SKYLIGHTS

UA skylight can provide your home with daylighting and ventilation.

Skylights are located on the roof, so they can result in unwanted summertime solar heat gain and wintertime heat loss. Manufacturers use various glazing technologies to reduce these impacts, including heat-absorbing tints, insulated glazing, and low-emissivity (low-e) coatings. Some manufacturers even install a translucent insulation material, such as aerogel, between several glazing layers to create a more thermally efficient assembly.

Skylight Design Considerations

Before selecting a skylight for your home, determine what type of skylight will work best and where to place it to optimize its contribution to your home’s daylighting and ventilation.

Selection

It’s a good idea to understand the energy performance ratings of skylights so you can select your skylight based on the local climate and your home’s design. For labeling energy-efficient skylights, ENERGY STAR® has established minimum energy performance rating criteria by climate, based on more detailed ratings from the National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC). Look for the NFRC and ENERGY STAR labels when buying skylight.

These criteria don’t account for a home’s design, however, so if you’re building a new home or planning a major remodel, take advantage of the opportunity to incorporate your skylight design and selection as part of your whole-house design.
If you want to maximize daylighting and/or passive solar heating potential, consider a skylight’s position. Skylights on roofs that face north provide constant but cool illumination.

Those on east-facing roofs provide maximum light and solar heat gain in the morning. West-facing skylights provide afternoon sunlight and heat gain. South-facing skylights provide the greatest potential for desirable winter passive solar heat gain than any other location, but often allow unwanted heat gain in the summer.

If you have any questions don’t hesitate to give us a call and contact us!