Drive around Sherrills Ford, Denver, and the west side of Lake Norman and you’ll see plenty of homes with skylights over the kitchen, the great room, or a bathroom. Many of those skylights are as old as the roof around them. So when it’s time for a new roof, homeowners ask us the same question: should I replace my skylights at the same time, or keep the ones I have?
We’re Campbells Precision Roofing, a roofing contractor based in Denver, NC, and serving the Lake Norman area since 2015. We install new skylights, replace old ones, and repair skylight leaks, and here’s how we help homeowners make that call.
Why the roof replacement is the moment to decide
A skylight isn’t just a window on the roof. It cuts through the shingles, the underlayment, the roof deck, and the ceiling below, and the flashing around it is what keeps water out. That flashing is woven into the roofing around it.
Every roof we replace is a full tear-off down to the deck, never new shingles over an old roof. Once the old roof is off, the skylight opening, its framing, and the decking around it are all exposed. That gives you two clean choices:
- Replace the skylight now, with a new unit and the flashing kit made for it, tied into your new underlayment and shingles.
- Keep the skylight, and re-flash it into the new roof as carefully as possible.
What you want to avoid is a third path: keeping a skylight that’s near the end of its life, then needing it replaced a few years later. That means opening up a brand-new roof to swap it, which is more disruption than doing it once.
Signs your skylight should be replaced with the roof
We check your skylights during the inspection before a replacement. These are the signs that point toward a new unit:
- Fogging or moisture between the panes. That usually means the glass seal has failed. It won’t clear up, and the skylight loses its insulating value.
- Water stains on the ceiling or the skylight well. Brown rings or peeling paint around the opening mean water has been getting in somewhere, either at the flashing or at the unit itself.
- Cracked, crazed, or cloudy glazing. Older plastic domes in particular yellow and get brittle in the sun.
- A frame that’s rotting, warped, or rusting. If the unit itself is breaking down, new flashing won’t save it.
- Improvised flashing. Heavy tar or caulk smeared around the skylight is a sign someone has already been chasing a leak. Most skylight leaks come from failed or improvised flashing or an aging unit, not the glass itself.
- A vented skylight that no longer opens or closes properly. A stuck or loose sash lets in air, water, and bugs.
If you’re not sure about the roof itself, our post on when to replace your roof in Denver, NC covers the other signs.
When keeping your skylight can make sense
Not every skylight needs to go. If yours was installed fairly recently, the glass is clear, the frame is solid, there’s no staining inside, and it was installed with a proper manufacturer flashing kit, it may be fine to keep it and flash it carefully into the new roof.
We’ll tell you plainly which side of that line your skylight is on, with photos, so you can see what we see. If we recommend keeping it, we’ll explain why. If we recommend replacing it, we’ll show you the reason.
Replace, remove, or add: your options
A roof replacement is also the easiest time to change your mind about skylights entirely.
- Replace like for like. A new skylight in the same opening, with the matching flashing kit. This is the most common choice.
- Upgrade to a venting skylight. If the room gets hot or humid, such as a kitchen or a bathroom, a VELUX Fresh Air skylight opens to let air out. VELUX offers manual, electric, and solar-powered versions, and VELUX documents a rain sensor on its electric and solar models that closes the skylight when rain starts.
- Add daylight to a dark hallway or closet. A VELUX Sun Tunnel tubular skylight brings light from the roof down to an interior room through a reflective tube.
- Remove a skylight you don’t want. Don’t want a skylight anymore? On request, we remove it and close up the roof over the opening.
Our skylight brands and types guide walks through fixed, Fresh Air, and Sun Tunnel options in more detail, and our VELUX products page links to each family on the VELUX USA site.
Why the flashing kit matters around Lake Norman
Our area gets heavy summer thunderstorms, wind-driven rain, and plenty of falling leaves and pine needles from the hardwoods around the lake. Debris collects on the uphill side of a skylight, and wind pushes water sideways at every joint. That’s why we install VELUX skylights with the flashing kit made for that unit and the type of roof it’s going into, rather than piecing something together with sealant.
When the skylight goes in during the replacement, its flashing works together with the new leak barrier, underlayment, and shingles around it. That’s the watertight result you’re paying for.
What to expect from CPR
- Free inspection. We look at the roof and your skylights, check the attic when needed, and take photos.
- A clear recommendation. For each skylight: keep and re-flash, replace, or upgrade, with the reason in plain language.
- A written estimate that spells out the roof and skylight work, so nothing is a surprise.
- One install. The full tear-off, the skylight work, and the new roof happen together, followed by cleanup.
We install GAF architectural shingles and standing seam metal roofs, we’re a GAF Master Elite® contractor, and we’re a VELUX Certified Installer. Learn more on our skylights page and our roof repair and replacement page.
Already have a skylight leak?
If water is coming in around a skylight right now and your roof otherwise has life left, a repair may be all you need. A failed flashing or a worn-out unit can often be fixed or replaced without replacing the whole roof. Our post on whether a roof leak can be fixed without a full replacement explains how we decide.
Serving Sherrills Ford and the Lake Norman area
Sherrills Ford is just up the road from our Denver, NC home base. We also work in Denver, Stanley, Lincolnton, Mooresville, Cornelius, Huntersville, and across the Lake Norman area. See our Sherrills Ford roofing page or the full list of areas we serve.
Planning a new roof and wondering about your skylights? Call or text (704) 280-5996 or request a free inspection. We’re open 24 hours.