Use less energy – install a Solatube sun tunnel and turn off the lights

Using less equals more savings

The biggest way to make these savings is usually through a change in habits and lifestyles – using less, buying less, discarding less, making do and mending and repairing.  Unfortunately, we’ve all become a bit too used to having everything we want, without making any real effort – everything comes to us just a bit too easily, so we continue to consume and use.

And now we find ourselves really having to think hard about how to make these savings.  In truth, it’s something we should have all been doing a long time ago; and to be fair a great number of people have.  However, there are still many of us that can and should do more.  And whilst monetary savings are what come to front of mind; it’s consumption savings that will lead to this.  And to make savings in what we consume will usually take a change in our habits and day to day living routines.

Save on heating and lighting bills

There are already plenty of articles out there exhorting us to ‘use less’ of everything, and so save money.  Heating and lighting bills are the big ones on the agenda and it’s’ no coincidence that over the course of the last few months I have seen a significant increase in enquiries from people who are keen to cut their lighting bills.

Many people live and work in homes and buildings that have dark spaces and rooms, meaning that lights are often left on throughout the day.  So if there’s a way of keeping the lights turned off whilst still being able to see, then it’s got to be a win-win situation.  Just take a look at some of these figures:

• Lighting makes up 11% of the average UK household electricity consumption.

• Lighting accounts for 15 percent of global electricity consumption and 5 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions.

• Lighting in cities alone accounts for 19% of the world’s total electricity consumption.

• A typical school will use almost 50% of its total electricity consumption on lighting; mainly used during the hours of daylight.

Are sun tunnels worth it? 

A Solatube sun tunnel is more efficient and effective than any window, skylight or Velux style roof window at introducing daylight in to dark rooms.  A single Solatube can easily light up an entire room with bright daylight; not just a bit of extra background light, but seriously bright light that you can read, write and work from.  And that means you are not just using LESS energy; you are actually using NO energy.

What remains frustrating, however, is that whilst we see plenty of grants, loans and incentives encouraging people to generate more energy, there is nothing to support ways of allowing you to actually turn the lights off, and so use no energy!

Benefits of daylight from a sun tunnel

I am fully aware that to manufacture and install a Solatube sun tunnel involves more embedded carbon, but so do all these other energy saving initiatives.  I am also aware that it is ‘financially’ cheaper to just keep a light turned on.  People frequently talk about the ‘pay-back’ period for a Solatube sun tunnel.  Yet this thinking is just fundamentally wrong:  A Solatube is a means of introducing daylight in to buildings, which is just what a window or roof window does.  However, no one ever thinks to apply a ‘pay-back rationale’ to a window or skylight.

Instead, what might be a better way to look at the ‘cost’ of a Solatube sun tunnel is to consider the value it adds to a building or property.  And that value is not only financial (it will certainly make your home or building more appealing to buyers and hence more saleable), but also in terms of ‘life’ value.  It is well known and proven that we humans just prefer living and working in daylight over artificial lighting; we feel better, we think better, we are less stressed, we concentrate better and so on – daylight is just better for us.  So it’s worth remembering that not every benefit in life has to be financial…

And you’d almost certainly find that the payback cost to have a window/roof window or skylight installed would be far more than for a Solatube sun tunnel anyway.  After all a Solatube sun tunnel is the most effective and efficient means of introducing daylight in to any building.

How much is a sun tunnel and how much is it to install a sun tunnel?

Well, a sun tunnel is cheaper to supply and install than a window, Velux style roof window or skylight.  A Solatube sun tunnel will typically cost from £550 to £1,000 inc VAT for supply only.  The cost to supply and install a sun tunnel is usually between £1,000 to £1,400 inc VAT.

Save on your heating costs too

Which leads on to savings on heating costs – not an obvious attribute of a Solatube sun pipe, but just think about this for a moment:  To get the same amount of light into a room as a Solatube, you have to have a window, roof window or skylight several times the size of the Solatube.  That means bigger apertures or ‘holes’ in your building, which equals bigger areas from which you will lose heat.  A Solatube sun tunnel is extremely thermally efficient (with u-values of 1.3 for the residential Solatubes and 2.2 for the commercial size); more so than even the best double glazing (and by selecting the ECO-Optima features a u-value of just 0.5 and 0.7 is achieved for the 2 sizes of residential Solatube, which fall within the Passivhaus U-value norm of 0.8 W/m2K).

So, does a sun tunnel really work?

Well, not only do you get more light through a Solatube than through the same sized window, you also lose less heat – ideal!  What is important to remember is that there is a BIG difference between different makes of sun tunnel system, despite what some manufacturers and retailers claim.  A Solatube sun tunnel delivers more light than any other system on the market.  You can use a smaller diameter Solatube or fewer Solatube sun tunnels than other makes of system and still deliver more light.

And whilst many other makes of system struggle to deliver bright light (because they use flat glass or low profile domes and use flexible tubing), a Solatube does not.  They deliver lots of incredibly bright daylight, far brighter than most people can believe.  Just take a look at some of our short ‘before and after’ videos to see for yourself.

Ultimately, If you’ve ever wondered “is a Solatube Sun tunnel any good, or is a Solatube worth installing”, to help save on your lighting costs, then hopefully this blog has explained how effective they really are.

Across the south and west, Solatube Southwest is the recognised distributor and installer of Solatube sun tunnels (or light pipes), from Christchurch and Bournemouth down to Plymouth and beyond.
So, if you’re thinking of installing a skylight in your flat roof, then it’s almost certainly worth thinking twice and install a Solatube sun pipe that won’t leak!

Across the south and west, Solatube Southwest is the recognised distributor and installer of Solatube sun tunnels (or light pipes), from Bournemouth down to Plymouth and beyond.

If you are interested in bringing natural light into your home, why not contact us at Solatube Southwest; 07989 976 010) to find out whether a Solatube sun pipe can help you. Typically, a fully installed system might cost anywhere between £900 – £1,200; that’s supplied, professionally installed and includes the VAT.