You love everything about your home – except one thing.

And it’s a deal breaker.

Your home doesn’t let enough natural light in, making it feel cramped and dingy.

But you don’t need to sit in the dark, or camp out in the backyard to feel like you have some space – why not consider installing a skylight?

Installing a small skylight dome is an involved but relatively simple process, one that you can do yourself with the right tools and know-how, but bigger projects should be handed over to the professionals.

Get a kit to suit your needs

Putting in a skylight is a big decision and one that you’ll be living with on a day-to-day basis, so getting some advice about the right location and size of the skylight you’ll need is a good idea.

Skylights come in many forms and sizes and some also provide ventilation, so make sure you get the right kit to suit your home and your needs.

If you want to go ahead and do it yourself, here’s a guide to help you on the right track.

Location and safety matter!

Choose the location you’d like more light. Make sure it’s a spot that receives maximum light exposure for the longest period, and is one that’s located between roof battens or joists.

Let someone know that you’re going up onto the roof, and make sure it is not raining or overly windy and that the roof tiles are not slippery before you go up. If your roof is sharply sloped or you’re not certain how to go about finding the right location for the skylight, seek professional advice.

Time to get started

You’ll need to figure out how many tiles you’ll need to remove, according to the size of the skylight dome you’re installing. Most skylight kits come with flashing, but check this when you buy it, making sure you’ll have enough to cover and waterproof around the skylight hole later on. Mark out the skylight shape and size on the tiles.

Again, depending on the size of the skylight, you may need to also cut the roof joists, or battens with a small handsaw.

Protect yourself

Make sure you use eye and ear protection, and then cut the tiles to the guidelines you’ve drawn with an angle grinder fitted with a sharp blade, such as a diamond blade.

Check your work by replacing the tiles and putting the skylight on top – you may need to trim some surrounding tiles so the light fits well.

Next, lift up the tiles again. Securely silver tape the Mylar tubing to the underside of the skylight dome. Feed the tubing into the roof space and place the tiles over the top of the dome. More tubing is better than less, so make sure you have plenty to reach from the skylight dome to the internal diffuser.

Let the light in!

You need to make sure the skylight is waterproof, so use some silicon to fill any gaps around the light to prevent future leaks.

Use a hammer or mallet to fit the flashing to the shape of the tiles underneath and again use the silicon to seal around its edges.

Next, you’ll need to go back inside your home and cut a hole in the ceiling plaster to house the diffuser. Make sure you know where the joists are, as you’ll want to cut between them. You can go into the roof space to do this and drill some pilot holes, or use a stud finder.

Cut the hole with a plaster saw, and pull the tubing through. If it’s too long, give it a trim.

Make sure the diffuser edge fits firmly into the hole, then screw it to the ceiling. It may also pay to stabilise the screws with screw caps.  Pull the tubing down inside the diffuser edge and tape it in place. Then gently fit the diffuser inside the edge and make sure it all fits neatly.

Having a skylight installed will lighten and brighten your home and make it a much more pleasant place to spend time.

A skylight may even contribute to cutting your power bill as you’ll be able to switch off inside lights during the day, making your home more environmentally friendly.

To find out more, talk to a skylight installation expert, today.