Whether it’s a peek of blue on a sunny spring morning or the dark grey of an evening storm rolling in, there’s something undeniably therapeutic that comes with a connection to the sky.
With the power to turn dark and dingy rooms into havens of natural light, a skylight can be one of the most transformational design features you can add to your home.
As an important element of biophilic design, natural lighting doesn’t just make our spaces look more airy and appealing, but also improves our mood and sense of wellbeing. Studies have found that natural light even lowers our stress levels and increases our productivity.
But the benefits of skylights don’t end here.
The benefits of skylights
Increased natural lighting might be the most obvious benefit to installing skylights in your home, but the lighting solution also offers some unexpected benefits to your home’s architectural design as well.
“We see skylights as an essential design element,” explains Stephen Parry, Marketing Manager at VELUX.
“By opening the ceiling with a bank of skylights, the room can take on a greater sense of space, grandeur and greater wow factor. It can be an architectural statement that completely transforms a space into something special.”
The benefits of skylights also, rather delightfully, extend to your bank account. With less need for artificial lighting and — in some cases — even heating, skylights are surprisingly good at keeping electricity costs low.
Where should I install a skylight
While those with just one dark space in their home will have no problem deciding where to install their skylight, sometimes a skylight’s location is less obvious.
In this case, it can help to think about the benefits a skylight might offer each room of your home. For example, adding a skylight to a dark and poorly ventilated bathroom will not just bring in more light but also combat high humidity levels and reduce the chance of mould growth.
In the bedroom, a flood of natural light in the morning will help regulate your circadian rhythm and perhaps even help you finally become an early riser.
While skylights might offer specific benefits to different rooms, the good news is that there’s no room they can’t be installed in.
The key, according to Stephen, is simply about “choosing the right model and size for the room”.
“Opening skylights are ideal for bathroom and kitchens where ventilation is an important factor,” he explains.
“We even recommend opening skylights for stairwells as they’re a great way to get rid of rising heat. Though, for a patio or hallway, a fixed non-opening model is often the right choice.
“It’s really important to choose the right size and number of skylights for the space, as it’s not very often you have a space that is too bright! Plus, blinds can be added for occasions when you don’t want the light, such as a bedroom.”
The different types of skylights
When it comes to choosing a specific type of skylight, your options are endless.
“There is a skylight for just about any building or application you could think of,” Stephen says.
“VELUX offers a range of skylights for both flat roofs and a typical angled roof, with specially designed models for both types of roofs: fixed, non-opening skylights, manually opened skylights that use a rod, and a remote-controlled model that closes automatically when it rains — a feature that is a real hit with our customers.”
In other words, it really depends on your home and the design statement that you’re after.
How much should a skylight cost?
Stephen says that the cost of skylights can range “from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand”.
It’s also worth noting that the cost of installing the skylight is an additional cost on top of the cost of the skylight itself.
“Installation will often be more expensive than the product,” Stephen explains. “So make sure you factor that in by getting a quote from a local installer.”
Related stories
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
Native ad body.
