Fixed skylights
A fixed unit does not open. Its leaks are almost always at the flashing or the seal around the frame, so repair usually means resealing or replacing the flashing kit and checking the shingles that lap it.
Serving Cleveland County
Skylight Repair and Installation in Lawndale, NC
Skylight leak repair, reseal and replacement, and what a new roof opening involves, explained plainly.
- Repairs and full replacements
- Storm, wind and hail damage
- Metal, asphalt and farm-building roofs
Get a fast quote
Fastest: call (833) 751-2102. Or send this and we call you back.
Skylights
Skylight Repair and Installation: what it covers
Quick answer
A skylight is a window set into the roof and sealed to the covering with flashing or a curb. Most leaks come from that seal or from the flashing around the frame, not from the glass. Repair replaces or reseals the flashing and checks the frame. A new opening is structural work that cuts through rafters, and the local inspections office confirms what it needs.
A skylight leak is easy to misread. Water shows up on the ceiling below the frame, and the first guess is the glass or the frame itself. In most cases the glass is fine. The water is coming in where the frame meets the roof, at the flashing or curb that holds the unit in its opening, and in older units the seal around the frame has dried and cracked. That makes the flashing the first thing a technician checks.
Here, skylight leaks are often driven by rain blown sideways in a summer storm, or by the remnants of tropical systems that still carry damaging gusts this far inland. Wind pushes water up under the flashing edge, and a seal that held in a light rain can fail in a heavy one. Sun and heat age the sealant over time, so a skylight on an older house often shows the problem in the room directly below first.
This page covers how a technician checks a skylight, when a repair makes sense, and what a new opening involves. Phones are answered around the clock, and no arrival time is promised. Any work is explained and approved before it starts. For the roof around the skylight, see flashing repair.
- Service area
- Lawndale & Cleveland County
- Availability
- Call to reach a local roofer
- Phone
- (833) 751-2102
Warning signs
Signs you need skylight repair and installation
Skylight glazing is fragile, so never stand, kneel or step on a skylight, and do not walk the roof beside one without a safe footing. Do not try to lift a skylight out alone, because the frame and glass are heavy and awkward to move. Check the ceiling below for sagging or soft plaster before working near it. Do not seal a leak from inside with caulk over wet framing, since that traps the water and invites mold.
- Water stains on the ceiling or wall directly below the skylight, often on the side facing the slope.
- Drips or a wet ring in the frame after rain, or condensation running down the glass in winter.
- Cracked or dried sealant at the edge of the frame, or a gap that can be seen from inside.
- Glass that has gone cloudy between its panes, which points to a failed seal in the unit itself.
- Flashing lifted at the top edge, or shingles cut short and not tucked under it.
- Rust, dark stains or bent metal on the curb around the opening.
- A venting unit that sticks or makes a noise, with a hinge or operator that has worn.
Our process
How our skylight repair and installation visit works
Trace the water path
The technician starts inside, under the skylight, and notes where the water sits. Stains on a ceiling can run a long way from where the water entered, so the attic side is checked to follow the path back up to the frame.
Check the flashing and curb
The flashing that laps the frame at the top, sides and bottom is checked for lifting, cracks and missing sealant. The curb, the raised frame the unit sits on, is checked for rot or rust.
Look at the glass and the unit
The glazing is checked for cracks, cloudiness between panes and failed seals. A unit that has clouded in the glass is a replacement question rather than a sealant question, and the report says so.
Look at the shingles around it
Shingles cut around the opening are checked for proper lapping under the flashing. A wrong lap can send water under the unit no matter how good the sealant is, so the technician looks at the lap before the sealant.
Explain the repair and the price
The homeowner is told whether the unit can be resealed, whether the flashing kit needs replacing, or whether the whole unit should come out. The price is explained and approved before any work starts.
Why does a skylight leak when the glass looks fine?
The glass is usually the least likely part to leak. Water gets in at the joint between the frame and the roof, where the flashing and sealant have to keep moving rain out.
Rain is pushed up under the flashing edge by wind, so a joint that looks sealed from the yard can still take water in a storm. Once water is behind the flashing it runs down the curb and into the ceiling, often far from the point where it entered.
Condensation is a second cause. Warm, damp air in the house meets the cold underside of the glass in winter, and the moisture runs down the frame. A technician checks whether the leak is water from outside or condensation from inside before deciding on a fix.
When is a skylight repair worth doing instead of replacing the unit?
A repair makes sense when the glass is clear, the frame is sound and the trouble is at the flashing or the seal. Replacement is the better answer when the unit itself has failed.
Resealing or replacing a flashing kit keeps the existing unit and deals with the joint that is failing. That is often the right answer on a clear, sound unit with a leaking edge. A cloudy double pane, a warped frame or a cracked glazing panel points toward a new unit.
The technician gives the reasons in writing. Age is one factor, but the state of the glass, the frame and the flashing decide more than the years a unit has been in place.
What happens when a new skylight is cut into an existing roof?
A new opening is a structural change. Rafters are cut, the framing around the opening is rebuilt, and the flashing and shingles are laid to carry water away from it.
The technician looks at the framing before any cut is made, because the rafters on either side of the opening carry load. The new frame is set and the curb is built to match, then the flashing is laid in shingle order so water runs over it, not into it.
Whether a new opening needs a permit depends on the address and the scope of the work. The county or town inspections office confirms it, and the homeowner should have that answer in hand before the roof is cut.
What moves the price of skylight work?
The price depends on the unit's type and size, the number of openings, the condition of the frame, and the access on the roof and in the attic. It is explained and approved before work starts, and no figure is given on this page.
Each extra opening adds flashing, curb work and shingle detail. Rot or rust in the frame means carpentry before the unit can be set. A steep roof, a rural lot where a lift is hard to bring in, and a ceiling with a finish that must be patched all add time and care.
Whether the shingles around the opening must be replaced to make a proper lap also changes the work, and the technician will say so in writing. The homeowner sees each piece of the job before anything is approved.
Why does the flashing matter more than the sealant?
Flashing is the metal or membrane that channels water away from the unit. Sealant is a backup to the flashing, and on its own it does not stop water that is running under the edge.
A bead of sealant over a poorly lapped flashing will fail when wind drives water under it, and it will hide the problem until the stain appears. The flashing has to be laid correctly, with the upper layers over the lower ones, so water always runs outward.
That is why the technician checks the lap and the flashing first and uses sealant only where it belongs.
Options
Types and options for skylight repair and installation
Venting skylights
A venting unit has a hinge and an operator, and its gasket and mechanism wear out as well as the flashing. A repair may mean a new operator or gasket, and the technician checks the opening while the unit is out of it.
Tubular skylights
A tubular unit is a small dome and light tube that runs through the roof and attic to a ceiling fitting. Leaks often come at the dome seal or where the tube passes through the decking, and repairs are usually confined to the top and the joint.
New openings
Cutting a new skylight means cutting through rafters and decking, which is structural work. It also changes how water moves across the roof, so it is planned with the framing and the flashing in mind. Whether it needs a permit depends on the address and the scope, and the local inspections office confirms it.
Cleveland County
Why skylight repair and installation is different in Cleveland County and the Carolina foothills
Many of the older houses in and around Lawndale have had rooms or porches added over the years, and those additions often meet the main roof at a joint where a skylight can end up. Leaks in those rooms tend to trace back to the same joint.
Storms in this county bring heavy rain and sometimes strong wind, and wind-driven rain is the condition that tests a skylight's flashing most. A technician checks a skylight on the side the storm came from first.
Skylights on farmhouses and on the rural homes out on the county roads are often reached through a long attic or an old framing run. The technician plans access and protection for the ceiling below before any roof work starts.
Skip the guesswork. Call for a straight answer.
Tell us what's happening and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a quick fix, and what skylight repair and installation should cost.
Where we work
Skylight Repair and Installation across Cleveland County
- Skylights in Fallston
- Skylights in Polkville
- Skylights in Vale
- Skylights in Casar
- Skylights in Waco
- Skylights in Lattimore
- Skylights in Shelby
- Skylights in Cherryville
- Skylights in Crouse
- Skylights in Boiling Springs
- Skylights in Ellenboro
- Skylights in Bostic
- Skylights in Kings Mountain
- Skylights in Earl
- Skylights in Bessemer City
- Skylights in Grover
- Skylights in Caroleen
- Skylights in High Shoals
- Skylights in Mooresboro
- Skylights in Forest City
- Skylights in Cliffside
- Skylights in Henrietta
- Skylights in Lincolnton
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
Related
Related services
Roof Flashing Repair
Repair of valley, wall, vent and step flashing, where leaks usually start on older houses with porches and additions in Lawndale and Cleveland County.
Roof Leak Repair
Finding and sealing the entry point of a roof leak, from worn flashing and valleys to nail holes, in Lawndale and the county.
Flat and Low-Slope Roofing
Repair of flat and low-slope roofs on porches, additions and small commercial buildings, starting with drainage and seams.
Roof Inspection
A written look at a roof's condition after a hail or wind warning, or before buying an older house or farm building.
FAQ
Skylight Repair and Installation FAQs
Can a leaking skylight be repaired, or does it need replacing?
Many leaks can be repaired by resealing or replacing the flashing kit, provided the glass and frame are sound. A cloudy double pane or a warped frame points toward a new unit. The technician explains which applies and why in writing.
Why does my skylight only drip in wind-driven rain?
Wind pushes rain up under the flashing edge, and a joint that holds in calm rain can fail when the water is driven sideways. The leak often appears only in those storms, which is why the technician checks the flashing on the windward side first.
Is it safe to walk on the roof near a skylight?
Not without care. Skylight glazing can break under weight, and a fall through one is a serious injury. The technician works from a safe footing and keeps well clear of the glass, and a homeowner should not walk near one at all.
Does a new skylight need a permit?
Whether it does depends on the address and the scope of the cut. Cutting new rafters is structural work, and the county or town inspections office confirms what applies to the property before the roof is opened.
Will insurance cover a leaking skylight after a storm?
That depends on the policy and the insurer's adjuster, and this page does not predict the outcome. Photograph the damage in the room below and the frame outside, then contact the insurer before any work begins.
Can I seal the leak from the attic side?
Sealing the attic side can hide the stain without fixing the water path. The water has to be stopped at the flashing or the seal on the outside. A technician traces the path first, so the repair is aimed at the right joint.