New Frosted Glass Diffusers By Solatube

Solatube's Just Frost Glass diffusers are a  popular choice with all my customers.   These stylish low profile diffuser covers are made of all glass and really do show well in any room.  The glass material appears to enhance the natural lighting properties reflected down the Solatube tubular shaft into the living space below.  The vibrant light remains soft however appears warmer than the standard fussion acrylic diffuser lens.  Taking photos of these diffusers in daytime is always difficult with the results of over exposure.    

     

14" Solatube JustFrost glass diffuser

Solatube Daylighting For Offices

     I completed this office lighting project back in October 2011, there were a total of ten 14" Solatubes to be installed on a flat roof building structure with a metal corrugated roof deck.  The 12 foot tube runs reached down through the open plentum space to the 110 square ft offices below.

   14" Solatubes on a tar and gravel flat roof  

14" Solatube runs partially completed through plentum space

       
 12 inch curbs where contructed to raise the flashings and domes above the roof line, the end result flooded the offices with stunning natural daylighting. The ceiling was composed of drywall and was supported with metal joists above.  The existing office light fixtures where replaced with Solatube add-on light kits for the new locations for supplemental night time lighting.

 14" Solatube installation in an office

                                                        14" Solatube office

Solatube Daylighting For New Home Builders

     Green Park Homes is one of Canada's leading home builder and are all about focusing on quality and methods to produce more efficient homes.  Conventional skylights were not really an effective way to bring in natural lighting due to there lengthy dry wall shafts from the ceiling to the roof line. Some of these were over 10 feet in height due to the higher pitched roofs in this modern age.

      The open ended shafts created a tunnel for warm air to rise up the drywall shaft creating heat loss.  With Solatube, the reflective tube run is closed at the ceiling end with a dual glazed diffuser system maintaining the homes energy efficiency and is also sealed to the  ceiling vapour barrier inside the attic preventing any air leakage.  The option of installing a Solatube for Green  Park Homes is most popular in upstairs hallways, stairwells and windowless bathrooms.

                           example of a 12ft long Solatube  inside attic up to roof

                                 14" Solatube Hallway application, Stouffville
                                 

Solatube installed through Cathedral Ceiling

     There are actually many styles of homes out there that have a cathedral ceiling in one or more rooms.  I often have inquiries regarding if this type of installation is feasible or not.  Well the answer is yes, they can be installed through this type of roof structure and there are two main types of cathedral ceilings where Solatubes can be installed through.  The first being where the  supporting roof rafters have the drywall ceiling directly fastened to the underside inside the living space and with the roof sheathing directly on top with no attic space.  These roof rafters can typically be constructed of 2x6's up to 2x10's depending on age and construction of the home.  The second type I come across is the cathedral ceiling that is constructed with a scissor type truss roof.  This roof type has a small attic access above the sloped ceiling  and with  the sloping shingled roof above.

                                                 Two 14" Solatubes with the cathedral ceiling

        This living room in Markham had an 11ft cathedral ceiling constructed with 2x6's on 16" centers and no attic space.   I located the  Solatubes a little over a third of the way in from the side walls for an even lighting balance.  The end result yielded tons of pure natural sunlight brightening the entire room room wall to wall.

                                 This roof shot displays the Solatube flashing and domes directly
                                 above the ceiling locations.  Note the unique victorian shingles.

Claremont Field Centre Solatube installation project

     The Claremont Field Centre is a Pan-Abode log building built in 1970 located in a scenic conservation area north of Pickering Ontario and is run with friendly staff.   If you have ever had a  previous visit to the Claremont Field Centre you may have noticed the hallways that resemble tunnels into eternal darkness that lead from the main entrance to the bunk rooms.  I began this project back in August of 2011, the property is owned by the Toronto Region Conservation Authority.

     The log buildings roof structure was perfectly set up for permitting the thirteen 10" Solatubes to be installed. Carey  was the coordinator of the project and was friendly and patient to work with.   The Solatubes I installed replaced the existing light fixtures and had add-on light kits installed for night time lighting. While working with the ceiling structure inside I spaced out the Solatubes as evenly as  as possible to  maintain an equal natural lighting balance for the hallways within.

    The end result  transformed the previously dim hallways from night to day with an abundance of  soft natural light.    Working at Claremont was an enjoyable experience and I'm happy with the feeling that I'm also contributing to the community in an environmentally friendly way. The field centre is visited by thousands of students every year during from  summer to winter for out door activities.

                           Solatube Daylighting Photos for Claremont

                                       
                                  Claremont Field Centre  Pickering, Ontario

                                       Solatube  flashing & domes on roof

                                              Hallway Leading to South end
                                                           

                                      Main Hallway facing cafateria

                                               Hallway facing north

                                          South hallway outside rooms