Skylights by Sydney Roof
Skylight Installation Sydney
There is a wide range of features that can add to home designs, both to the aesthetic appeal and to the functional value. These features allow for individual design and aesthetic preferences to add character to the home’s structure. One of these features is the humble skylight, which are amazing sources of natural light. They’re able to increase the amount of light in a room by up to three times the amount a vertical window would allow in. Not only does this add to the light in a room, but it also helps to make homes more energy efficient, reducing the need for artificial light and letting the sunlight warm the room in a natural manner, keeping heating costs low throughout crisp winter days.
A well-placed sunlight can make a huge difference to the light quality in a room. They’re particularly of value in areas where vertical windows don’t provide adequate lighting or ventilation, giving architects and builders another option when it comes to ways to let light and air into the space without resorting to artificial methods. Natural light is also important for the effect it has on people’s emotional health and mental well-being, as higher levels of natural light have been scientifically proven to be linked to higher levels of happiness.
Skylights also provide a viable alternative for providing natural light when privacy is a concern. Instead of bringing light in via the walls, skylights allow for natural light to be drawn in through the roof. They also provide an option for innovative and interesting design on an architectural level, providing more alternatives to the normal window for those looking for a creative way to ensure rooms are receiving the natural light they receive.
There are a number of factors to consider when it comes to the specifics of the skylight you choose to have installed in your home. The size and the spacing of a skylight has a direct impact on the heat it gains through solar power, as well as its ability to conduct heat. The right size can be calculated by looking at floor space – for roof windows and skylights, a 3-5% floor to skylight area ratio is most typical.
Types of skylights
There’s a wide range of particular types of skylights. These include…
Roof windows – these are a popular choice for attics in particular when cathedral ceilings offer ample space for their installation amongst a limited overall roof space. Whilst many Sydney homes are not built with a traditional attic space, roof windows still offer a viable option for those spaces where roof space is limited and light is still required within the room. Generally, most roof windows can be opened, which works well in summer climates when the ability to let in the breeze from outside is a welcome respite from summer heat. This also makes them an attractive option for homes with two stories, when the heat would often sit in the upper level without much space to escape. Roof windows generally have frames that are made out of timber but can also be made from aluminium and steel. If your home is in an area that suffers through cooler climates, it’s important to ensure these frames are insulated to stop condensation from building up and causing ongoing issues such as mould or wood deterioration.
Skylights – also known as roof lights, skylights are light-diffusing molded units, most often made out of acrylic? These are installed to protrude out of the roofline with their ‘opal’ shape and design effectively diffusing light as it enters the room. Skylights come with a variety of options – some are fixed, whilst others can be opened to let air in from the outside. Skylights are the more visible type of roof lighting, and you can often see their shape rising from above the roofline, so their installation requires aesthetic considerations as well as practical.
Tubular skylights – tubular skylights are shaped differently to skylights and are effective in reducing absolute heat loss or heat gain due to the small cross-sectional area they take up. Their design gives them a powerful ability to capture direct-beat sunlight, which is then transmitted through a highly reflective light well before it’s diffused at the level of the ceiling so light can hit around the room. This is achieved by the reflecting tube that directs the sunlight that hits it downwards through a straight tube lined with silver for best results. These tubular skylights take up a much smaller amount of space on the roof and are also less visible, so they offer a strong alternative for those who are looking for maximum natural light with minimum visibility of the skylight on top of the roof.
Benefits and reasons to install skylights
Anyone who has spent time living in Sydney will know how beautiful its sunshine can be for the majority of days throughout the year. However, the amount of direct sunlight a skylight will receive needs to be considered in its design, as additional shading or measures that can control the solar power they’re receiving needs to be implemented. One of the ways this can be achieved is through glazing, which
Skylights offer a great alternative to vertical windows when it comes to the amount of natural light that is drawn into a room. In a beautiful, sunshine-filled climate such as Sydney, skylights offer a great way to further connect homes to the outside world. Natural light has proven scientific benefits for our health and well-being, and ensuring your home is well lit and ventilated should be a design priority that accounts for adequate provision on a daily basis.
One reason to install a skylight is if vertical windows are impractical due to either the wall placement or privacy concerns. Skylights provide a viable option in retaining natural light levels within that room without the requirement of vertical windows. This allows homeowners to benefit from flexible design options that let them plan for architectural needs in a wide range of building circumstances.