Anyone have any advice on the best approach for a skylight installation in a shower?
We have a 4×5′ master shower “room” that I’d like to add a venting skylight so I can vent steam, add light, etc. I’m concerned about the inevitable condensation and where it will go (if it follows the roof pitch, it will drain into the lower sill) and what damage it could cause. Is there a vinyl-clad unit offered that would be immune to the runoff? Other suggestions for how to do this?
The skylight itself would be ~2′ above the plane of the shower ceiling, which is 8′.
Any advice (and direct experience with this) would be appreciated.
Jim
Replies
I have this exact situation in my bathroom, although my skylight is fixed. I do have problems with moisture condensing on the cold window, running down the sides of the shaft, and then dripping off the ceiling. I recently did a remodel where I planned to install a exhaust fan on one side of the shaft, but whoever installed the skylight did so without any framing spanning between the rafters and the joists. I'm not sure if the fan in the shaft would have solved the problem or not.
I remember a news story about a skylight over a shower from a few years back. It was in the St. Louis area, if I remember correctly.
A woman got up early one morning (Before dawn) to take a shower. Shortly after she heard a helicopter approaching. The helicopter came down low and hovered over the skylight a few moments before taking off again.
Don't know fer sure that it's true, but it's a good story.
Redneck Extraordinaire
Velux and others make skylights that collect condensate and drain it onto the roof. I have installed 2'x3' light 10' over a bath and no condensation problems ever. A properly designed light has venting on the top edge and condensate drainb on the bottom edge. These are very engineered units, don't scrimp on the flashing package that come as optoinal, I've tried flashing them myself and it's neve rcheaper and always uglier. My experience with the top end skylights is that they pay for themselves by not leaking (I believe 1/2 of sky leaks are condensate), having thermo glass, and installing quickly and easily. Different roof pitches use different models. Good luck, patrick.
I have this sealed acrylic skylight over a shower/bathtub for ten years, condensate is minimal and whatever condensate there is it drips into the bathtub.
Velux is the way to go.
sounds like you'all need a convex bubble window inside.