soffit
I have a roofline similar to this.
.
Just above the porch column, there is a roofline that joins the main roofline. On my home, birds have started to push up on the soffit and make their way into my attic. I'm assuming this is how mice keep getting into my attic as well. Is there supposed to be some sort of support behind the soffit to keep it firm against the shingles?
Rather than trying to cut holes and add vents, you could also replace these with vented soffit skirting. E.g. This one can be picked up from your local HI store:
Wiring in a crawl space (wet location) can be done successfully using a variety of means:
However, given the circumstances (i.e. the persistent wetness in the crawlspace), I'd be most comfortable with THWN in PVC and nonmetallic junction boxes down there, with the risers being THWN-in-PVC as well. The main downside, though, is that not only is this an expensive way to wire a house, most "wet location" electrical equipment will not survive being bathed in another storm surge!
The soffit proposal is elegant; however, the main problem is going to be providing access to junction boxes -- you'll need to have blank plates interrupting the molding (preferably on the bottom of the soffit) in order to provide access to junctions:
314.29 Boxes, Conduit Bodies, and Handhole Enclosures to Be Accessible. Boxes, conduit bodies, and handhole enclosures shall be installed so that the wiring contained in them can be rendered accessible without removing any part of the building or structure or, in underground circuits, without excavating sidewalks, paving, earth, or other substance that is to be used to establish the finished grade.
Further more, you'd have to use an "old work" type of junction box in this application as you wouldn't have framing members inside the soffit to attach the boxes to. While the 3" by 3" soffit interior should be adequate for cabling, I would not use a conduit inside it due to the soffit interfering with conduit body access. I do not know of any fire code requirement for horizontal cable chases other than them requiring firestopping when they penetrate a firewall; however, as mfarver pointed out, your AHJ has the final say on that, and internal firebreaks in the chase would be wise.
Another option for the soffit wiring case would be to use a plug-in, non-ventilated, totally enclosed busway system with branch circuit breakers at the outlet taps and type MC cable run exposed or NM run in surface raceways for the drops/horizontal runs to outlets and luminaires. While unusual for a residential application, plug-in busways offer a high degree of flexibility in layout, and can be subdivided so that branch circuits can be moved with only modest impacts on power to other parts of the house.
There are two drawbacks to this approach, other than it being relatively costly, though:
Best Answer
It's hard to say much from the very distant photo, but I'd guess that there's no metal channel against the roofing (shingles). That would prevent all but the burliest of birds and rodents from shimmying under.
The wall has a channel for the soffit to slip into, and that channel should wrap down the slope to the backside of the fascia.
Or, work in some lumber, fastened at the wall and fascia, to stiffen things. Don't puncture any existing roofing.