We have 2 Solartubes in our home. They bring in an unbelieveable amount of light - we love them! They were here when we bought the house, so I haven't a clue on cost. They don't bring in heat that I know of, but if they did, it would be welcomed (almost always!). We live in Central Oregon, high desert country - we get snow all winter long. Gimme heat!

I just installed one in my master bathroom. It is in a water closet that had no window. I got the combo 10 inch solatube, with light and exhaust fan. With labor to install, it cost me about $900. It was pricy but the light kit and the exhaust fan added to the overall cost. The solatube is warrentied for 10 years. Much better warrenty than what I could pick up at Lowe's for $250.

WOW... I"m excited about this. I showed DH who like me, was unfamiliar with it. His first reaction was he wasn't in favor of cutting a hole in the roof but after looking at one of the manufacturer web sites... warmed up to the idea. We are losing a total of 14ft of window with my kitchen remodel so this might be the perfect solution to bringing in more natural light. Any pics would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the information!

for photographs search recent threads on this same subject

I am getting 2 Solatube Sun Tunnels put into our kitchen tomorrow. I will post a picture when they are done!!!

We live in South Florida as well. There were two of these in our house when we purchased it. We did remove the one in the kitchen when we remodeled, but left the one in the laundry room, which has no window.

A couple of things: They do a good job of bringing in natural light into a dark room, but they also bring in some added heat. You can really feel this when you walk under them. Secondly, make certain you get one that meets the new hurricane codes, not all of them do. And to make mattters worse, some of them are sold and installed by dealers, who will tell you they meet the code, but can't provide proper certification. Buyer beware !!

We have two of the Velux sun tunnels - one in powder room & one in laundry room. Both rooms windowless. After installing them we were forever reaching for the switch to turn off the lights, they let in that much light during the day. We don't notice any heat. One of ours leaked shortly after installation after a heavy rain; however I called Velux and the contractor who installed it. He adjusted some of the weatherstripping and we've had no problem since. We love them & are considering putting in a 3rd. Ours are on the front roof of the house, facing southwest; they blend in well with the dark brown shingles.

I have 4 Â two 10" in an interior hallway, one 10" in my pantry and one 14" in my kitchen. I put pix of them in the thread that's linked below.

I completely LOVE them. I'm in SoCal where the summer temps can be brutal and have never noticed any additional heat. The diffusers on the ceiling are like unobtrusive recessed lights. The small light kits inside them for nighttime light are fairly inadequate for the kitchen and need to be supplemented by other light sources but I much prefer softer lights from multiple sources at night anyway.

Here is a link that might be useful: another recent discussion

Remodelfla, i just had our Solatube's installed this morning in the kitchen and we absolutely LOVE them. So sorry but i left my camera at a friends house but as soon as i get it i will snap a shot for you. The difference in the kitchen is amazing and we will definately be using a lot less lights with these installed. I actually saw these on HGTV's "I Want That". I was talking to the guy that installed it and i asked him which he is installing more the Solatubes or Traditional skylights and he said the Solatubes. He said with the traditional skylights the light comes through depending on how the sun hits the skylight and can change throughout the day and they do cast shadows. With the Solatubes the light is evenly distributed throughout the space. He was right and again we are very happy with the product. Oh, I did see Velux's solar tube installed in another home and the differenct in brightness in light with the Velux and Solatube is Solatube WINS hands down. Solatube is the original manufacturer of the solar tube. Just food for thought!!!
Good luck!!!

We put two of these in when we did our remodel. When we reconfigured out kitchen we created 2 rather dark hallways in our house. We put a solatube in each and it really makes a big difference. I think the cost for 2 of them was around $1200. I know the cost varies depending on what type of roof you have and how much attic space the tube has to go through. (More attic space means they have to use more tube extensions = higher cost).
I would say they do an excellent job of bringing natural light into a specific spot. I don't know that they would illuminate an entire open room but they are great in hallways or small bathrooms.

Has anyone seen both the velux sun tunnel and the solatube? I am looking for which one gives a warmer light. Mine would be on the north side of the house so am a bit concerned about a blue tinge...don't like it in the flourescents either. Thanks!!

I had one 10" in a windowless stairwell at my other house (sorry, no pics) and did not have to use electric light in the daytime, even on cloudy, overcast days. I loved having it and will be using more in my current house. I believe the $1000 cost (materials and labor) was totally worth it.

DH was completely against this for a powder room when we built our new home. I had to fight, kick and scream; however, he liked it so much he had another one installed in the master bath water closet. I believe they are considered energy efficient because they do not transmit heat. Depending upon the time of day, one would believe there is a light someone left on when you see the light pouring from the doorway of the Master Bath water closet.

Teresa

I have the cheap, knock off version from home depot, one in my guest bath, one in the coat room.

They really are great! But exposure makes a lot of difference. Couldn't be worse on the bathroom one, in that it sort of sits in the shadow cast by a dormer. But it still adds a lot of light.

Solatube even has the option to add a baffle so you can close off the light if its too bright. I got this option bec I thought it might be too bright to watch tv during the day. Sorry, they're not installed yet so no pics.