Essential Considerations For Roof Skylights

Skylights can best be described as light transmitting elements, otherwise known as fenestration, that fill the openings of the building envelope. They are used for daylight purposes and can either form all, or a small portion of the roof of a building’s space. They are widely utilised in designing day-lighting for commercial, residential, and public buildings.

Increased day-lighting results in less use of electrical lighting and smaller sized window glazing, which is a great way to save energy, reduce environmental impacts and lower costs. Day-lighting saves electrical energy in some buildings by up to eighty percent.

Toplighting from skylights is ideal for side-lighting (windows) when it comes to maximising day-lighting. It brings light into the centralised points of a building. Top-lighting makes daylight available throughout the day, whether it is from the direct exposure to the natural sun or ambient lighting from the sky.

Sky-lighting Types
Sky-lighting types typically encompass the unit skylights, roof windows, sloped glazing, tubular day-lighting devices along with the custom sky-lighting. Some of their uses include the following:
– The day-lighting elements are utilised to allow both the direct and indirect sunlight into the building via top-lighting.
– They are used to achieve a sustainable building because they afford passive solar heating with operable units. These elements provide ample ventilation for passive cooling, which is ideal for fresh air exchange.
– They supply a visual connection to the outside environment to the interior occupants.

Ideally, these are light transmitting elements that provide a building with the much needed ventilation and day-lighting. With proper selection and subsequent installation, sky-lighting proves to be handy in terms of minimising one’s heating, cooling, along with lighting costs.

Skylight Design Considerations
Before choosing a skylight for your building, it would be prudent to determine the type of skylight that best suits your home. The position to place it is also imperative, as this optimises its overall contribution to the home’s day-lighting, ventilation, and energy efficiency.

Energy Performance Ratings
One of the most important points to consider in the selection process is understanding energy performance rating. These structures can be selected based on one’s local climate and home design. Those who plan to build a new home or perform a major remodel are recommended to incorporate their skylight design and ratings for best performance.

Size of a skylight
The physical size of the skylight poses a huge impact when it comes to the temperature and the level of illumination of the space below. Experts recommend that the best skylight size should not exceed 5% of the total floor area, especially in rooms that have many windows. On the contrary, for spaces with few windows, the best skylight size should not exceed 15% of the room’s total floor area.

Position
Homeowners who plan to maximise passive solar heating and/or day-lighting potential should consider a skylight’s position. Using a skylight on roofs that face north allows you to get cool and fairly constant illumination. On the other hand, occupants get maximum light along with solar heat gain in the morning when they install these day-lighting elements on east-facing roofs.

The unwanted solar heat gain can be prevented by installing these light transmitting elements in the shade of leaf-shedding trees. Nevertheless, you may choose to add a movable window covering on the outside or inside of the skylight and prevent undesired heat. Some units include special glazing that is effective in controlling solar heat gain.