RHF is made of steel, aluminum or PVC and is installed on the top, exterior side of a window. My issue is if i use aluminum flashing on top of drip cap, that has to be nailed and flashed before starter goes on More on Windows: Drip Cap Design and Installation – The lowly drip cap needs to be taken more seriously to prevent leaks and rot. Mike Guertin: Head flashing prevents water from leaking in at the joint between the bottom edge of siding and the top of the head trim. Install metal cap flashing. We used lead flashing and molded it to fit over the window. Drip cap is an L-shaped flashing that goes over windows and doors after they're installed (but before siding is installed) to prevent moisture from seeping in from above. Photos by: Chris Ermides except where noted. —David Wolf, via email. One leg of the “L” goes over the window or door brick mold, while the other lies behind the siding that will go above. We back caulk the Drip Cap before installing and use "Cap Nails" to install … The "Z" Flashing or "Drip Cap" as it's better known by is code. If your window has come with a drip cap, now’s the time to install it. This helps direct water out away from window. Before sealing up the top of the window, I prefer to install a traditional metal cap flashing. My plan is 5/4 azek skirt board with either azek drip cap or azek water table trim. The Drip Cap should have been installed over the top nail fin tape, just before they flip the house wrap down and tape it off. The doors and windows on my home do not have head flashing. This is often impossible to do so as a back up we install flashing behind the joints and drain the water out from behind the siding and on top of a lower section of siding. It should have been a no brainer for the installers. In this type of installation, seal the cap flashing directly to the sheathing with high-quality sealant. 8. a) The head jamb of a window is the most vulnerable to water damage. siding will be mastic quest vinyl. There is no metal drip cap over the round window. RHF is sometimes mistakenly called drip cap, drip edge, cap flashing or z-flashing. 3. Can I add this missing protection? I don’t want to use J so my plan was to use starter above drip cap. When a window with the integral J is installed , how are you going to install a premoulded drip cap or bent “Z” flashing at the top. Rigid head flashing (RHF) works in conjunction with window flashing, weather resistant barrier (WRB) and the cladding to keep water from finding its way inside a building. https://www.doityourself.com/stry/installing-a-window-drip-cap Then place the top piece of flashing tape over the cap flashing and layer the house wrap over the tape. 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