Deciding to build a granny flat is simple, designing and building the extension can be a lot harder. You'll have a lot of questions to answer along the way. Can you use a general contractor or is is better to use one who has built a lot of granny flats before? Is a template design better than a customised one? Should you let the person who'll live in the flat have a say in what it looks like? Luckily, I'm here to help. My name is Maria. We moved my Mum into a purpose-built granny flat last year, so I've had to answer all these questions and more. I thought it'd be useful for other people to see how we managed the process, so here we are — get reading!
Why Install a Tubular Skylight in a Windowless Bathroom?
If you're creating or renovating a bathroom without windows, like an ensuite, then you have to find a different way to bring light into the room. Electric lights aren't your only option here — you can also install tubular skylights.
How do these skylights work and what are the benefits of using them?
What Are Tubular Skylights?
Regular skylight windows sit on a roof. Light shines directly down into the room below through the glass. Tubular skylight windows work differently. They use special tubes to carry light from your roof into a room on a lower level.
So, when you install this kind of light, you create a hole in your roof for the external part of the system. You also make a hole in the ceiling of the room you want to illuminate. This hole is usually circular and relatively large. It has a clear or opaque cover. Then, you run a tubular sun tunnel from the roof down into the ceiling to connect everything together. This tunnel channels light from the external window on the roof down into the room's light fitting. The light diffuses into the room during daylight hours.
Why Install a Tubular Skylight in a Windowless Bathroom?
If your new bathroom doesn't have a window, then you might be thinking about how to make the room look lighter. While regular electric lights do this job, they can only give you artificial light. Plus, if the bathroom looks like it is going to be fairly dark, you might need to put multiple lights in the room to make it look brighter. If you put lots of lights in a small space, then they can heat up the room as well as illuminate it.
So, the lighting in your new bathroom might not create the atmosphere you want. Artificial lights can be harsh, and you might not like having to turn on a light during the day whenever you use the bathroom. Plus, you don't want the room to get too hot to be comfortable.
A tubular skylight brings natural light into the bathroom. You get a softer and more mellow light in the room during the day. This can be a real mood enhancer. These systems diffuse light effectively. So, even a small skylight can light up most of the room. You can then supplement the skylight with electric lights you can use at night.
To find out more, contact skylight window manufacturers and ask about their tubular products.