Check out my posts about our VELUX Skylight and the VELUX ACTIVE system
Many spaces in our home are always on the verge of completion, but once we added the SUN TUNNELS to a few key spaces, they felt complete – especially the laundry room!
I still haven’t nailed-down the vibes in the hallway, but at least now it’s well light.
p.s if you’re familiar with the adventures of Jillian Jiggs, you’ll recognize a few of these set-ups.
What is a VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylight?
Direct from VELUX Canada’s website
“VELUX SUN TUNNEL(R) skylights bring natural light into even the darkest and most isolated spaces through a specially designed tunnel that passes from roof to ceiling. The attractive ceiling diffuser blends unnoticed into the ceiling, spreading a soft and restful light throughout the room. “
The system is pretty straight forward, they have a rigid tunnel for direct and maximum light output and they have a model with a more flexible tube to get around things like HVAC. The image below shows how it works.
The SUN TUNNEL Skylights only work in areas where there is no living space above them. They work great in our home because the majority of the living space is on the “top” floor. So our long dark hallway and our dark mudroom, were perfect spaces for them.
Why we added VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights to our home
You guys know I’ve been going HAM with lighting in this place. For the first time in my adult life, I’ve had the ability to add lights where I want them and I have taken full advantage of that.
But in two spaces, no matter how many lights I added, it didn’t feel bright enough, and the quality of the light wasn’t quite what I wanted. Enter the VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights.
Adding a VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights to your hallway
Our hallway is long, wide, dark, and the ceilings aren’t particularly high. The hallway wasn’t a great candidate for sconces or overhead lighting with any dept to it. Sure, we could have added spotlights, but natural light is always so much nicer – and there’s no electric bill associated with it!
The natural light we get from our VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights doesn’t change the vibrancy of the colours in my home, in fact, it allows them to be seen the way they were supposed to be seen! In full colour, without a yellow or blue wash on them.
Adding a VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylight in your Mud Room
The mud room/ laundry room was also super dark. There are no windows, it’s a transitional space (in from the garage and into the kitchen), and the ceilings are also relatively low. It’s a great candidate for a SUN TUNNEL for those reasons.
It’s also great, because I can actually see stains in the clothing under natural light, better than with artificial light. Because our mudroom is also our laundry room, being able to see if something is actually clean or not, is a big deal.
How are VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights installed?
Basically, it’s a non-structural installation. You’re not moving trusses, and they can be installed in as little as 3 hours. All 3 of ours were done in a day.
While you can hire a VELUX certified installer (like we did), it’s also something you could conceivably do yourself.
They’ve got a great video showing how it’s done, including the many options available depending on your needs (do you live in an area where the dome needs to be impact resistant during hurricane season?)
When it’s all done, you’ve got a neat little bubble on your roof, but you can even get low-profile if your house is facing south and receives lots of sunlight.
How much does it cost to install a SUN TUNNEL in your home?
Our local installer quoted us about $575 + tax for labour per tunnel, you would still need to add the price of the product which starts at $395 depending on the size and model type. We received higher quotes from other licensed installers, but they were slightly higher. The installer we used was the one who installed our skylight, so we went with him.
What does the SUN TUNNEL look like inside your house?
It looks like a canned ceiling light. The inside fixture is discreet, and the only difference is that you can’t “turn it on” at night.
How to clean a SUN TUNNEL skylight
Real easy! I just use a wet cloth to wipe down the inside cover, and in the fall we make sure that no leaves are left on the bubble. Easy peasy!
What does a SUN TUNNEL look like at night?
There’s no point taking a photo of my hallway at night – you wouldn’t see much – but I did take a time-lapse of sunset in the hallway.
Our VELUX SUN TUNNEL Skylights
The hallway SUN TUNNELS have the biggest impact because of where they are, but the mudroom SUN TUNNEL does just as much when it comes to bringing sunlight into the house.
