inches of clearance or flashing causes rot, water intrusion, and siding deterioration. Cutting away the tight, awkward sections of damaged material to add proper clearance is physically difficult and risks forcing homeowners to completely replace large wall sections if left unaddressed.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 33.6× more often in r/Roofing than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Saw cutting the siding a couple of inches up to add a trim pieceDid this help you?
- 2Pulling the damaged siding below the gutters and a few courses up to investigate sheathing and framing damageDid this help you?
- 3Cutting the gutters shorter so they are not touching the house walls and installing diverter flashingDid this help you?
- 4putting roof tar around the leak areaDid this help you?
- 5pulling off siding and shingles to install something underneathDid this help you?
- 6Redoing the area by taking off every shingle against the wallDid this help you?
- 7Gently lifting the shingles and screwing the step flashing down with a wafer head type of screw and sealantDid this help you?
- 8Hiring a professional roofing contractorDid this help you?
- 9Applying waterproof caulking as a temporary fixDid this help you?
- 10Watching instructional videos online on how to replace a single shingleDid this help you?
- 11Hiring a handyman or roofing companyDid this help you?
- 12Replace with PVCDid this help you?
- 13Wrap in aluminumDid this help you?
- 14Using roofing tar or blackjack to glue down and seal cracked shinglesDid this help you?
- 15Replacing the broken shingles using a pry bar, hammer, and roofing nailsDid this help you?
- 16attaching a b elbow to the bottom a elbow of that downspout, to push water away from the sidingDid this help you?
- 17cutting the wood siding 3.5-4” above the roofline and installing a 5/4 x 4 piece of AZEK with a drip capDid this help you?
- 18Leaving it alone if water is not getting under itDid this help you?
- 19Checking the ceiling directly underneath for signs of waterDid this help you?
- 20Waiting for heat and sun to help the shingles relax and lay flatDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“where the hardie meets the shingles it is failing, some areas much worse than even pictured.”source ↗
“this perhaps was not installed properly as you're supposed to leave 1" - 2" between the hardie and shingles and have flashing below.”source ↗
“My question at this point is what to do about it. I don't want it to continue to deteriorate the siding to the point of needing to re-do large sections”source ↗
“How you make the cut is the problem. I don't know what sort of cement bladed tool you could use given how tight and inconvenient the cutting areas are.”source ↗
“I'm a first-time homeowner so I am NOT experienced here 🥲.”source ↗
“Do you think this is an easy fix? We applied some water proof caulking made specifically for covering/sealing the roof as a temporary fix but want to know if this is something I can just DIY.”source ↗
“So you definitely have some water intrusion issues around the gutters. Yes the main issues I see are: siding not 1-2” off roof, no diverter flashing, gutters are touching the side walls.”source ↗
“Is this something I can just hit with a bunch of blackjack and call it good? Or does it need a roofer ?”source ↗
“I have a serious problem where my siding meets my roofing on an area of my house. As you can imagine, this leaks like a sieve.”source ↗
“Bonus points if you have any idea how much I should expect to pay for the repair in Eastern Massachusetts.”source ↗
“Do I primer and paint or replace the wood? Or use metal flashing? Not sure what to do. Help!”source ↗
“I recently started seeing a leak in my garage. It only actually came through the drywall during a downpour, otherwise I probably wouldn’t have noticed it.”source ↗
“Found on new home inspection. 0% chance the seller will fix. I’m pretty handy from a construction/ DIY perspective, but have not done roofing work yet. Any pointers?”source ↗
“Just these shingles on the ridge are slightly lifted. Best to leave alone?”source ↗
“A buddy of mine and me installed a new roof on my front porch (200 sqft), and 6 weeks later the shingles are already pulling up where the porch meets the house. We are no roofers by any means so I’m not sure what we did wrong.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 4Can I install siding, soffit, and fascia before roof shingles?
- 7How to fix loose metal roof trim that won't stay in
- 8How do you fix and secure dropped vinyl siding under a window?
- 21Uneven shingles and bulges after new roof replacement
- 4Why are my roof shingles lifting near the gutters?
- 7How to install drip edge on an existing roof