Skylight Repair & Installation

Most skylight leaks are not the skylight.

Skylights have a bad reputation in Houston and most of it is undeserved. A modern unit installed with the manufacturer's flashing kit on an adequate curb does not leak. What leaks is a twenty year old unit whose seals have gone, or a good unit that was set in a bed of mastic by someone in a hurry.

Why they leak

• The flashing kit was skipped. Every manufacturer supplies a step and head flashing system specific to the unit. Roofing cement instead of that kit is the most common fault we find, and it works until the sealant moves, which in Houston thermal cycling is a couple of years.
• The curb is too low. On a curb-mounted unit the curb has to stand proud enough of the roof surface that water running down the slope cannot get over the top of it.
• No cricket above it. A skylight wider than a couple of feet needs a small diverting roof on the uphill side to split the water around it. Without one, everything coming down that slope hits the head of the skylight.
• Failed seals. The insulated glass unit itself goes eventually, usually showing as fogging between the panes, and that is a unit replacement rather than a repair.
• The flashing was reused during a re-roof instead of replaced with the new roof.
• It is not leaking at all. Condensation forms on the cold glass of a skylight in a humid room, particularly a bathroom, runs down and drips. It looks exactly like a leak and no roofing work will stop it. Better ventilation will.

What we do

Repair

We find whether the water is coming in at the head, the sides, the curb or the unit itself, by inspecting rather than guessing, water testing where necessary. Then we rebuild the detail that failed, which usually means fitting the correct flashing kit rather than adding sealant to the sealant that is already there.

Replacement

If the glass has fogged or the frame has gone, the unit gets replaced and the flashing goes in new with it. Doing this during a roof replacement is substantially cheaper than doing it on its own, and if your skylights are near the end of their life when you re-roof, replacing them then is the sensible call.

New installation

We cut, frame, curb, flash and finish. Placement matters more than people expect: a north facing skylight gives steady light without heat gain, and a west facing one in Houston will bake the room below on summer afternoons unless it is a shaded or low-gain glazing.

Solar tubes

Where you want daylight in a hallway, bathroom or closet without the heat gain or the structural work, a tubular skylight is often the better answer. Smaller roof penetration, much cheaper to install, and almost no heat load compared with a glass unit of similar brightness.

What it costs, and how you can check

Every job on this page is priced Cost Plus. You see the supplier invoice for the materials, the crew hours at our published rate, the permit and disposal at what they actually cost, and one service fee of 20 to 30 percent set by job complexity and locked before anything starts. There is no second number and no change order conversation after the fact. The full breakdown is here.

Common Questions

My skylight only leaks in heavy rain. Why?

That usually points to the head flashing or a missing cricket above the unit. In light rain the volume is small enough to run around it. In heavy rain the water overwhelms the detail and goes over the top.

Is the water definitely a leak, or could it be condensation?

Condensation is very common on Houston skylights, especially in bathrooms. It appears in humid conditions rather than specifically during rain, and it forms on the glass rather than running from the frame. Better ventilation fixes it.

Should I replace my skylights when I replace the roof?

If they are near the end of their life, yes. The flashing has to be replaced with the roof regardless, and doing the unit at the same time costs a fraction of doing it as a separate job later.

Will a skylight make my house hotter?

A west or south facing glass unit will add real heat gain in a Houston summer. Orientation, glazing choice and a solar tube instead of a glass unit are all ways around it. We will talk through it before we cut a hole.

Related Services

• Roof Leak Repair
• Roof Replacement
• Roof & Attic Ventilation
• Roof Repair
• Drywall Repair