Skylights on the Northern Beaches

Types of skylight

A skylight is a window in the roof with a light shaft down to the ceiling. Which one suits depends on the room, whether you want fresh air as well as light, and how far it is from the roof to the ceiling.

Fixed skylights

A fixed skylight lets light in and doesn’t open. VELUX, the skylight manufacturer, describes its fixed model as the solution for “light filled rooms where added ventilation is not necessary”.

Opening skylights: manual, electric and solar

An opening skylight adds ventilation. VELUX makes manual ones and two powered kinds. Its electric skylights come “with a cable and simply plug into a standard 240V power point”. Its solar skylights use “a solar panel that captures sunlight and converts it into energy to open and close the skylight”, and VELUX says that “As no wiring is needed, solar panel skylights are ideal for areas without easy access to electrical wiring”. It says both kinds close automatically at the first drop of rain, using a rain sensor.

Roof windows

Roof windows, such as VELUX’s centre-pivot models, are sold as a separate range from its skylights. NSW’s planning rules treat skylights, roof windows and ventilators together.

Tubular skylights and sun tunnels

Solatube says tubular skylights “bring natural light into areas that cannot accommodate traditional skylights”. A small dome on the roof sits over a flashing, and a reflective tube carries the light down to a diffuser in the ceiling. VELUX calls its version a sun tunnel. Solatube’s list of uses for its 350 mm tube includes bathrooms, bedrooms, hallways and kitchens, and it says “Certified dealer installation is recommended, but you may use your own trade professional.”

Skylight replacement

VELUX says “New skylights can have up to three times better thermal performance than old ones (that are ten years older or more)”, and that “the majority of replacements can be done in under four hours”. VELUX also suggests solar models “when you want to replace an old manual window with a modern version”. A replacement can go in the same opening, or a different size can be fitted, which means changing the opening and the ceiling too.

Check what fits before ordering blinds or parts for an older skylight: VELUX says its current blinds don’t fit VELUX skylights made before March 2010, and blinds for older models have to be ordered to suit. By our reading, a replacement skylight has to meet the same council exemption standards as a new one (see the FAQ below).

Skylight blinds and summer heat

VELUX says its honeycomb blinds reduce heat “by approx 70% with insulated air pockets”, with near-total light reduction, and that “Manual and solar powered versions are available”. They can be added to an existing skylight that takes them.

New homes and larger renovations in NSW need a BASIX certificate. In its BASIX skylight instructions, the NSW Planning Portal says a skylight under 0.7 m² may be left out of the calculation, and “Do not include tubed skylights.”

Leaking skylights

A skylight that drips only in rain usually leaks at its flashing; one that drips on cold, still mornings may be condensation. How to tell the two apart, and what the repair involves, is in our guide to skylight and box gutter leaks. For a leak you can’t place, see roof leak repairs.

Skylight prices

We found no Northern Beaches business that publishes an installed skylight price. A Sydney attic builder does:

Skylight installation prices in Sydney, supplied and installed

A Sydney attic builder’s cost guide (updated 10 January 2026), checked 22 and 23 October 2026. Per skylight, supplied and installed; GST isn’t stated. A quote depends on the roof, the ceiling and access.

For the product alone, VELUX’s price list effective 1 August 2026 starts its fixed pitched-roof skylights at $572 and its solar-powered opening skylights at $2,643, supply only and including GST. Solatube lists its 350 mm Heavenly Performance tube kit at $686.40 including GST, product only, with the flashing and tube length chosen separately. Every VELUX size and the national ranges are in our skylight installation cost guide.

Council approval and bush fire prone land

On a house, a skylight or roof window can go in without council approval if it meets NSW’s exempt development standards, set out in the skylight approval guide. On bush fire prone land, ask the installer for the product’s bush fire rating; the BAL roofing requirements checker covers the roof rules.

Who can install a skylight

NSW Fair Trading’s roof tiling and roof plumbing licences both include “putting in skylights, ventilators and the like”, and its carpentry licence lists skylights too. A contractor licence is needed for work valued at more than $5,000 in labour and materials, including GST; check it on the Service NSW licence register. Fitting a skylight on a tile roof also means lifting and re-laying tiles around it, covered on roof repairs.

What to have ready

• Which room, and whether you want light only or fresh air too
• The roof material (tile, Colorbond or other) and roughly how steep it is
• Single or two storey, and whether there’s a roof space between the roof and the ceiling
• For a replacement: the old skylight’s size and any brand label you can see
• Whether the property is on bush fire prone land or in a heritage conservation area

Common questions