Adding a skylight or roof window to your home is always an appealing idea; it lets more natural light in and cuts down the cost of electricity while boosting the look of your home. During those hot Australian days, you can even open your skylight if it is a ventilating one to let fresh air in, making your home less stuffy. This guide has everything you need to know about skylights, and we always advise people to hit up a professional instead of DIYing these types of jobs. 

Roof windows are the best solution for cooling a single-story house. Moreover, they also allow lighting in certain rooms without opening to the outside. Roof windows offer many advantages, which is why more and more people are adopting them. Nevertheless, it is necessary to know the ins and outs of this product before you decide to buy one.

General information

As its name indicates, a roof window is an opening to be installed on your roof. Like all traditional windows, its role is to let daylight into a room. Roof windows can be grouped into several categories according to their appearance and installation techniques:

• • The recessed window type VELUX, the famous brand of roof window

• • The cupola

• • The skylight

Easy to install and aesthetically pleasing, the VELUX type window is gaining in popularity among modern villa owners. Not only is it effective in terms of thermal insulation, but it is also the equipment of choice for your attic or sloping ceilings.

The advantages of roof windows

Firstly, a roof window provides excellent lighting for specific rooms in a single-story house. This type of window provides up to 40% more light than a skylight with a glass surface. Equipped with such a device, a room under a sloping ceiling, more or less dark, gains comfort.

In addition, this range of windows contributes to the natural heating of single-story houses. Thanks to this equipment, the sun’s rays can penetrate and heat the rooms, even in winter. To control the intensity of solar energy in your room in summer, choose a tinted glass of varying thickness.

On the other hand, a roof window has a huge positive point for the environment. Thanks to the sunlight, your rooms are freely illuminated and, at the same time, heated all day long, which contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. With a budget of 200 dollars, it is possible to acquire roof windows with motorized openings. These have the particularity to open or close remotely.

The disadvantages

With the intervention of a professional, your roof windows are well installed. Therefore, there will be no problems with insulation or infiltration in your home. If you can’t install conventional windows in your single-story home, roof windows are a perfect replacement.

However, a few inconveniences can occur when using these windows. One of the most unpleasant is the phenomenon of condensation. That is to say; roof windows can let drops of water into your house. Indeed, the moss and leaves present in the sliders are subject to the stagnation of rainwater. It is therefore imperative to frequently maintain them to keep them watertight. Unfortunately, their position does not make them easy to clean. However, they get dirty faster than conventional windows. Therefore, in order to take advantage of certain options, the owner of the single-story house will have to pay for certain accessories.

Furthermore, by installing this window to the south, the house’s temperature rises very quickly in summer. Finally, the exorbitant cost of some models does not encourage the average consumer to install them. This is the case with dormer windows. Raising this type of roof window can result in additional installation costs and may even require a complete overhaul of your roof’s thermal insulation.

Sound off in the comments section below and tell us what you want to read next and if you want to read more about attic windows.