February 24, 2010

What’s so great about a Solatube?

by: Taz Loomans

2 Comments

For a long time I didn’t know what a daylighting system really was. I thought ok, you have your windows and your skylights. But there is a third thing called a daylighting system and it is neither a window nor a skylight. A daylighting system is a device with highly-sophisticated technology that brings measured, glare-free, heat-reduced sunlight into your interior space. It’s actually a technology that’s been around since the 1960’s but is gaining traction again due to our renewed awareness of sustainability.

Today I’d like to talk to you about one of my favorite daylighting devices for your home: the Solatube. What’s so great about the Solatube you ask? Well it’s only the best way to bring natural light into a dark room. At 3 Palms (our duplex), my husband and I are lucky to have wonderful natural light in every room, thanks to the well-thought-out window sizes and placements of the 1960’s original design. However there is one room in our house that gets zero natural light and that is our bathroom. We light it artificially, even in the
daytime, and to be honest with you, it’s not very pleasant. Our bathroom is a prime candidate to receive a Solatube. Do you have a
room in your house that could use some natural light?

Here are some benefits of a Solatube:

  1. It provides lovely, sustained, consistent light throughout the day. The daylighting system with its daylight-capturing dome lens, in-dome reflector and the world’s most reflective tubing will provide many times the light you would expect from
    a skylight of its same size.
  2. It’s a fairly simple thing to install. It only comes in two sizes and associated prices. The 10” Solatube costs $550 + tax to install and the 14” Solatube costs $650 + tax to install. And the best thing is, there is are federal and state tax credits for installing a Solatube for up to 48% of the cost of installation. So that cuts your out-of-pocket coast to almost half!
  3. It can be installed even in spaces that have no direct roof access because this thing is designed to bend into yourroom from where there is roof access and it will carry the light in.
  4. One of the most obvious benefits of a Solatube is that you don’t have to turn on your lights during the day in dark areas
    anymore. This not only saves you money in your utility bills, but it’s also good for the planet as you reduce your energy consumption. Oh what I wouldn’t give to not turn on the lights during the day in our bathroom! You
    can bet that the Solatube is on our list of improvements for this year.
  5. Did you know natural daylight is actually good for your health? Multiple studies have shown that natural daylight boosts your mental and physical well-being and raises energy and concentration levels. No wonder they use Solatubes or similar daylight devices in schools, healthcare facilities and retail environments.
  6. You know how you can get alot of heat gain through a conventional skylight? Well you get a negligible amount of heat gain through the Solatube thanks to it’s technology. So you get the benefit of added sunlight into your house without adding the heat that usually comes along with it.

So if you have a room or a space in your house that doesn’t get enough natural light, I highly recommend you install a Solatube!

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2 Responses

  1. Angel C says:

    were you paid by solatube to say this?

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