Sun Tunnel Installation in Toronto & the GTA

Some rooms can never get a normal skylight: the hallway with an attic full of trusses overhead, the powder room in the middle of the house, the stair landing that is dark at noon. A sun tunnel — also sold as a solar tube or tubular skylight — solves exactly this. A small dome on the roof feeds a mirrored tube that snakes through the attic and delivers surprising daylight through a ceiling diffuser that looks like a flush light fixture.

Installation is far less invasive than a skylight cut-in. The roof opening is small, sized between rafters, so there is normally no structural framing to alter and no permit involved. The dome gets flashed into the shingles with the manufacturer's kit, the rigid or flexible tube is run and its joints taped, and the tube is insulated where it crosses the cold attic — skip that last step and the tunnel drips condensation every January, which is the classic bad-install complaint.

We will be straight about what a light tunnel does and does not do. On a clear day the output rivals a decent light fixture and the quality of the light is genuinely pleasant. On a grey February afternoon it is soft and dim, and you see sky-brightness, not a view. Where a full skylight physically fits and the budget allows, we will tell you — and where it does not, a sun tube is the honest, cheaper answer.

• Placement planning from roof orientation and the straightest attic run to the ceiling point
• Small roof opening cut between rafters — no structural framing changes
• Curb or deck-mounted dome flashed into the shingles with the manufacturer's kit
• Rigid or flexible mirrored tube installed with taped, light-tight joints
• Insulation wrap on the tube through the cold attic to stop winter condensation
• Ceiling ring and diffuser fitted flush and sealed at the vapour barrier
• Air-sealing at both ends so the tunnel does not become an attic air leak
• Cleanup inside and out, with attic insulation raked back into place

• Tube diameter — the common 10 and 14 inch sizes light very different room areas
• Rigid versus flexible tube; rigid delivers noticeably more light on longer runs
• Length and complexity of the attic run, including elbows to dodge framing and ducts
• Roof pitch, height and covering, which drive the flashing work at the dome
• Ceiling type — flat drywall is quick, vaulted or plaster ceilings take longer
• Add-ons such as integrated night lights or ventilation kits on some models
• Number of tunnels installed in the same visit, which shares the setup cost

Every home is different, so we don’t publish flat prices — the quote is free and based on your actual job.