One encounter with a tubular skylight was enough to convince Brad Dahl to quit his construction business and start selling them for a living.
“He came home and said, ‘This is the coolest thing ever,’ ” recalled wife Torre Dahl. ” ‘You’re not going to believe the light that comes in.’ “
Thirteen years and more than 25,000 tubular skylights later, the Lynnwood-based company Northwest Natural Lighting is doing steady business selling Solatubes and other products, including a solar-powered attic fan and powder-coated aluminium railings.
They plan to be at the Everett Home Show this weekend.
Invented in Australia, the Solatube captures light through a dome on the roof and channels it down through a reflective system on the inside of the tube. The design brings more light into the room, and optics spread the light through the room, said the Dahls, who own the business with Torre Dahl’s brother, John Sagvold.
It also fits in locations a regular skylight won’t, such as rooms without direct roof access or small areas like bathrooms, closets and hallways. The skylights feature angle adapters, so the tubes can be installed around obstructions in the attic.
From inside the house, Solatubes look like a light fixture, so much so that customers tell Dahl they keep trying to turn the light off for weeks after one is installed.
The most popular spaces in the house for a Solatube are interior bathrooms and hallways, she said. Installation usually takes less than two hours because the 10- and 14-inch tubes are much smaller than the typical skylight. Traditional skylights are notorious for leaks, and the tubular skylights don’t seem to have that problem since they’re installed using a single piece of flashing on the roof, she said.
The cost varies depending on the roof type and the length of tubing. It will cost less to install one into a composition roof than a tile roof. Popcorn-textured ceilings inside the home can increase the cost. Many of these types of ceilings contain asbestos, which requires special precautions. A 10-inch Solatube for a home with a composition roof costs $499 installed, Dahl said.
Reporter Debra Smith:
425-339-3197 or
dsmith@heraldnet.com
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