TL;DR
Head flashing is the horizontal drip flashing installed above a window or door, tucked under the weather barrier and lapped over the top of the unit so water running down the wall is kicked clear of the frame. Profiles include rigid metal drip caps and flexible self-adhered membranes integrated with the housewrap in shingle fashion.
What it means
Head flashing is the horizontal drip flashing installed above a window or door, tucked under the weather barrier and lapped over the top of the unit so water running down the wall is kicked clear of the frame. Profiles include rigid metal drip caps and flexible self-adhered membranes integrated with the housewrap in shingle fashion. Missing or reverse-lapped pieces at this location are a leading source of leaks that rot sheathing below openings, often misdiagnosed as a window seal failure.
Where it sits in the glossary
Head flashing is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
ProFix tools that touch this term
See also
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