Field & trade terms
Flashing
Flashing is the sheet metal or membrane installed at the vulnerable seams of a building — where a roof meets a wall, where a window sits in an opening, where a deck ties into cladding — to catch water and shed it back to the outside. It works entirely by lapping: upper layers over lower, so gravity keeps water on the surface and out of the wall. Reversed laps or missing pieces don't leak on install day; they leak two winters later, which is why flashing is inspected before it's covered.
How it shows up on site
You see flashing at head, sill and jamb of window and door openings, at roof-to-wall transitions and penetrations, at deck ledgers and at the base of cladding. The whole game is shingle-style layering — each piece integrated into the water-resistive barrier so the drainage plane is continuous.
What an inspector looks at
The check is direction and continuity: does water hit each flashing and get thrown out rather than led in, are the laps correct, is the sill pan turned up at the back and ends, and is everything tied into the barrier rather than caulked over it. Sealant is a backup, never the flashing.
Because RTI closes items on a photo, flashing is documented while it's still exposed — sill pans, head flashing and roof transitions shot before siding, trim or roofing hide the laps for good.
Checklists that put flashing to work
Free, field-ready checklists, each with the photo every item needs before it can be submitted.
Related terms
- Weep holeA small opening left at the base of a cavity wall or window so water that gets behind the face has a path back out.
- Dry-inThe point at which a building is closed to weather — roof, wall barrier and openings sealed enough to keep water out and let interior work start.
- Vapor barrierA sheet material that limits how much water vapor diffuses through an assembly, placed to keep condensation from forming inside the wall or floor.
- PenetrationAny point where a pipe, conduit, duct or cable passes through a wall, floor or roof — a hole that has to be sealed back to match the assembly it crosses.
- MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing)The mechanical, electrical and plumbing trades — the systems run through a building's structure that get inspected at rough-in and again at final.
- FirestoppingSealing openings where pipe, conduit or cable pass through a fire-rated wall or floor so the assembly's rating is restored.
Knowing the term is step one. Proving it is the job.
RTI holds the submit button until every mandatory item is answered and the photos are attached, then chains the record so it can be proven untouched later.