TuffX is championing rooflight innovation and offering some installation advice.
Roof glazing is ever-growing in popularity, with a wide array of design solutions available to suit self-builds, extensions, loft conversions, and even basement projects. Adding a rooflight floods the space beneath with natural light, and they’re also easy to install, often without planning permission. Here, Paul Higgins, commercial director at TuffX, explores rooflights in detail, covering everything from energy efficiency and installation advice to revolutionary heated solutions and choosing a supplier you can rely on.
Daylight savings
Rooflights have become a staple in single-story extension plans and a desirable characteristic often incorporated into new builds. Creating opportunities for daylight to enter a space directly through the roof also reduces the need for artificial lighting during daylight hours, leading to lower energy consumption and bills, all whilst creating a connection with the outdoors and offering low maintenance.
Letting natural daylight flood in significantly impacts the feel of the room, and the rooflight itself can become an architectural feature around which interior fixtures and fittings can be designed around. For example, positioning a kitchen island beneath a rooflight of the same size creates a dramatic centrepiece on both the floorplan and ceiling.
Alternatively, walk-on roof lights, designed to be fitted internally or externally, are ideal for adding a functional and aesthetically appealing glazed feature in basement conversions or roof terraces. Whatever the brief, seek out a supplier, such as Tuffx, which offers bespoke roof window sizes with short lead times to break out of the standard size mould where roof space and budget allow.
Energy efficiency
When properly designed and installed, roof windows can improve a property’s thermal performance, reducing energy consumption and heating costs.
TuffX’s high-quality roof windows feature double or triple glazing to minimise heat transfer, improve energy efficiency, and protect against temperature extremes. Beyond the glass itself, the frame specification is another key consideration. Insulating frames are specifically designed to deliver peak insulation, working alongside the glazing to keep the property’s indoor environment warm in winter and cool in summer.
Together, the glazing and insulating frame supports the reduction of heat loss during the winter and limit heat gain throughout the summer. The thermal performance of the system is also important. With large amounts of glass, the risk of overheating can be a concern, but with the addition of solar control glass coatings and/or shading methods, this can be minimised.
Looking at the technical data, Tuffx’s double-glazed toughened safety glass roof lights have a centre pane U-value of 1.2, and the triple-glazed option has a U-value of 0.7, which is 30% more than roof lights with standard double-glazing and also offers the enhanced benefit of increased sound reduction.
Ease of installation
Roof windows require precise installation to ensure proper integration into the roof structure fit, weatherproofing, insulation and, therefore, optimal performance. However, the installation process is simple with the right tools and a quality product to hand.
All Tuffx Infinity rooflights are as a complete unit, ready for installers to drop in and secure into place hassle-free. In preparation for the installation, a timber upstand needs to be built with a minimum pitch of 5° to allow water to run off the rooflight when in place. Then, a thick bead of silicone is applied around on top of the upstand.
Next, the flat, powder-coated aluminium frame can be positioned over the top and sides of the upstand, then pre-drill fixing holes through the timber/aluminium upstand at 100mm from each corner, then at regular intervals. The final step is adding the fixing screws with horseshoe packers and finishing caps around the frame to keep it in place.
Heated glass solutions
Opening up even more possibilities with roof glazing, GLOW heated glass infill panels are also now available from Tuffx, meaning that the roof glazing will not only illuminate the space throughout the day but also provide a radiant heat source for the space in the colder months, enabling both natural daylight and thermal comfort to be enhanced simultaneously.
Ideal for high traffic, such as a kitchen or family room/communal area, the thermostatically controlled glass comprises a sealed unit layered with an intelligent, invisible conductive coating that is electrically heated to convert electric power into radiant heat. Heated glass also dramatically reduces condensation, preserving uninterrupted sky views and potentially contributing to a healthier indoor environment. Plus, no ongoing maintenance is required, providing a hassle-free supplementary heating solution.
For further information about Tuffx’s Infinity range of rooflights, visit tuffxglass.co.uk
