It’s important that we understand the pros and cons of roof skylights so avoid any potential downfalls. If you are considering installing roof skylights and Velux windows to your home, this article is for you. You might be wondering if they are the right investment and if so, what are the factors to consider when installing a skylight.
Our professional team of roofers are well experienced to ensure that we have our homeowners’ best interest when installing roof skylights and Velux windows.
Before you approve for a section of your home to cut for roof skylight installation, let’s look at some of pros and cons of roof skylights and having them installed.
Pros of Roof Skylights & Velux Windows
1. Natural Heating & Lighting
Roof skylights help rooms in homes and workspaces that have poor lighting. It lightens up dark spaces, especially those located in the middle of the building or without windows such as the bathrooms and stores. With a provision for natural lighting, it also cuts down on energy bills for electrical lighting. Installing roof skylights can also come in handy for spaces located in raining seasons or overcast climates.
2. Energy Cost Saving
As mentioned earlier, not only does a roof skylight provide heating, a vented skylight provides cross ventilation as a cooling effect. This effect of heating and cooling produced naturally can cut down on your energy costs quite significantly.
3. Healthy Ventilation
For most homeowners, fresh air within a space is not debatable. Skylight windows make for a refreshing space without the need for the air conditioners or heaters to be turned on all the time – a handy feel for the winter season.
4. Striking Home Beauty & Property Value
The attractive look of a naturally lighted room and the atmosphere it offers with a nice view outside has the potential to increase the value of the property. As such, installing skylight will often put your property at a favourable position to others of perceived competition.
5. Provides a Spacious Look
Small room spaces can significantly appear bigger when illuminated by skylights and the natural light they offer. Roof skylights give your room a look of extended space, a similar feature which homeowners achieve with mirrors placed at strategic locations to enhance the visual space. Moreover, roof skylights are quite useful because they brighten the room and offer a natural view with little to no obstruction.
6. Added Home Ambience
Given the seasonal changes in weather conditions, the ambience within your home is generally linked to weather and seasons. However, a skylight helps set/lighten the mood in your home all the time. Perceived moods could come as a warm, cosy, or even minimalistic feel at the home or workspace.
Having looked at some of the advantages of installing skylights, it is important to determine some of the factors that affect and heighten the risks of having a skylight installed in your home or workplace. Quite often, these factors are linked to poor to no consultations on skylight installations that would have otherwise provided a reliable decision-making process to homeowners.
Cons of Roof Skylights & Velux Windows
- Settling for inferior quality materials that often come at cheap rates
- Hiring skylight professionals with little to no experience for installations
- Self-installation without professional supervision
- Random placement of skylight with no professional consultation
1. Unmet Expectations
This is often common for the DIY-ers who are oblivious to the different types of skylights, what functions they offer and the features that best soothe the needs in their homes. Do you need more ventilation or need an automated skylight for periods of an unexpected rainstorm? What climate is typical to your home location? These considerations are relevant and help prevent the installation of skylights that fall short of expectation.
2. Possible Interior Exposure to Damage
With skylights getting more sophisticated, solutions to curbing damage to properties and cause of harm to occupants within the home or workspace have been provided. Excessive heating which could cause interior damage to carpets and furniture can be prevented by opting for tinted laminated and or tempered Skylight glass with UV or Low-E, which we often recommend.
Also on the possible shattering of skylight glass (given an external force), a laminated glass film will hold the broken glasses in place to prevent more damage or casualty within the building.
3. Uncontrolled heat (Sun glare) & Lighting
Placing skylights in shady areas or angles can let in too much light or provide much heat than needed. An installation on the south side of a building can provide solar heat in winter although it must be shaded in the summer for controlled temperature, north side installation in a building gives cooling light. These are relevant considerations that require professional consultations to be done right.
4. Poor Roof type & fit
Not all roof types are structural fits of any skylight of your choice. For example, a truss roof frame requires a lot more expertise than a standard roof frame which goes with almost all types of skylights.
5. Moisture (Roof) leaks
This is a common con for skylights made from poor and cheap quality materials that are prone to discolouration and wearing out within short periods. Quite often poor installation is also reasons for leaks, especially for skylights not mounted above the roof surface.
6. Conditional Expenses
These expenses are conditional because they depend on the type of skylight you want to be installed, and the brand. Of course, extra expenses in the form of maintenance and repairs come in based on the above cons, which are caused by overlooked professional services.
The simple question would be, are roof skylights a great fit for your building? And have I evaluated the pros and cons of roof skylights for my home?
Though it very much depends on your requirement, usually it is best answered by a professional roofer who will able to breakdown the question and provide the right answer for you. Get in touch with us for your next Velux and skylight project and have our consultants do a quick check on your building to determine that, and if so, provide a break down on your needs.
