Sorting out the terms
The roof edge comes with vocabulary, and the names are worth two minutes. Fascia: the board at the edge. Soffit: the underside. Eave: the overhang itself.You will not need this vocabulary often, but it turns up in every proposal in this trade, and it is easier to compare two quotes when both are describing the same part of the building. When somebody says the run follows the fascia, you know exactly what they mean.
What the eave gives you
The mounting line was not chosen for looks alone, it is where several requirements meet. It is continuous, which matters because a light line that stops and restarts reads badly. Height gives you coverage, and the roof above it takes the direct weather.
Two mounting choices
Where exactly the channel sits is not arbitrary. Mounted under the soffit, it throws down the face of the house, which lights the building itself. On the face, you see the line. Neither is the default, and the answer depends on your roof and your goal.The eave line also determines
https://evercrestlighting.com/contact/ how far down the wall the light reaches, which is why the same house can look very different depending on where the channel ended up.
When the eave complicates things
Overhang depth is not standard, and it changes the plan. A deep overhang hides the run and protects it, but it also shades the wall below. With little overhang, the fascia often becomes the answer. This is why designs get drawn at the house rather than from a satellite image.
What the eave line is worth on an ordinary night
Set to warm white, it stops being a holiday product. It puts light on the walk, the drive and the front door, which makes the property easier to use and easier to find. A house with a lit edge looks like somebody lives there.
Gutters, and what happens when the roof gets replaced
The eave line is shared real estate. Any planned roof work changes the sequence. The sensible order puts the lighting last, because the alternative is removing a run that was just installed. It is a five second question that saves a real headache.
Upper runs
A single story house presents one eave. Add a floor and there is a question to answer. The upper roofline gives you the strongest outline, because it is highest and has the most sky behind it. The lower run is the functional one. Running both is often the answer, though it does not have to happen in the same year.
Getting a plan
Somebody has to see the eave to draw a plan worth anything. EverCrest Lighting installs permanent lighting along rooflines and eaves for residential and commercial properties in Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina, from Greenville. Consultations are free, and the plan is built around your building. Call (864) 252-1732 or email
[email protected].