Fixed skylight
A fixed unit does not open and is usually the simplest to seal. The leak path is the curb flashing and the glazing seal, and a technician checks both. Most repairs to a fixed unit are the flashing and the seal, not the glass.
Serving Worcester County
Skylight Installation and Leak Repair in Worcester, MA
Repair of leaking skylight curbs, flashing and seals, and installation of new units, on Worcester roofs that take heavy winter snow.
- Repairs and full replacements
- Ice dams, snow load and nor’easter damage
- Slate, asphalt and flat-roof work
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Fastest: call (833) 751-2102. Or send this and we call you back.
Skylights
Skylight Installation and Leak Repair: what it covers
Quick answer
A skylight is a window set in a curb, and the flashing and seals around that curb carry the water away. Seals age and flashing lifts, and snow that sits against the uphill side can melt and push water through a gap that stayed dry all summer. A technician finds the path, then repairs or replaces the curb flashing or the unit.
A skylight is a window set into the roof plane, and everything that keeps it watertight happens around its edge. The unit sits on a curb, a raised frame on the roof, and the flashing and seals form a continuous path that sheds water over the top and down the sides. When that path breaks, water can run down the glass, along the frame or under the curb and into the ceiling below. The leak often appears well away from the skylight, because water travels along the framing before it drops.
In central Massachusetts, skylights face a particular kind of winter stress. Snow builds up against the uphill side of a unit and stays there while the roof is cold. When a thaw comes, the melt runs down against the uphill edge and can be driven under the flashing, where a summer rain would have run straight over it. The seals on the unit and the flashing around the curb are asked to hold water against the pressure of meltwater and wind, and the weakest joint is usually where the leak starts.
Skylight leaks are rarely caused by the glass. Most failures occur at the curb flashing, at the seal or gasket around the frame, or at the connection between the curb and the roof covering. A technician checks those first and only then decides whether the unit itself needs replacing. The distinction matters, because a sound unit with failed flashing will leak again whatever is done to the glass.
- Service area
- Worcester & Worcester County
- Availability
- Call to reach a local roofer
- Phone
- (833) 751-2102
Warning signs
Signs you need skylight installation and leak repair
Do not stand on a skylight or step onto its glazing. Glass and plastic domes are not built to carry a person's weight. Do not clear heavy snow from a roof with a skylight in it. Use the state's guidance instead: a plastic shovel or snow rake, about two to three inches left on the roof rather than scraping to the covering, and no ladders or heat tools near the curb. If you see a sagging roof, a cracked wood member or a door popping open, leave the building and call 911 from outside.
- Water on the glass, the frame or the sill after a thaw or snowfall
- Staining on the ceiling or wall directly below the skylight, or a few feet away along the framing
- Lifted, bent or missing flashing at the curb, especially on the uphill side
- A cracked, shrunken or lifted seal or gasket around the glazing
- Dark or soft wood at the frame, sill or curb inside the house
- Condensation between the panes, which can show a failed seal
- An operable sash that sticks, sags or no longer closes square
Our process
How our skylight installation and leak repair visit works
Inspect from inside and outside
The technician checks the frame, sill and ceiling from inside for staining and soft wood, then goes onto the roof to see the curb and the covering around it. The two views are compared, because the water path is rarely visible from one side alone.
Clear the curb and check the uphill edge
Debris and any snow are cleared from the curb, and the flashing on the uphill side and at the lower corners is examined. The crew looks for lifted metal, a missing corner or a lap set the wrong way, since any of these lets water in at the top edge.
Check the seals and glazing
The seal between the unit and its frame and the gasket at the glazing are inspected for cracks, shrinkage and lifting. A failed seal lets water run into the space behind the glass, where it drips onto the ceiling or wall below, so each seal is noted as sound, aging or failing.
Reset or replace the flashing
Sound flashing is reset with the correct lap and resealed where a sealant is still appropriate. Corroded or distorted flashing is replaced in a metal that matches the roof edge. The roof covering around the curb is woven back in, so water passes over and downhill at every joint.
Test and record the work
Water is run over the curb in a controlled test while the ceiling is watched for drips. The technician records what was replaced and where, so the next opening can be found quickly if it is needed.
Why does a skylight leak only during snow or a thaw?
Snow and meltwater can push water under the flashing or against the seals, where a summer rain would simply run off. A leak that appears only in winter usually points to the uphill side of the unit.
Snow stays against the uphill edge of the curb longer than the roof around it, and it melts unevenly. Meltwater builds up at the upper edge, and when it refreezes it can form a small dam that pushes water back under the flashing. The water then finds the nearest gap, which is often the one that has shrunk or lifted over several years.
What does a technician check at the skylight?
The technician checks the curb flashing, the seals and gasket, the glazing and the roof covering around the curb, and whether the framing below is wet.
The curb flashing comes first. The metal that laps the curb's uphill side should sit over the roof covering above it and turn water out at the lower corners. Lifted flashing, a missing corner or a lap set the wrong way lets water in at the top edge, and the first sign is often a stain on the frame near the glass.
Should the skylight be repaired or replaced?
Flashing and seals can often be repaired or reset on a sound unit. A unit with cracked glazing, a failed frame or a curb that cannot be sealed should be replaced.
Repair suits a unit that is sound. The glass is clear, the frame is straight, and the failure is in the curb flashing or a seal. The technician resets or replaces the flashing, reseals the frame with the correct gasket, and checks the roof covering around the curb. Sealant on its own is not a repair, because the National Park Service guidance on roofs says mastic and sealants harden and crack, which makes the next repair harder.
What affects the cost of skylight work?
The price depends on the size and number of units, whether the curb is sound, the roof's pitch and access, and the type of unit. The price is explained and approved before work starts.
A single small unit on an accessible roof is a different job from several large units on a steep or high roof. Access matters. A skylight on the upper slope of a three-decker, reached by a crew working on a tall house, needs more time and equipment. A curb that has rotted needs rebuilding before the unit can be set, which adds carpentry to the roofing work.
The unit itself is a variable. A repair to the flashing of an existing unit is a different scope from a new unit, which needs an opening, new framing and new flashing. The technician explains both options and what each involves. The price is explained and approved before work starts, so the homeowner knows what is included before anything is cut.
What should a homeowner check before the visit?
Note when the leak appears, which side of the skylight it runs from, and whether it follows snow or a thaw. Look at the ceiling and the frame from inside if that is safe.
A leak that starts after a snowfall or a thaw suggests the uphill edge. Note the dates and the weather at each leak, and whether water runs down the glass or along the frame. Photographs of the ceiling and the frame help the technician decide where to look first.
Options
Types and options for skylight installation and leak repair
Venting or operable skylight
A unit that opens has more moving parts and more seals. The operating mechanism and the gaskets around the sash are checked along with the flashing. A sash that has warped can leak even when the curb is sound, so the sash is looked at as part of the same job.
Tubular skylight
A tubular unit runs a shaft from the roof down to a diffuser in the ceiling. Water can run down the shaft and show at the diffuser, far from the roof. A technician checks the flashing at the roof end and the shaft joints inside, since the shaft is a common path for water that has already entered.
Worcester County
Why skylight installation and leak repair is different in Central Massachusetts
Worcester's three-decker and older houses have roofs with several planes, and skylights on them can sit on a rear slope or a rear section that is hard to see from the street. The crew reaches those units from the roof, not from the ground, so access and staging decide how a repair is planned and how long it takes.
Snow load is the local hazard for skylights. The state's roof-collapse guidance says flat and low-pitched roofs face the greatest risk of buckling under heavy snow and ice, and a skylight sits in the same roof plane that carries the snow. A thaw after a heavy fall is the time to look at the curb, before the next freeze locks any water in place.
The climate here is one of freeze-thaw cycles and nor'easter storms. The National Weather Service describes nor'easters as most frequent and most violent between September and April, bringing heavy wet snow and gale-force gusts. Those winds drive rain sideways into the uphill edge of a curb, so a skylight that stayed tight in a summer storm can leak in an autumn nor'easter.
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Where we work
Skylight Installation and Leak Repair across Worcester County
- Skylights in Worcester
- Skylights in Cherry Valley
- Skylights in Auburn
- Skylights in Shrewsbury
- Skylights in Millbury
- Skylights in North Grafton
- Skylights in Boylston
- Skylights in Leicester
- Skylights in West Boylston
- Skylights in Paxton
- Skylights in Holden
- Skylights in Grafton
- Skylights in Northborough
- Skylights in Oxford
- Skylights in Westborough
- Skylights in Spencer
- Skylights in Sutton
- Skylights in Rutland
- Skylights in Charlton
- Skylights in Upton
- Skylights in Berlin
- Skylights in Sterling
- Skylights in Northbridge
- Skylights in Clinton
- Skylights in Princeton
- Skylights in Webster
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
Related
Related services
Roof Flashing Repair
Repair and replacement of the metal at roof joins, walls and additions, where many roof leaks start.
Roof Leak Repair
Tracing a leak from the ceiling stain back to where the water actually enters the roof.
Roof Inspection and Condition Report
A written look at decking, flashing, ventilation and remaining life, the step before choosing repair or replacement on a Worcester roof.
Roof Snow Load and Snow Removal
Which Worcester roofs carry the most snow risk, how to clear them safely, and when to get out.
FAQ
Skylight Installation and Leak Repair FAQs
Can I reseal a skylight from inside?
Sealing from inside treats the symptom and often hides the path. Water driven under the flashing can run along the framing and show somewhere else. A technician finds the entry from the roof side and seals it there. Interior sealant can be a short-term note on the job, but it is not the repair.
Why does the leak show up on the wall, not under the skylight?
Water runs along the framing, the top of the wall and the underside of the roof deck before it drops, so the stain can be several feet from the unit. Starting at the skylight and working outward from the stain is how the technician finds the real path.
Is a skylight leak always a sign the unit is failing?
No. Most leaks start at the curb flashing or a seal, not the glass. A sound unit with failed flashing will leak again if only the glass is changed. A technician checks the flashing, the seals and the curb before deciding whether the unit should be replaced.
Should I clear snow from a skylight?
Do not stand on the roof or the skylight to clear snow. The state's roof guidance says to use a plastic shovel or snow rake from a safe position, and to leave two to three inches rather than scraping to the covering. If heavy snow sits against a skylight, call a technician to clear it and inspect the curb. Phones are answered 24/7.
Does insurance cover skylight leaks?
Coverage depends on the policy and the cause. The state's Division of Insurance says ice-dam damage may be covered if it was sudden and not caused by a lack of maintenance. Document the damage with photographs and ask the insurer about the wording before any work is done.
Do skylight repairs need a permit?
A repair that changes only the flashing or a seal is often treated as a minor roof repair, and the building official decides whether a permit is needed. Cutting a new opening alters the structure and generally needs one under the state building code. Ask Worcester's Department of Inspectional Services before the work starts.