I have a new house and it comes with a skylight in the top story. It is curb type and the cover -the brown bubble outside and glass inside encased in a frame- is attached to the main unit with two screws on each side. It is 4×4 feet.
I am in between jobs (at least I hope to get another job and not be unintentionally retired!) – and I need to cut the heat as cheaply as possible, but still be able to upgrade to a more energy efficient option when I have money again – or sell the home.
I have a few ideas on how to accomplish this, but the wife trusts your ideas more than mine, so I am hear to get a better plan from the pro’s.
First, I can’t afford to have someone else do this or to buy a better skylight. The job needs to be under $100 in materials. Oh, I also have a rabid HOA so the fix needs to look just like it does now.
The first idea I had was to buy the sun screen of the same color and cover it from the outside. My concern is I spend the 60 bucks for this and it is only a few degrees cooler inside. Right now, it is 92 in my office (with the skylight) and 78 in the attic!
My next idea was to remove the cover and put in a piece of ply and then put the skylight cover back on. The sides of the skylight are 1.5 in tall so they would cover the wood and keep the seal. I would add weatherstripping tp further prevent leaks.
I like this idea, but the DW does not – at least not as is.
Now it’s your turn…
Thanks
Kent Dowden
WylieShop in Texas
Proficient -but not a Pro- in all aspects of home repair, remodeling and woodworking
Replies
Get some measurements and sart looking for a custome sized shade that fits inside the finished fram eof the skylite. There are many available.
Or paint it white...............smear soap on it?
"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking." — Sherlock Holmes, 1896
A neighbor covered hers with a blue tarp. It's like having a nice clear blue sky when you look up.
Now we're talking!
"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking." — Sherlock Holmes, 1896
Kent,
We have south facing skylights in our sunroom here in Utah, but that room is naturally cooler than the others in the house. I think the reason why is that we have venting skylights - the hot air leaves the room through the roof (assisted by the ceiling fan). Secondly, we cover the southfacing ones from the inside with a fitted shade that keeps the sun out. Obviously you can't do the first because of budget, but could you get away with sticking an attic vent in the room, or would that go against the HOA? Also, you can make the shade using materials available at the fabric store, or perhaps buy one that is insulated.
Good luck.
There are sunshades made to fit the inside of these - think venetian blind - like that.
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Wylie,
Once the heat is inside the glass it's a lot harder to deal with. Why not rip the dam thing out and shingle over the hole? Insulation, drywall, mud and paint - no more problem and the probablility of a leak just diminished too.
I realize this probably isn't very helpful to you. I hate skylights and have some trouble controlling myself.
Ron
roll of tin foil
>Why not rip the dam thing out and shingle over the hole?<
'zactly what I was thinking. Never understood skylights in the South since the day I got down here.
When we blew the angle 2 skylight tunnels to let light in in the summer, but not winter... in my dads house... he built two very pretty shoji-like screens that fit in the openings. They shaded things nicely.
A former place of employment screwed standard metal angles to the inside of their skylights and slipped a piece of semi-translucent polycarb in. Still let in some light, cheap, easy and decent looking.
Rolled roofing should do the trick.
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If the glass in the frame is flat, install a window film. In my former life I was a film installer both auto and residential. Make sure the film is reflective and controls heat this way and not by absorbing the heat in the glass. the going rate for this should be between $3.50-$5.50 a sq. ft., depending on how accesible it is. I have done hundreds of them, and never had anyone say it didn't work. BTW, I usually get a flat rate of $75.00 for skylights, so you should be able to get it done and not have to fool with it yourself.
jstew:I liked this idea. I go the Gila privacy screen and took the skylight apart, only to find that the material does not attach to plastic! Any other thoughts along this line?Thanks
Yes, there are a couple of other options. There is a film that will stick to plastic ( I'm sorry I assumed your skylight was glass). Some films are static cling, but they may not be reflective enough to help. Try doing a search on sunshades involving film or Pfiffer shear weave material. They are roller shades that you can attached to the underside of the light, and roll them out up if you don't need them. Click this link, and then products, and you will see the different shades. I have used them and they are great, but not so cheap. Hope this helps.
http://www.midwestmarketinginc.com
Thanks! Cheap and easy, yes, but did it help cut down the heat? As mentioned elsewhere, it is hard to deal with the heat once its in the room.
Also, where did they find it? All the good looking stuff I see online is in Europe and Au/NZ
Building was a former auto garage with exposed steel joists. So the skylights were about 15'-0" up. If there was any heat gain, it stayed up well away from the ground floor.
Without replacing the glass or completely covering with something opaque, there'll still be some heat. You'll want to dissipate it and keep it from getting all the way inside. A local plastic supplier should be able to provide the material. Ask for polycarbonate multiwall (Polygal and Lexan are a couple manufacturers). Are several thicknesses and types (clear, opaque, semi-translucent, colors). A milky/frosted semi-translucent would block direct light but still provide a nice glow.
They often have a scrap section you can go through. Although at 4' x 4', that might stretch your luck. Either they can cut it for you or you can get a special plastic blade ($10) for a circular saw. Cuts like butter.
One final note: films may void any warrantee on your skylight. They claim the film can build cause heat build-up and crack the glass.
Edited 4/11/2009 8:05 am ET by shtrum
If its not visible to others, cover it with some of that silver radiant bubble stuff and duct tape it. $25 bucks?
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What brownbag and ruffmike said.
Easiest overall may be a piece of styrofaom with Al foil covering, cut for a press fit. or even frame it, hinge it with door seal, etc..
put a mirror in even - craigslist usually has someone giving away a free old bathroom mirror.
Al foil facing out, mirror facing into the room - do the calcs and it has less thermal buildup to the room that way. .
junkhound,
If that skylight is a sealed glazing unit, you can say goodbye to the seal if you install insulation on the inside of the glass.
Velux may have a blind that will fit your skylight. I installed a couple for a guy who had a room that got really hot in the summer. Now it stays cool all day. Has a hook for a crank handle pole so he does not have to use a ladder.
ttp://http://www.veluxsolutions.com/solutions/bsc.nsf/fsBlindshop
"My next idea was to remove the cover and put in a piece of ply... I like this idea, but the DW does not - at least not as is."
So you don't care about getting any light from the skylight, but she does?
"Right now, it is 92 in my office (with the skylight) and 78 in the attic!"
If there's an attic, it sounds like there must be a "light well" opening between the ceiling and the skylight.
Is the inside glass flush with the ceiling or up close to the bubble? If it's up under the bubble, a vent in the side of the light well, near the top, and a cheap vent fan with back-flow baffles would move warm air out of the room into the attic. The future solution would be a quiet whole-house fan with an intake vent in the light well.
If your office gets so much hotter than the attic, I would guess that sunlight probably streams in directly from the skylight into the room. Reduce the amount of direct sun and you reduce the amount of heat it pumps in.
A cheap solution for that might be to pull the bubble, put a screen over the opening and replace the bubble. Fly screen would suffice to test, and DW might even find the appearance acceptable. Garden depts of big box stores have screening materials rated for % light filtration. A more expensive solution for later is to replace the dome with a reflective one or a darker one, thus reducing light transmission on the outside.
Bruce T:She does not mind the wood cover. She just wants it to look good from the inside. And she wants it to stay dry; bot my goals as well, but she knows me well enough to know I don't always finish things to here satisfaction!Responding to several suggestions:Rip it out!
It is the only outside light in the upstairs so it would be nice to keep some light up there. Plus, I hope to have income again and when I do, a nice vented skylight might be great. Plus, it is a great free heater in the winter!Velux blind:
Was looking at one before the layoff.Mutli-wall polycarb:
Great idea, will check it out.Privacy screen:
Tried it, but won't stick to plastic. Both layers are plastic bubbles with the curve toward the sun, about 3 inches apart at the center. No much room to add bubble wrap in between, but I might look closer.Paint with alum reflective paint:
Great idea! Would it work to paint the underside of the brown outer cover? I can't have the silver showing. Or, I could paint the outside of the clear plastic inner cover. Will try this after I try the next item.Add a vent high in the wall near the skylight to vent to the attic:
I will try this next. It seems simple and affordable. I can cover it in the winter to keep the heat in the room.Many thanks for all your great contributions!!Kent
Is the angle of the sky light directed toward the sun, or does the high noontime sun come straight in? I would consider some sort of shade on the exterior that blocks the sun in the summer and is removable in the winter, or is angled so the winter sun sines under it.The shade cloth screen in a frame would be easy to work with and not too expensive. You could choose the amount of light you want. Bubble foil or foam board could be temporarily installed from the interior and could be adjusted in size to allow some natural light.I do like the idea of reflecting the light/heat or stopping it before it enters the house.Garett
Paint it on the outside with aluminum roofing paint--I think the stuff is fibered asphalt but has aluminum powder--that would reflect the light and heat away. Seems like anything on the inside will either allow heat in, or will cause heat to build up and break the skylight.
seems like, doesn't it?The reason the blinds work is that they have no mass to absorb heat energy, but are a light colour and reflect it away thru the glass again. Without a blind on it, the energy comes further into the room and strikes objects with mass that absorb the energy to radiate it into the airspace again, warming it - or it reflects of the object in the room at some angle to hit something else with mass to hold that energy.
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Make a box frame a bit bigger than the skylight. Cut in slots to insert 2" leftover venetian blinds. Angled correctly, it will, allow indirect light in, eliminate direct sunlight and be well ventilated.
Edited 4/14/2009 6:29 pm by Sungod