Why skylights make sense in Airdrie
Alberta winters are long, and the days are short. Around the solstice, Airdrie gets only about eight hours of daylight, much of it at a low angle through windows on one side of the house. Interior spaces — hallways, bathrooms, walk-in closets, stairwells, the middle of an open-plan main floor — can go days without much natural light at all.
A skylight changes that. Light from above spreads further and more evenly than light through a wall, and even on overcast days it brightens a room noticeably. On the other side of the year, a vented skylight lets hot summer air escape from upper floors.
The trade-off is that every skylight is a hole in your roof, in a city with hail, heavy snow, ice dams and freeze-thaw. That’s why how it’s installed matters far more than which unit you buy.
Types of skylights
Fixed skylights
Sealed units that let in light but don’t open. They’re the simplest and most cost-effective option for rooms that need light but not ventilation — living areas, stairwells and hallways under a vaulted ceiling.
Vented skylights
Skylights that open, manually or electrically, to let hot air and humidity out. They’re especially useful in kitchens and bathrooms and on upper floors that overheat in summer. Many electric units include rain sensors that close them automatically.
Tubular skylights
A small dome on the roof connected to a reflective tube that runs through the attic to a diffuser in the ceiling. They bring daylight into rooms that sit under an attic, such as interior bathrooms, hallways and closets, without building a full light shaft or cutting roof framing. They’re the most affordable way to add daylight to many Airdrie homes.
Choosing where to put a skylight
Location matters as much as size:
- North-facing slopes give soft, even light with little heat gain — ideal for kitchens, offices and living spaces.
- South- and west-facing slopes bring more light in winter, but also more heat in summer; low-E glazing and blinds help.
- Interior rooms under an attic — bathrooms, walk-in closets, hallways — are often best served by a tubular skylight.
- Keep away from valleys and other areas where snow and water concentrate.
- Stay clear of the eaves, where ice dams form, and of chimneys and other roof penetrations.
Glazing and energy performance
In Airdrie’s climate, the glass matters. Look for insulated double or triple glazing with low-E coatings and warm-edge spacers, which reduce heat loss in winter, heat gain in summer and condensation on the inside of the glass. Laminated or tempered glass on the inner pane adds safety, and the outer pane’s toughness matters in hail. A well-insulated, air-sealed light shaft is as important as the glazing, because a cold shaft is where most winter condensation forms.
Framing and structure
Most Airdrie homes built in recent decades are framed with engineered roof trusses. Those trusses are designed as a system and shouldn’t be cut, doubled up or moved without an engineer’s design. In practice that means:
- Standard skylights are usually sized to fit between trusses
- Larger openings need proper structural work designed by an engineer
- Tubular skylights fit between framing members and don’t need any cut
Older homes in Old Town may be framed with rafters instead, which changes what’s possible. We check the framing from the attic before recommending a size or location.
How we install a skylight
- Attic and framing check. We confirm the location, the size that fits the framing, and the path for the light shaft.
- Cut and frame the opening, respecting the truss or rafter layout.
- Install the curb and unit according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Membrane around the opening — self-adhered ice-and-water protection wrapped up the curb and extended up-slope.
- Manufacturer’s flashing kit, integrated with the shingles course by course, so water is shed by overlapping metal rather than sealant.
- Light shaft built, insulated and air-sealed, so it doesn’t become a cold surface for condensation.
- Interior finish, or coordination with your drywall and painting trades.
Common skylight problems we fix
Leaks around the flashing. The most common skylight problem in Airdrie. Usually caused by reused or improvised flashing, sealant instead of a flashing kit, or no membrane under the flashing. The fix is to remove the shingles around the skylight and re-flash it properly. See roof leak repair.
Condensation. Water dripping from a skylight in January, with no rain, is usually condensation. Warm, moist indoor air meets cold glass and the uninsulated sides of the light shaft. Better glazing, an insulated and air-sealed shaft, and controlling humidity — especially in bathrooms — usually solve it.
Fogged glass. When the seal between panes fails, moisture gets between them and the unit fogs permanently. The glazing or the whole unit needs replacing.
Hail damage. Older domed acrylic skylights crack and craze with age and can break in hail. Modern glass units with tempered or laminated glazing hold up far better. See hail damage roofing.
Summer heat. Skylights facing south or west can overheat a room. Low-E glazing, blinds and vented units help.
Replacing skylights during a re-roof
If your roof is due for replacement and your skylights are more than a few years old, replace them at the same time. The flashing gets replaced with the roof anyway, and a new unit installed with a new roof avoids cutting into brand-new shingles later if the old skylight fails. See roof replacement, and for additions and new builds, new roof installation.
What skylights cost in Airdrie
| Job | Typical cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Tubular skylight | From $1,500 | No light shaft to frame. |
| Fixed or vented deck-mounted skylight | $2,000–$3,500 | With flashing kit and shaft. |
| Reflashing a leaking skylight | $400–$1,000 | Existing unit kept. |
Get an exact quote for your roof
Type and size of skylight, glazing, the light shaft, and the roof’s pitch and complexity decide the final price. Leak repairs around an existing skylight are priced in the roof repair cost guide; for all other prices, see the Airdrie roofing cost guide.
Skylights across Airdrie
We install and repair skylights on homes throughout the city — vaulted living rooms in Cooper’s Crossing and Hillcrest, interior bathrooms and hallways in King’s Heights and Reunion, and older skylights due for replacement in Old Town — plus Crossfield and Balzac.