A hardwood surround for a steel spa
A stainless steel spa wrapped in hardwood: vertical boards on the sides and a wide cap with mitered corners, where four boards meet at an angle and every gap shows.
Exterior trim, built to shed water.
Exterior trim is the wood or composite that finishes the outside of a house: fascia, door and window surrounds, corner boards, posts and railings. We replace and install it so it sheds water and stands up to salt air and sun.
- Water is the enemy. Trim lasts when every cut end is sealed and water has a way off.
- Near the ocean, materials and fasteners are chosen for salt air.
- Some exterior changes need design review, depending on the town. We say which before work starts.
- FasciaThe board along the roof edge. It takes the weather first, so every cut end is sealed.
- Corner boardCovers the siding ends at the corner of the house.
- Door surroundTrim around the entry, with flashing above so water cannot sit on it.
- Window trimSloped at the sill to shed water, and kept clear of the wall with a sealed joint.
- ShuttersSized as if they could close over the window, or they look pinned on.
- Porch postHeld off the deck on a base so its end grain never sits in water.
How a window is flashed, frame by frame.
- Sill panA sill pan goes in first, sloped and lapped over the wall barrier, so any water reaching the sill drains out.
- Set the windowThe window is set level and square, and fastened through its flange.
- Flash in orderFlashing tape goes on the sides, then the head, each layer overlapping the one below like shingles.
- Water runs outWater that gets behind the siding or stucco meets a layer that sends it down and out, never in.
Built by Tom. Fifty years of custom cabinets and finish carpentry, from Oregon and Hawaii to Malibu, Pacific Palisades and Westlake Village, and now from Goleta to Carpinteria. Meet the carpenter
What is included.
- Fascia: the board along the roof edge, behind the gutter.
- Door and window surrounds, with flashing (thin metal that turns water outward) above horizontal pieces.
- Corner boards and gable details.
- Porch posts and railings, built to code.
- Shutters, fixed or working.
- Rot-resistant wood or composite, back-primed (primed on the hidden face) with every cut end sealed.
You send photographs of the house and the areas that worry you.
We inspect on site, probe for rot, and tell you whether the work is likely to need design review in your town.
Damaged trim comes off, and the framing and flashing behind it are checked and corrected.
New trim is cut, primed on all faces and cut ends, fastened and sealed.
The work is caulked and painted, or left primed for your painter.
Decide these first.
- Wood or composite. Rot-resistant wood looks and cuts like the original. Composite does not rot, but it moves with heat and needs its own fastening and joints.
- Replace like for like, or change the look. Like for like is simpler. A visible change may bring design review in some towns.
- Paint color. Dark colors run hotter in the sun, which is hard on joints and on some composites.
- How far to go. Rot in one fascia board often continues along the run. Replacing the length while the scaffold is up can cost less overall.
- Fasteners. Stainless steel costs more and does not leave rust streaks down the paint.
- Horizontal trim has flashing above it and a slight slope, so water runs off and does not sit.
- The bottoms of posts and vertical trim stop short of the ground or the deck, so they do not soak up water.
- Joints are tight and sealed, and long runs are joined with an angled overlap (a scarf joint).
- There are no rust streaks below the nails.
- Paint covers every face you can see, and primer covers the ones you cannot.
- Height and access. Second-story fascia and gables need scaffolding.
- Material. Composite and clear rot-resistant wood cost more than common primed boards, and last longer.
- Hidden damage. Rot found in the framing behind the trim is repaired before new trim goes on.
- Custom profiles and detailed work such as railings, shutters and gable ornaments.
Prices vary with the materials and the hours a job takes. Each job is custom and unique, so we price it once we have seen the room.
Exterior trim, built and fitted.
A deck and stair railing
New decking, a guard rail of closely spaced balusters, and a stair rail to match, photographed in bare wood before finishing.
Access doors
Small exterior doors made to fit: a pair of redwood-framed lattice doors for a crawl-space opening, and painted utility doors with vents set in stucco.
A paneled oak entry door
A six-panel oak entry door with paneled sidelights and leaded glass above.
Exterior trim: what owners ask.
What is the best material for exterior trim near the ocean?
A naturally rot-resistant wood, or a composite made for outdoor use, primed on every face and fastened with stainless steel. Salt air corrodes plain steel nails and pushes moisture into unsealed wood. The sealing matters more than the material: an unprimed cut end fails first, whatever it is made of.
Why does my fascia keep rotting?
Because water is reaching it and staying. The usual causes are a missing metal edge under the roofing, a leaking or overflowing gutter, or cut ends that were not sealed. Replacing the board without correcting the water path gives you the same rot again. We correct the path first.
Do I need approval to change exterior trim in Santa Barbara or Montecito?
Sometimes. Replacing trim with the same material and look is generally straightforward. Changes that alter how the house looks from the street can need design review, and the rules differ from town to town. We tell you which applies to your house before any work starts.
Is composite trim better than wood?
It depends on where it goes. Composite does not rot and suits places that stay damp, such as trim close to the ground. It expands in heat and cannot be stained. Wood looks right on an older house and can be shaped to any profile, but its paint has to be kept up.
Built in our small boutique shop in Carpinteria where the piece is custom, and fitted on site in:
CarpinteriaSummerlandMontecitoSanta BarbaraHope RanchGoleta
- Custom cabinetry
- Baseboards
- Door and window casing
- Window installation
- Door installation
- Custom shelving
- Hardware installation
- Crown molding
- Wainscoting and wall paneling
- Built-ins
- Custom closets
- Stair railings and treads
- Fireplace mantels and surrounds
- Ceiling beams and coffered ceilings
- Kitchen cabinet installation
- Bathroom vanities
- Custom furniture and pieces
- Trim and door repair
- Exterior trim
Have a room in mind? Send us the photographs.
Email photographs of the room and rough measurements to purchasing@amnbuild.com. Matt reads it himself. No forms.