Hoping to purchase a skylight for your own home? You should first know that there are three common types of skylights and that each of them has different functionalities that make it more or less suitable for certain areas in your home. Let’s take a look at some of those details below. 

3 Common Types of Skylights

There are many different styles and variations of skylights, but they all fall under three common categories: fixed, tubular, and ventilating. 

1. Fixed Skylights

Fixed skylights cannot be opened. Their primary function is to provide your home with greater amounts of natural light. 

For this reason, fixed skylights are quite large in size and can be placed in hard-to-reach areas. They’re ideal for any room needing additional light or beautiful views, but they’re most often found in larger spaces like living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms. 

2. Tubular Skylights

As their name suggests, tubular skylights look like tubes that extend out from your roof. Also called sun tunnels, they consist of a domed glass rooftop lens and a reflective-lined tube. They’re relatively small and easy to install.

Because of their small size, tubular skylights can fit into tight spaces. They’re often placed in small rooms that don’t receive much natural light, such as closets, hallways, foyers, and pantries. 

3. Ventilating Skylights

Ventilating skylights, or roof skylights, can be opened either manually or mechanically. They’re great for providing natural light and ventilation into any room that needs it. 

Because of their ventilation features, ventilating skylights are best suited for two kinds of spaces within your home:

• High-ceilinged rooms, such as attics and cathedral-ceiling living rooms
• Rooms with excess moisture, such as kitchens and bathrooms

5 Reasons Why Skylights Are a Great Addition to Your Home

No matter which type of skylight you choose to install, you’re sure to see some great benefits added to your space’s overall aesthetic and performance. Here are just a few of the reasons why skylights can be a great addition to your home. 

1. Natural Light 

Does your home seem dark, cramped, and unwelcoming because there’s never enough sun shining in? All types of skylights provide ample amounts of natural light, especially when the sun’s at its highest and brightest, point. Not only does this make your spaces look larger and brighter, but it also provides health and energy efficiency benefits. 

2. Ventilation

If you choose a ventilating skylight, you’ll get amazing airflow within the spaces of your home that really need it. Some types of skylights even offer mechanical or electric ventilation, so you don’t have to worry about reaching up and remembering to open them up yourself. Your damp bathrooms and kitchen will thank you! 

3. Energy Efficiency

All types of skylights reduce your need for artificial lighting, and some types also reduce your need for air conditioning and fans in the summertime. That said, they’re a pretty energy-efficient home addition, and they can save you a substantial amount on your future utility bills. 

Better yet? Just like there are energy-efficient window types, there are energy-efficient skylight types as well. Invest in one of those for maximum energy efficiency and cost-savings benefits. 

4. Privacy

Want to let additional sunlight in our home, but don’t want to sacrifice your privacy? Skylights are the perfect solution! Since they’re built into your roof, no one can see through them. This benefit makes skylights especially great for bedrooms and bathrooms in need of some brightening. 

5. Brighten Small Spaces

Chances are, there are one or two rooms in your home that just aren’t big enough to fit an actual window. Skylights, especially small tubular skylights, can still provide the light they need to look bright and beautiful. 

If you’re looking for a new way to brighten your home, skylights are a great option! At Werner Roofing, we’re proud to offer VELUX Skylights for our customers — providing them with an aesthetically pleasing, sustainable solution. Contact us to learn more about how skylights could fit into your next roofing project.

Replace Skylights When You Spot Signs of Aging

Skylights are great for letting in natural light, but if they’re letting in any other elements, it’s time to swap out the old for the new! Leaking — as well as fogging, discoloration, cracking, and build-up of condensation — are sure signs your skylights are ready for retirement and it’s time to replace them with newer models. 

Replace Skylights When You Replace Your Windows or Roof

If other windows in your home need replacing, it’s usually a good time to replace your skylights as well to ensure consistency in style, and in the overall energy efficiency of your home. 

Probably the best time to replace skylights, however, is when you replace your roof. That’s because it saves time and money to do the work all at once. 

When you’re getting a roof replacement, even skylights that seem perfectly fine can be compromised. The removal of old roofing materials and placement of new ones around the skylight can result in some shifting, and thus the possibility of future leaking. 

That means you’ll likely end up replacing the skylights later anyway. And in that case, the new roofing materials you just put down around the skylight will have to be ripped up and replaced yet again. All this equates to more time and more money spent, so you can see why it actually makes a whole lot of sense to replace both your roof and skylights simultaneously. 

Replace Skylights When You Want to Take Advantage of Upgrades 

When you consider the advances in technologies and engineering of skylights, replacing old ones with newer models can provide you with benefits you didn’t have before. For instance, the latest VELUX skylights feature dual-paned glass for increased energy efficiency, a.k.a. lower heating and cooling bills! There are even remote-controlled models that open up to let fresh air inside as well as solar-powered options that not only help with energy bills but also qualify you for a tax credit. 

A lot of things have changed and improved since your old skylights were installed, so upgrading to new ones will allow you to enjoy all the modern design and functionality new VELUX skylights have to offer. 

So, with all this in mind, what do you think? Are you ready to repair or replace your VELUX skylights? Werner Roofing is here to help! We have a knowledgeable team of experts in VELUX skylight installation and repair, so you can count on us to ensure your skylights are installed properly and look and work their best.  Get in touch with us today to get your project started, or check out our VELUX skylight offerings online. Out with the old and in with the new!

But once you’ve decided to get skylights, you may be wondering, “what are the best places to install these skylights?” in your home.

Here are the top five places where skylights can really shine:

5 Great Places for Skylights in Your Home

While skylights can certainly fit nicely into any room, there are a few specific areas where they truly have the ability to make a statement. 

1. Kitchen

The kitchen is a main gathering place for many families. Therefore, it’s one of the best places to put a skylight. They create a visual effect that can make a room that’s often crowded look a bit bigger and brighter. 

Also, adding a skylight will add more natural air ventilation in a space where it’s really needed. The heat and odors from cooking will be able to escape easily. Better yet — skylights don’t take up the wall space that traditional windows do, so you can have more room for storage.

2. Bedrooms

Skylights are a great addition to bedrooms because they offer the best of both worlds in terms of natural light and privacy. If you’re looking to start your day with some sunshine, you won’t have to worry about covering any windows up with blinds while you get ready. 

And let’s not forget to mention, what better view than a sky full of stars to fall asleep to?

3. Bathrooms

Similar to the kitchen, bathrooms are another place where skylights’ ventilation features are especially useful. Due to their closed-off layout, bathrooms easily build up moisture. This can lead to mold, water damage, and mildew that is bothersome to live with and costly to fix. Skylights can help to mitigate some of that humidity, while offering the light you want, and the privacy you need. 

4. Hallways

Although they’re not technically a room, hallways are a great place for skylights. They’re places that are often forgotten about, and therefore don’t showcase many design elements — but they could! 

Adding a skylight can make a hallway just as functional and stylish as the other rooms in your home. Hallways are also a great place to incorporate more natural light to flood through the home.

5. Attic

Many homeowners transform their attic into another living area if they don’t need the extra storage space. They can be transformed into another family room or bedroom. However, if you choose to do this, one of the main issues you may run into is lighting. 

A skylight is a great way to add natural light into this dark space and make it more comfortable. Then, not only do you have a unique room in your home, but unique design and functionality features to go along with it. 

Werner Roofing is proud to work exclusively with VELUX Skylights because they offer the best quality skylights on the market. If you’re considering placing a few value-adding skylights in your home, give us a call or contact us online! We’d be happy to help you find the perfect placement and install your new skylight quickly and efficiently.

Luckily, once you learn the basics, skylight maintenance isn’t too difficult. Let’s take a look at how often you should clean and inspect your skylights, what you can do on your own, and when to ask a professional for help. 

How Often Should Skylights Be Cleaned and Inspected?

Your skylights should be thoroughly cleaned once or twice per year. After this amount of time, they’ll have gathered a lot of dirt, dust, and spiderwebs that you’ll want to get rid of. 

Alongside that, your skylights should also be inspected at least once per year, regardless of whether you see any issues or not. There are a couple potential problems that you won’t be able to see from the inside, so you should get a thorough exterior inspection as well. Keeping up with these inspections could end up saving you thousands of dollars in damage repair. 

And, of course, if you notice any problems outside of those regular cleanings and inspections, contact a professional to get help as soon as possible. 

DIY Skylight Maintenance

There are a few things you can do to maintain your skylights without calling and spending money on a professional service. 

Clean Interior Glass and Frames

With a sturdy ladder and a friend, you can clean the dust and spiderwebs off the interior of your skylight with a few simple skylight cleaning steps.

1. Spray the window with water, let it soak, then wipe the dirt away with a cloth.
2. Fill a bucket with warm water and add your manufacturer’s recommended glass cleaning solution. 
3. Submerge a clean cloth in the cleaning solution, then wipe down the window again. 
4. Use a squeegee and wipe the glass clean in even paths.
5. Dust and wipe the interior frames with another clean cloth. 

Be On the Lookout for Leaks

Leaks are the #1 issue related to skylights, and they can cause thousands of dollars in damage if they’re not quickly attended to. They can cause interior water damage, exterior water damage, or mold. You should check your skylights for leaks every week or two to avoid these costly repairs. 

Limit Condensation

Condensation can lead to similar damage as leaks. If you notice any condensation on your skylights, it probably means your windows need more ventilation. In order to increase ventilation, try the following suggestions:

• Close your kitchen and bathroom doors
• Dry your laundry outside
• Open your skylight for 5 minutes a couple of times per day
• Maintain a constant room temperature near 68 degrees

Professional Skylight Maintenance

There are a couple instances where you should not try to fix your skylights by yourself. Instead, you should call a professional that has years of experience working with them. 

Exterior Cleaning

Although you can usually do interior cleaning on your own, you should leave exterior cleaning up to a professional. They have the expertise, equipment and safety knowledge to remove dust, dirt, and films from your skylights without damaging them or hurting themselves. 

Water Damage

Water and condensation damage isn’t probably something you have the tools or knowledge to fix. Luckily, there are many roofing experts that do. Let them help you so you can get your roof and skylights looking as good as new in no time. 

We love working with VELUX skylights because they are known for low-maintenance, long lasting products. However, all skylights need a bit of attention now and then to keep them in optimal working order. If it’s been a while since you had your skylight inspected, give our experts a call! We’re happy to take a look at them and offer recommendations for maintenance or service.