When thinking about buying new windows for your home, you are less likely to think about roof windows! Like your other new windows, roof windows also help in providing light, thermal comfort, and improved ventilation.
This article will highlight the major benefits of a roof window and why it’s important for your property.
What’s a roof window?
Unlike conventional windows, roof windows make part of the design of your roof. These windows get installed ‘in-plane’ and in the same orientation as your roof’s pitch. They’re often pitched at 15 degrees and connected to the roof by flashing or skirt. You may choose to have your roof windows shut or they can have hinges and latches that can allow opening and closing.
What’s the difference between a roof window and skylight?
Roof windows are like skylights, but they have subtle differences. Unlike the skylights, which are built in a horizontal or near horizontal position to the roof, the roof windows installation occurs with a slant that is akin to the pitch of your property’s roof. Also, roof windows are often larger than the skylights, and unlike the roof windows, skylights don’t open.
What are the pros of new windows for your roof?
1. A source of direct natural light
Roof windows improve lighting in your house by letting in more natural light that supplements the light let in by your vertical windows. The supplemental light is essential in areas such as home extension rooms and attics. These are places where vertical windows may not bring in enough natural light. Dark rooms and corridors separated from exterior walls and garden windows are fit for such windows.
2. Improved house and attic ventilation
Ventilation is essential for your property. It improves the quality of air in the home by reducing moisture and air pollutants such as dust. Ventilation also aids in odor removal. The improved ventilation you get from roof windows improves comfort in your home and makes spaces in places such as the attic livable.
3. Easy access to the roof, which aids in roof maintenance
Roof windows create easy and safe access to the roof of your property in case of roof repair. Clambering up a roof to do gutter maintenance may not be appealing. But taking the route up to your roof by going through the attic and roof windows is easier and safe. Roof windows improve the maintenance of flat roofs.
They make it easy to check for cracked tiles, blocked gutters, and roof drainage systems. In a property with a pitched roof, a roof window can give you a clear line of sight of your entire property.
4. Roof windows improve sound insulation
Unwanted noise from your property’s surroundings can reduce the quality of life in your home. But if you install roof windows with double-glazing that has acoustic insulating properties, then you can manage to keep out all the noises from the busy nearby road or the planes flying low from the nearby airport or airstrip.
5. Improved thermal comfort and reduced energy bills
A family with poor housing envelope experiences air leaks into and out of their house. Such a family may incur losses of up $350 in the cooling or heating budget to improve thermal comfort in the home. Your home needs to be warm and cozy in cold weather and cool in summer.
But for this to be possible there should be no air leakage. Otherwise, you’ll have to spend more on your HVAC system as you try to cool or heat your home and improve thermal comfort. As this happens, your bills will also go high and you’ll incur losses if you don’t do the necessary repairs. Well-installed roof windows with a tight flashing that doesn’t leak will improve the thermal comfort of your home.
6. Improved property value
Like any other renovation or upgrade, the addition of new windows to your roof will improve the value of your property and the rental or resale price.
Bottom-line:
Install new windows on your roof and improve your ventilation, thermal comfort, sound insulation, energy efficiency, property value, and natural indoor lighting.
