Find your part by where it is
Nobody searches “fascia repair” — they search “the board behind my gutter is rotting”. This page works in that direction: location first, name second, trade third. Find the section below that matches where the problem is, and you’ll leave with the part’s real name and the right person to call.
The roofline (looking up from outside)
Shingles / roof covering — the outer skin. Missing, cracked, or lifted after wind → roofer.
Flashing — the thin metal where the roof meets anything vertical: chimney, wall, skylight, vent pipe. This is where most “mystery” roof leaks actually live, not in the shingles. Leaks near a chimney or at a wall-roof joint → roofer (say the word “flashing” and you’ll sound like you know exactly what you need).
Drip edge — the narrow angled metal strip along the roof’s edge that kicks water into the gutter instead of behind it. Often the “white strip that blew off in the storm” → roofer or handyman.
Ridge vent — the low hump running along the roof peak that lets attic heat out. Damaged or leaking at the very top of the roof → roofer.
Vent stack / plumbing vent — the pipe sticking straight out of the roof. It’s part of your plumbing, not your roof. Sewer smell indoors or gurgling drains → plumber. Leak around it where it exits the roof → roofer (that’s the flashing again, called a “pipe boot”).
The overhang (under the roof edge)
Soffit — the flat underside of the roof overhang, often vented. Sagging, holes, or animals getting in → handyman or siding contractor; animals already inside → wildlife removal first, then the repair.
Fascia — the vertical board the gutters are screwed to. Rot here is common because failed gutters soak it for years. Rotting, peeling, or gutters pulling loose → handyman or roofer; if the rot is widespread, a carpenter.
Gutters and downspouts — you know these. Overflowing, sagging, detached → gutter company (cheaper than a roofer for the same job). The buried pipe a downspout feeds into → drainage contractor.
The walls (outside)
Siding — the outer skin of the walls: vinyl, fiber cement (“Hardie board”), wood clapboard, or aluminum. One cracked or wind-torn piece → handyman; whole sections → siding contractor.
Trim / corner boards — the boards framing corners, windows, and doors. Rot at the bottom ends is standard → handyman or carpenter.
Weep holes — the small open gaps at the bottom of brick walls or window frames. They are SUPPOSED to be open — they drain water from behind the brick. Don’t caulk them shut, and be suspicious of anyone who offers to. Water actually pouring from them after rain is the wall doing its job.
House wrap — the paper/plastic layer visible when siding is missing (often printed “Tyvek”). Exposed wrap means the siding above it is gone → siding contractor, soon; the wrap alone is not waterproof for long.
Under the sink and behind the walls
P-trap — the U-shaped pipe under every sink. Its job is holding water to block sewer gas. Leaking under the sink → plumber, though a hand-tightened slip nut is the one plumbing fix almost anyone can try first. Sewer smell from an unused bathroom → the trap has dried out; run water for a minute before calling anyone.
Supply valves / shut-off valves — the small oval handles under sinks and behind toilets. These are what you turn off in an emergency. Won’t turn, or drips from the stem → plumber.
Main shut-off valve — where the water line enters the house (basement, garage, crawl space, or at the street). Every adult in the house should know where this is before the night it matters.
TPR valve (temperature & pressure relief) — the lever valve with a discharge tube on the side of your water heater. Dripping occasionally can be normal expansion; running constantly → plumber same week. Never cap or plug it — it’s the part that keeps a water heater from becoming a rocket.
Pressure regulator (PRV) — a bell-shaped brass fitting where water enters the house. Banging pipes, screaming faucets, or repeated fixture failures → failing PRV → plumber.
The basement and the bones
Sump pump — the pump in a pit in the basement floor that ejects groundwater. Not running during heavy rain, or running nonstop → plumber or waterproofing company. This is the part whose failure floods basements — test it yearly by pouring in a bucket of water.
Sill plate — the wooden board lying flat on top of the foundation wall, which the whole wood structure sits on. Rot or insect damage here is structural → general contractor, and for anything sagging, a structural engineer’s report first (a few hundred dollars) so the fix is specified by someone who doesn’t profit from it.
Joists — the horizontal boards holding up each floor. A soft or bouncy spot in the floor above a crawl space is often a joist problem → general contractor; widespread sag → structural engineer first.
Beam / girder and posts — the big horizontal member (often steel) running the length of the basement, and the columns under it. Anything visibly shifted, rusted through, or newly cracked → structural engineer, before any contractor.
Why the name matters
Two reasons. First, the search: “fascia rot repair” finds the right trade instantly; “board behind gutter rotting” finds forums full of people as stuck as you. Second, the phone call: a contractor who hears the correct part name gives you a tighter estimate and can’t pad the job with mystery. You don’t need to know how to fix any of this — you need the noun.
Not sure even with the names? Answer three questions and we’ll route you: What do I do? →