Challenge, Solution and Result of a Skylight Installation

by Marcy Marro | October 1, 2019 12:00 am

Challenge: Ensuring Material Compatibility and a Watertight Seal

The plant expansion included a metal roof with 16 skylights. Installing skylights on metal roofs requires different considerations than when installing on a traditional flat or low-slope roofing system, such as a built-up or membrane roof. Installers should not only examine how they will physically tie in the skylight to the metal roofing system, but also the compatibility of the materials needed to do so. On traditional flat or low-slope roofs, skylight curbs are tied into the different layers of decking and sheathing, and these layers help ensure the skylight is properly sealed to prevent water leakage. When installing on a metal building, the curb is installed directly to the roof, so it’s essential to source curbs that match the profile of the metal roof where they will be installed.

Solution: Create a Curb Specific to the Roof Profile

The installers used curbs designed specifically for the plant’s metal roof profile and ensured a proper seal when installing the skylights. There are two options available when installing skylights onto a metal roof. When it comes to creating a rib spacing and panel profile, VELUX can source the curbs and include them in the sale, or the installer can source the curbs directly, typically from the roof panel manufacturer.

For this installation, VELUX created a roofing profile and worked with a third-party vendor who created the steel curbs necessary for this roof. The resulting curb systems matched the specific ridges of the roof and created a curb that would sit snugly on top. Installers secured the curbs with caps, which bridge the gap of the curb and the panel. Then, the skylights were simply screwed in place.

Manufacturing the correct curb also ensured a watertight seal and proper metal-to-metal connections that prevent corrosion.

Result: More Daylight and Better Business Practice

Any skylight will capture sunlight when the sun is high in the sky, but the unique feature of the Dynamic Dome is its ability to capture more low-angle daylight. Its design enables it to capture about an extra hour of daylight each day, as the 30 percent dome rise creates a large surface area that allows more natural light to funnel through the dome when the sun is low in the sky. By bringing an abundance of sunlight inside, the plant operators were able to create a more positive working environment.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), people on average spend 90 percent of their time indoors, so it’s increasingly important to bring nature inside, whether at work or at home. A recent YouGov Survey, commissioned by VELUX, noted that 63 percent of U.S. participants say they only spend one hour or less a week in nature. However, most adults say more time in nature positively affects their health and wellbeing, as studies show that people are more productive when they have more access to nature in their places of work.

Adding natural light to metal buildings that tend to be long and deep is one way to positively impact the wellbeing of the people working inside these facilities. Not only that, it can also help facility managers save on electrical lighting costs.

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Brian Grohe, LEED AP, is the commercial sales manager for VELUX America LLC, Fort Mill, S.C., with 10 years of experience in the daylighting industry. To learn more about making your business more energy-efficient, visit www.veluxusa.com[1].

Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/articles/challenge-solution-and-result-of-a-skylight-installation/

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