Venting Skylights?

[Nate R]

I've heard/read many reports that adding a venting skylight on a 2nd floor can help cool a home by letting hot air at the ceiling out. Then, by having a window open on the first floor, cooler air can be drawn in by convection.

I've also heard reports that any cooler air just falls, drawing more heat IN from the open skylight.


Does anyone have venting skylights near the top of their home? Do they help keep things cooler a bit in summer?

[jimbo]

If you dont have air conditioning, then if its hot oustide, it will be hot inside! Howeve, later in the day, if it cools off outside, a vent up high will help draw cooler air in at the bottom. Around here, whole-house fans are very popular for that reason. They are installed in the ceiling, on the upper story if it is more than one story, and draw air in through the windows and exhaust into the attic. Same idea.


Hot air will rise.

The drawback with a skylight is heatloss in the winter, and reliability....leakwise.

[frenchie]

I've heard/read many reports that adding a venting skylight on a 2nd floor can help cool a home by letting hot air at the ceiling out. Then, by having a window open on the first floor, cooler air can be drawn in by convection.
Yup. For the same reason, sucks in the winter, though.


I've also heard reports that any cooler air just falls, drawing more heat IN from the open skylight.
That's doesn't make even a little bit of sense. If it's cool air that's falling... and it does, around here, from a skylight, in the winter... if it's cool air that's falling, how is it drawing warmer air? If it's warmer air, it'll rise.

[statjunk]

I have done this very thing on a third story house I remodeled some years ago. It was very effective at removing the heat. Although nothing will beat an attic fan. Those things are amazing.

I didn't no notice any heat loss in the winter but this was also a three story house.

Tom

[jadnashua]

I have one in the stairwell at the roof in a large chase. While I don't open it often (trying to keep out pollen and things, when I do, it really does act like an efficient chimney getting air out of the house and drawing in air from below.