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Architects know that getting the lighting right is crucial. Le Corbusier went so far as to say that “Architecture is the learned game, correct and magnificent, of forms assembled in the light.”
The right use of light enhances and improves a space and can transform the spatial context, making it more appealing, more comfortable, often enlarging it or highlighting its enticing aspects. Light, or its absence, can transform a space across seasons, days, hours and moments.
Installing a quality skylight into your home is a great way to enjoy these benefits, often with dramatic results. Not only does it allow greater light and warmth into your home. When properly designed, an energy-efficient skylight can reduce the need for artificial lighting and heating during daylight hours, helping to minimize your heating, cooling, and lighting costs.
A skylight’s position should be considered carefully to maximise infusion of daylight and passive solar heating. Skylights on south facing roofs (in the southern hemisphere) provide fairly constant but cool illumination. Those on east-facing roofs provide maximum light and heat gain in the morning, whereas those facing west provide afternoon sunlight and heat gain. North-facing skylights offer the greatest potential for winter passive solar heat gain, but often allow unwanted heat gain in the summer. You can prevent this by installing the skylight in the shade of deciduous trees or adding a movable window covering.
Robert Harwood
Director | My Architect