4 Strategies for Insulating A Skylight Window

Skylight windows allow extra light into your home, but they can also let in unwanted hot or cold air. If you believe that you are losing or gaining air that you don't want, that affects the energy efficiency of your home. To avoid that effect, you may want to improve the insulation on your skylight windows. Here are some ideas to help you.

1. Choose an Energy Efficient Skylight

Efficiency starts when you are shopping for your skylights. Look for a skylight that is rated to be as energy efficient as possible. Typically, that involves thick pieces of glass or a double pane design, but features such as glazing or extra insulation on the tube can also help.

2. Check the Seal

If your skylight is already installed, you should make sure that it's sealed tightly. Without proper sealing, water may also get through your skylight. Go to your roof, and check the area around the your skylight.

If you see large gaps, fill them with insulating foam. A bead of caulk can work perfectly to seal small gaps. Have a professional handle this if you don't have the right safety equipment to be on the roof safely—for instance, you should wear a harness.

3. Insulate the Tube

In a lot of cases, you may not be losing heat or cool air through an improperly sealed skylight. Rather, the issue may be the tube. Many skylights have a window or bit of glass on the top of the roof. Then, a tube extends from that part through the attic of your home to an opening in your ceiling.

If you like, you can add insulation to that tube. Simply, get into your attic and wrap insulation around the tube. Standard insulation that you use for walls works fine.

4. Cover the Opening in Your Ceiling

In the winter, when the sun sets early, you don't get the benefit of light from your skylights. Since you're not enjoying the light, there's no benefit to losing the warm air in your home. In these cases, you may want to cover the opening of the sky light.

Consider cutting a panel out of a piece of insulated foam, and attaching it over the opening. You may cover the panel with fabric or wallpaper to make it look nice.

To get more ideas on insulating or maintaining your skylight, contact a skylight professional.They can help to ensure you get the light you want without compromising your home's efficiency.