Skylight leak repair in Long Beach, CA

A skylight is a hole in the roof with a window in it, and there are four ways it can leak: through a cracked lens or dome, through the frame where the lens meets the curb, at the curb flashing where the skylight meets the roof, or at the roof around it. Each needs a different fix, and replacing the skylight does nothing if the flashing is the problem.

There is also condensation. On cool nights, warm moist air inside the house meets the cold skylight glass and drips back down, which looks just like a leak. We figure out which it is before anyone spends money. Our roofers check the skylight from the roof and from inside, and water-test it when needed.

Leak or condensation

A real leak shows up during or right after rain, usually at one side or corner of the skylight. Condensation shows up on cool mornings with no rain, often across the whole frame, especially in bathrooms and kitchens. Old single-pane acrylic domes are the most prone to it.

If it is condensation, a better bathroom fan, a dual-pane skylight or improved ventilation helps. If it is a leak, we find the entry point and fix it. We tell you which it is after looking.

• Drips during rain point to a leak
• Morning moisture on dry days points to condensation
• Bathroom and kitchen skylights fog most
• Single-pane domes are the most prone

Fixing the curb and flashing

Most skylights here sit on a wood curb that rises above the roof. That curb is flashed like a small chimney, with metal on all four sides, tied into the roofing. When that flashing rusts, loosens or was installed with caulk only, water goes behind it and down the inside of the curb.

We remove the roofing around the curb, check the curb wood for rot, replace any that is soft and reflash the curb with new metal. On tile roofs, we take extra care lifting and relaying tile around the skylight so the surrounding roof is not damaged.

When to repair and when to replace the skylight

If the lens is cracked, crazed or yellowed, or the frame seals have failed on an old unit, replacing the skylight while we have the flashing open is usually smarter than resealing. Old acrylic domes get brittle in our UV and crack easily.

If the skylight unit is in good shape, we reflash it and leave it. Removing a skylight altogether and closing the hole is also an option some homeowners choose, and we can do that with framing, decking and roofing to match.

• Cracked or crazed acrylic dome
• Yellowed or fogged lens
• Failed frame seals on older units
• Option to remove and roof over the opening

When to call about skylight leak repair

Skylights on Long Beach mid-century homes

Skylights are common on the mid-century homes of Long Beach. The Cliff May homes in Rancho Estates and many 1950s ranch homes in Los Altos, the Plaza and El Dorado Park Estates were built or remodeled with skylights, often old acrylic domes on low-slope roofs. Low slopes drain slowly, so water sits around the curb longer, and decades of UV have made many of those domes brittle.

Near the coast, salt air rusts the metal frames and flashing on older skylights. And because rain is rare most of the year, many skylight leaks only show up in the first big winter storm. Checking skylights during the dry months is a smart move for homes with older units.