How to Incorporate Skylights into Your Log Home

Skylights are an ideal way to bring more natural light into a home. The additional light adds to a home's ambiance, enhances feelings of comfort, reduces energy consumption, and accentuates the architectural features of a home. Modern log home designs are incorporating skylights into their traditionally rustic aesthetic.

Ideal Locations for Skylights in a Log Home

With the availability of new designs, skylights can now be installed just about anywhere in a log home rather than just in a ceiling that is connected to a roof. While the skylights tend to be smaller when they are installed farther away from the roof and do not provide a view of the sky, they still provide ample natural light to change the effect of a room.

For example, a great room, kitchen, or loft can benefit from more light. A bathroom skylight adds warmth, especially when placed above a shower or vanity.

Proper Installation of Skylights

Skylights are commonly thought to leak. However, proper installation can reduce this risk. The best approach is to use what is known as a curb, which is a watertight lip on the roof that is raised and can direct water away from the skylight. Add in sealants and flashing, and the risk of leakage can be eliminated.

Proper installation of skylights in a log home can also reduce other issues, such as condensation and heat loss. New features on skylights also can lower the chances of faded upholstery, carpet, and décor due to light intensity. Overall maintenance of skylights has become much easier with little to no work involved to keep them working for years.

Controlling the Solar Heating Effect of Log Home Skylights

While it may seem that skylights in a log cabin may become unwelcome in some states when the summer heat becomes unbearable, there are options that control the solar heating. These options include more efficient insulation, glazing that reflects the rays away from the log home, and integrated shades that can be opened and closed automatically.

Placement of Log Home Skylights

Proper installation of a skylight is also about ideal placement to maximize light while controlling the solar heating effect. A roof that slopes to the north avoids direct sun, which lowers solar heating, while an east or west sloping roof takes advantage of morning and evening solar heating. The impact of the sun's rays can also be controlled externally by placing natural shade around the log home with deciduous trees.

Purchasing Skylights for Log Homes

Skylights are standardized in construction for traditional or log homes, meaning they can be purchased from any dealer that sells skylights. It is important to know how to measure for a skylight if it is going in an existing log home. Another way is to get a quote from a skylight installation company or contractor adept at working with skylights and log homes.

Image via Flickr by John Tornow