Should You Replace or Remove Your Memphis Skylight?

Should You Replace or Remove Your Memphis Skylight?

Skylights are wonderful features: they flood rooms with natural light, improve mood, and can even help with ventilation. But older skylights—especially in the Memphis climate—may develop problems over time. If yours is bubble plastic, leaking, clouding over, or otherwise failing, you might be wondering: “Should I remove the skylight entirely or just replace it?”

At Restoration Roofing, we believe in preserving the natural light and benefits skylights bring. We’re proud to offer high-quality VELUX skylight installations and replacements, including their top-tier “No Leak” skylights with a 10-year installation warranty. Let’s walk through the key issues, when replacement is warranted, and why you may want to keep skylights instead of removing them.

What Kind of Problems Do Older Skylights Have?

Older skylights—especially the older plastic bubble types—come with a number of common issues:

• Leakage: Seals wear out, flashing deteriorates, plastic becomes brittle, and water may leak in around the frame.
• Clouding or Yellowing: Plastic domes tend to discolor over time, becoming foggy, yellowed, or opaque. This reduces the light effect and can make rooms feel dim.
• Poor Thermal Performance: Older skylights often have single glazing (one layer), poor seals, or lack insulated frames. They let heat in during summer, and let warm air out in winter, raising energy bills.
• Cracks or Damage: Plastic domes can crack from hail or UV exposure. Bubble types are especially vulnerable.
• Condensation and Mold: When sealed improperly or with poor insulation around them, older skylights can trap moisture. That causes fogging, condensation, mold growth, and sometimes damage to the roof or ceiling around the opening.

Signs It’s Time to Replace Your Skylight

Knowing when to replace is key. You don’t want to remove prematurely, but you also don’t want damage to spread. Here are common signs that a skylight is beyond simple repair:

1. Visible Leaks or Water Damage around the skylight, especially after storms or heavy rain.
2. Persistent Fogging or Cloudiness on the glass or plastic—even after cleaning.
3. Cracks, Chips, or Deterioration of the frame, glass, or plastic dome.
4. Lengthy Condensation or Mold Problems—if moisture collects and won’t dry, there may be seal or insulation failure.
5. Bad Thermal Performance—rooms that overheat under the skylight, feel significantly colder around it in winter, or near ceiling drafts in that area.
6. Outdated Materials Like Plastic Bubble Domes, which often don’t hold up over many years, versus modern tempered or laminated glass.

If you see one or more of these, replacement with a higher‑quality skylight will probably save you hassle, repair costs, and energy bills in the long run.

Why Not Just Remove It?

Some homeowners consider removing skylights entirely—closing the opening and restoring ceiling or roof decking. But removing has downsides:

• Loss of natural light—skylights deliver light from above, which windows cannot replicate.
• Reduced ventilation and airflow in certain roofline or attic designs.
• Potential for increased electric lighting costs and loss of the design/aesthetic that made skylights desirable in the first place.

At Restoration Roofing, we think far too many remove skylights when replacement would preserve all the benefits and avoid unnecessary loss of design, light, and value.

Why VELUX Skylights Are a Top Replacement Choice

When replacing, quality matters. That’s where VELUX comes in. Here are features of VELUX skylights that make them a leading option in Memphis:

• “No Leak” Skylights (deck‑mounted and curb‑mounted) with three layers of water protection: a pre‑attached deck seal (or gasket), secondary underlayment, and engineered flashing—all designed to resist leaks.
• 10‑Year Installation Warranty that covers product and flashing against leaks, no matter who installs it (as long as VELUX’s installation instructions are followed).
• Additional warranties: 20 years on glass, 10 years on the product, and 5 years on blinds and controls.
• Glass Options: VELUX offers high‑quality safety glazing, laminated or tempered glass, improved energy performance, and better visible light transmittance. Their frames are built to be durable, weather‑resistant, and designed to integrate with proper flashing systems.

Because of these features, a VELUX skylight is less likely to leak, less likely to degrade, and offers peace of mind for years.

What Restoration Roofing Offers in Memphis for Skylight Replacement

Here’s how Restoration Roofing delivers high quality when replacing or upgrading your skylight:

• We are fully trained by VELUX and certified—so you get top‑quality installation according to VELUX standards.
• We install VELUX No Leak Skylights with all the water protection features affixed, plus proper flashing and sealing.
• We handle both fixed and venting skylights so you can choose one that opens for fresh air, or one that stays fixed for light only.
• We build replacement plans that preserve the natural light, prevent leaks, and improve energy performance so you gain the benefits without the old issues.
• Warranty assurance: because we install correctly, your VELUX warranty remains valid (10 years installation/no‑leak, etc.).

How to Know Whether to Replace or Remove

Here’s a quick decision guide to help you figure out whether replacement or removal is best:

Only consider removal if the skylight has caused structural damage that can’t be repaired, or if it’s in a location where you can’t properly flash, seal, or maintain it.

Work With Restoration Roofing

If your skylight is showing signs of failure—cloudy dome, leaks, cracked plastic, seal problems—don’t rush to remove it. A properly installed VELUX skylight by Restoration Roofing can preserve all those benefits: natural light, ventilation options, aesthetic value, and improved energy performance—without the persistent leaks or maintenance headaches.

Have you noticed any of the warning signs in your skylight? Contact Restoration Roofing today for a free inspection and expert recommendation. We’ll help you decide whether replacement makes sense—or if your skylight can be restored and upgraded—so you keep the natural light without the problems.

Choose Restoration Roofing and get the protection your home deserves. Give us a call at 901-854-3402 or fill out our Contact Us form and we will reach out to you with our next available inspection. Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more tips on finding the best roofing contractor for you.