Daylighting is a system that facilitates the entry of natural light to provide internal lighting through the use of windows or other openings that admit light. With this system in Atlanta roofing that harvests daylight, energy savings are realized through reduced use of artificial energy.

The sun is the lone source of daylight. Building contractors use different methods to harvest sunlight. In certain areas, direct sunlight is harvested and used to illuminate a building’s interiors. In places that direct sunlight cannot reach, diffused sunlight is harvested with the same natural lighting effect. Some of the most common types of daylighting system are:

Windows

The most common method that allows daylight to penetrate buildings is through windows. The vertical design and various orientations of windows admit and diffuse daylight at different times of the day. Depending on the local climate, several windows with different orientations may be made to create the right combination.

Skylights

Skylights are openings found on roofs that admit sunlight into inner spaces of the building or house. Most residential and commercial buildings today incorporate skylights because they are the most efficient method in admitting daylight on a per unit area basis. The glazing options vary depending on the needs of the building but are mostly made of glass or plastic. A variation of skylight is the roof lantern that sits atop the roof instead of being embedded in the roof like a skylight.

Clerestory Windows

A clerestory is a high portion of the wall with windows to admit light, air or both. The design is found mostly in tall structures such as basilicas and churches although modern transportation has adopted the architectural design to accommodate lighting and ventilation. Clerestory windows are high vertical windows that maximizes daylight, especially when they are built facing the equator.

Light Tubes

A light tube is a device placed on the roof that admits light into its interior and eventually distributes it inside the house. Unlike a skylight, light tubes do not transfer as much heat because of their smaller surface area. It consists of three parts—the light collector on the roof made of transparent materials, the tube with reflective coating and a diffuser assembly inside the house that distributes daylight into interior spaces.

Atrium

Atrium is a large open area within buildings where daylight penetrates through glass roof or wall. Light penetrates into the working areas inside the building, the degree of which depends on their location. The upper storeys receive the greatest amount of daylight while the lower storeys must depend on reflected daylight from surfaces such as reflective floors.

Most residential and commercial buildings in San Diego today incorporate daylighting strategy into their designs. Daylighting allows natural light to enter the interior of a building to provide natural illumination. Most buildings with flat San Diego roofing have prismatic skylights and light tubes that take the most advantage of their wide and flat surfaces.

What is Daylighting?

Daylighting involves the effective use of windows and other openings that allows sunlight to provide internal lighting during daytime. Daylighting designs on buildings are built either to provide optimum visual comfort with the use of natural light or reduce energy use and its attendant electricity costs.

Types of Daylighting

Daylighting may either be passive or active. Passive daylighting collects sunlight with the use of non-moving or static devices such as skylights, windows or light tubes and reflect the daylight into the building’s interiors. Active daylighting collects sunlight by employing mechanical devices that either track the sun’s movement using sensors and lens or through electronic motor devices with installed programs to follow the sun’s path based on a pre-determined sun chart.

Concrete Benefits of Daylighting

Increases Productivity

Severely studies have confirmed the concrete benefits of natural light on human physiology, including improved student academic performance and general health, increased retail sales and enhanced employees productivity, and significant fall in employee absences from work.

Reduces Energy Requirement

Electrical lighting requirements for buildings are reduced by as much as 70 percent with the relatively simple action of installing prismatic skylights on just 4 percent of the total San Diego roofing surface. Less electrical lighting is required to illuminate the rooms because of the natural daylights coming in through the skylights and windows, which translates to enormous savings in energy costs. The investment on skylights will pay itself in about two years’ time. In six to eight years, prismatic daylighting will pay for the cost of an energy-efficient roof system.

Reduces the Need for Air Conditioning

The cost of cooling a building is also drastically reduced through daylighting. Natural daylighting is noted to generate practically no or minimal heat, thereby reducing the constant need for air conditioning in warm places.

Environmentally-Friendly

Many power plants generate energy through the use of fossil fuels. Burning fossil fuels significantly contribute to air and water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Using more daylight as lighting lessens the demand for artificially-generated energy and its undesirable consequences. With the heightened public awareness on global warming and climate changes, more people now appreciate the merits of daylighting.