Short answer
What a sun tunnel costs to fit depends on the route the tube has to take, the roof it goes through and the ceiling it ends in, so we put a figure on it only after a free survey. The survey ends in a fixed written quote.
- 10-year workmanship guarantee
- We handle the Building Control notification where notifiable
The tube and its route
A sun tunnel (light tube is its other name) has a dome at the top, a diffuser at the ceiling end and, between the two, a tube crossing the loft. The tube is where one job differs most from another. A landing just under the roof needs a short drop. A hall with a loft above it needs a longer run, and a route that has to dodge a beam, a pipe or a cable needs bends.
The kind of tube matters as well. A rigid tube can be built from straight lengths and angled elbows. A flexible tube can bend round obstructions. A rigid tube can carry daylight over a greater distance than a flexible one, so a long or crooked route can decide which kind suits the room, and that in turn changes the job. For a side-by-side look at the two, read rigid or flexible sun tunnels.
The roof the dome goes through
The dome sits on a base, and the base has to meet whatever covers the roof. On slate or tile, the units around the opening can be lifted and laid back round the base. On a flat roof with felt or a single-ply sheet, the covering can be dressed up to the base and sealed. Each covering is a different piece of work, and an old or tired one can ask for more attention around the dome than a sound one.
The height of the roof counts too. A single-storey roof can often be reached with ladders and a platform. A tall gable, or a slope over a conservatory with no way round to the back, may call for scaffolding or other access equipment, and the survey is where that is judged. Our general answer on what a skylight costs to fit covers the same questions for larger openings.
The loft and the ceiling
Between the roof and the ceiling, the tube passes through whatever is in the roof space. Loft insulation, pipework, cables and timbers all have to be allowed for, and the survey records them. The opening in the ceiling is the other end of the work. The diffuser sits in the ceiling lining, and the plaster or lining around its edge is finished ready for paint.
A sun tunnel makes a small opening in the roof, so most of the effort lies in this route through the loft and in the ceiling end, and less in structure around the dome. That is also why two sun tunnels in the same street can be quite different jobs. Position matters as well: the dome wants a spot on the roof that sees plenty of sky, clear of a chimney stack or a taller neighbour's shadow, and moving it along the slope can shorten the run.
Replacing an old sun tunnel
We install and replace sun tunnels. A replacement starts from what is already in place, so the survey looks at the existing opening, the junction between the dome base and the covering, and the state of the ceiling finish. Where the old tube route still suits the room, the job is simpler than a first fit. Where the old dome has yellowed or the diffuser is damaged, the new unit can go into the same space.
Size and type matter here as well. If the new unit is a different size from the old one, the opening in the roof and the ceiling has to be altered to suit, and that adds work.
Planning and Building Regulations
Rules can add time before work starts. A dome is an alteration to the roof, so the Welsh permitted development rules for roofs are the first thing to look at, and a house on protected land or a listed house brings extra questions. Our answer on planning permission for sun tunnels goes through them. Where the work is notifiable, we handle the Building Regulations notification with local authority building control or a registered building control approver, and the page on Building Regulations for sun tunnels in Wales says more.
Why the survey comes before the number
A photograph of a landing shows the landing. It cannot show how far the tube has to run, what is in the loft or what the covering is like at the point where the dome would go. Those are the things that make the figure. So we come out, study the room and the loft side by side, measure the route, and then put the price in writing as a fixed written quote.
Before the visit, you can send a photo of the dark room to WhatsApp 07880 284133. To book the survey itself, use the survey form. For the cost picture across every product, see what shapes a price in Newport. For a wider view of the product, start with our page on sun tunnels, and if you are weighing the spend, are sun tunnels worth it looks at the other side.