Three Reasons to Install Skylights in Your Home

December 31, 2012 | Filed under: Home | Posted by: Lauren Hill

A home that is dark due to a lack of natural light can feel cold, small, and uninviting. On the other hand, a home that is bathed in natural light can feel warmer, larger, and more welcoming. While this is great news for people who live in homes with abundant windows, individuals that own homes with less access to natural light may wonder if anything can be done to remedy the situation. Fortunately, there are great options available to homeowners that are both affordable and attractive. One of the best ways to get more natural light into a home is to install a skylight. Not only do skylights bring in valuable natural light but they also provide a number of additional benefits as well.

1. Save Money And Energy

While skylights are often available for very reasonable prices, they are even more affordable when you factor in the money they may save you on your utility bills. When you have beautiful, natural light pouring into your home throughout the day, you have no need to turn on additional lighting. This can have a major impact on lowering your electricity bills. In addition, the warmth of the sun that is naturally felt as sunlight streams into a home can help to make a room feel warmer during the cold winter months of winter. In the summer, skylights that are manufactured to open and close can be used to release heat that has become trapped near the ceiling helping to keep the room cooler. When considered together, all of these factors can add up to less energy consumed and lower energy costs.

On the other hand, though, some people are concerned about whether or not skylights can have the reverse effect on heating and cooling costs. They may be worried about skylights that overheat a room during the summer and allow cold air to enter a room during the winter. Innovations in skylight products and technology have essentially eliminated these concerns. Skylights are now available with shades and blinds already installed which allow you to shut out or filter the light if less sunlight is needed. Moreover, technological improvements in glass glazing give skylights the ability to provide superior protection against both heat gain and heat loss.

2. Enjoy The Fresh Air

Long gone are the days when skylights were nothing more than a leaky, plastic shield over a whole in your roof. Nowadays, skylights are attractive, functional products that are available in a number of different styles. One style that provides the additional benefit of ventilation is venting skylights. These skylights can be opened and closed to let in fresh air or release stale or humid air. One of the most affordable options for venting skylights are those that can be opened and closed manually. If they can be reached by hand, they are most often operated by a crank handle. If the skylight is too high to reach by hand, venting skylight models can still be purchased with poles or telescoping rods to manually open or close the skylight. Another, more convenient option, is the venting skylight with an electric operating system. These skylights can be opened and closed with the push of a button on a handy remote control. Many are also installed with a rain sensor that will automatically close the skylight if there is inclement weather.

3. Add Value To Your Home

If you are considering selling your home in the next few years, you may wonder if installing a skylight is worth the expense. In many cases, the answer is a resounding yes. Not only can skylights make a home look bigger and brighter, they are also a great design element. They can be a beautiful feature in a room that creates a more open, airy feel. Many people today are also looking for homes that meet certain energy efficiency criteria. Home buyers often are looking for homes that have added features that reduce energy consumption. With all of these many benefits, skylights may actually become a selling point for a home.

More and more homeowners are finding that the many benefits of skylights make them an ideal project to put on the to-do list. Skylights can often be purchased at very affordable prices and can be installed by either a handy homeowner or a professional installer. Many can be installed in a short amount of time so that their many benefits can be felt right away. With so many reasons to install skylights in your home, there is no need to put off enjoying the beauty and warmth of a home filled with natural light.

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Posted by Lauren Hill on December 31, 2012. Filed under Home. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry