Skylight Installation and Replacement in Houston, TX
A skylight is a hole in your roof. Done right, it is a beautiful hole that lasts twenty years. Done wrong, it is the leak you fight for the rest of the time you own the house. Skylight installation in Houston is a roofing job first and a window job second, which is why we handle it as roofers. Most skylight leaks we are called out to fix are not failed glass. They are failed flashing. Russell Mullin founded STX Roofing after working as an insurance adjuster, and water intrusion around penetrations is something he saw over and over.
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What Goes Into a Skylight
A skylight has three parts that matter. There is the unit itself, which is the frame and glazing. There is the curb or deck mount that holds it in place. And there is the flashing kit that ties it into the roof covering. The flashing kit is the part that keeps water out, and it has to match both the skylight model and your roofing material. Skylights come as fixed, venting, or tubular. Fixed units are sealed and bring light only. Venting units open to exhaust hot air, which is useful in Houston attics and bathrooms. Tubular skylights use a reflective shaft to carry daylight into interior rooms with no direct roof access. Units carrying the ENERGY STAR certification for windows, doors, and skylights are independently rated by the National Fenestration Rating Council for U-factor and solar heat gain. In our climate zone, a low solar heat gain coefficient matters more than insulation value. The same rating logic applies to window installation, and we use it for both.
Signs Your Skylight Needs Replacing
Skylights do not last as long as roofs. These are the signs it is time. Water drips or stains appear around the skylight frame during rain, which is one of the more common calls behind roof leak repair on an otherwise sound roof. Condensation forms between the glass panes, which means the seal has failed. The frame is warped, cracked, or has visible gaps. Plastic domes have yellowed, hazed over, or gone brittle. The unit is more than twenty years old. Your roof is being replaced and the skylight predates it. That last one is the important one. If you are re-roofing over a fifteen-year-old skylight, you are paying for new flashing around an old unit that will fail before the shingles do. We would rather tell you that up front. Older acrylic domes are also more vulnerable to hail. FEMA guidance for sloped roofs recommends upgrading older plastic skylights to impact-resistant glazing with thicker seals and frames.
Our Installation Process
We treat every skylight as a roof penetration. First we assess the location. Rafter spacing determines what unit sizes will fit without cutting structure, and roof pitch affects both the flashing method and how much light you actually get. For a new opening, we cut and frame the rough opening, then build the curb. For a replacement, we remove the old unit and inspect the decking around it, which is almost always where we find rot. We replace any damaged sheathing before the new unit goes in. Then we set the skylight and install the manufacturer’s flashing kit in sequence. Head flashing, step flashing at the sides, and sill flashing at the bottom, each lapped correctly with the shingle courses. We use the flashing kit made for that specific unit rather than fabricating something on site. Inside, we finish the light shaft, insulate it, and seal the interior air barrier so you do not get condensation. Then we water test before we call it done. We also confirm the unit will fit before we order. Rafter and truss spacing sets the limit. Engineered trusses should never be cut without an engineer signing off. We check that first rather than after the skylight arrives.
Why Choose STX Roofing
We are a roofing company, so the flashing detail is the part we care about most. A lot of skylight installers are window companies who treat the roof as an afterthought. We also look at attic ventilation while we are up there, since a venting unit changes how air moves through the space. We are veteran-owned, GAF Master Elite, and CertainTeed ShingleMaster certified. We carry an A+ BBB rating and are bondable to $750,000. Qualifying residential roof systems carry a lifetime labor warranty backed by Directorii, and repairs carry a two-year warranty. If your skylight is leaking and the real problem is the decking underneath, we will show you photos rather than just resealing the frame and hoping.
Where We Install Skylights
We install and replace skylights throughout Greater Houston and the Lake Houston area, including Houston, Huffman, Atascocita, Kingwood, Humble, Crosby, Porter, League City, Baytown, Spring, and Tomball. South and west facing skylights in Houston take a lot of afternoon heat, so glazing selection matters more here than in cooler climates. On homes with dark interior hallways, a tubular unit often makes more sense than a full skylight because it needs a smaller opening and less framing work. We look at the room before we recommend the product. Our shop is in Huffman at 25419 FM 2100 Rd. Most skylight work is scheduled rather than same-day, since units are ordered to fit.
What Affects the Investment
Skylight cost depends on unit type, size, glazing, and whether we are cutting a new opening or replacing an existing one. New openings require framing and interior finish work, which is a bigger job than a swap. Venting units cost more than fixed. Impact-rated glazing costs more than standard. Decking repair around an old leaking unit adds to the scope. We give you a written breakdown before we start. Financing is available on qualifying projects through Credit Human and Synchrony. Note that our financing programs apply to roofing and skylight work rather than window replacement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do skylights always leak eventually?
No. Skylights leak when the flashing is wrong or the unit has outlived its seals. A properly flashed modern unit with a good glazing package should perform for the life of the roof it was installed with.
Should I replace my skylight when I replace my roof?
If the skylight is more than ten years old, yes. New flashing around an aging unit means you will be back on the roof again in a few years, and the second trip costs more than doing it together.
Will a skylight make my house hotter?
It can if you pick the wrong glazing. In Houston you want a low solar heat gain coefficient. ENERGY STAR certified units are rated by climate zone so you can match the product to our conditions.
Can you add a skylight to any room?
Not always. The room needs roof access above it, and rafter or truss spacing limits unit size. Engineered trusses should not be cut without an engineer. Tubular skylights are often the answer for interior rooms.
How long does a skylight installation take?
A straight replacement usually takes part of a day. A new opening with framing and interior finish typically takes one to two days depending on the ceiling and the shaft length.
Are your skylights impact rated?
That depends on the product line and the unit selected. We will confirm the rating on the specific model before ordering rather than assuming. Our core service area in inland Harris County is outside the Texas windstorm zone, so impact rating is a choice rather than a code requirement here.
Ready to Get Started?
A skylight adds daylight to a room and risk to a roof. The flashing is what decides which one you get. Call STX Roofing at (281) 601-7663 or schedule a free roof inspection. We will look at the room, the roof, and the rafters, and give you an honest answer about whether a skylight makes sense there. Veteran-owned and based in Huffman.
