Skylights are a form of window. They fill in an open space to let in light, and depending upon the type, air. They have become fashionable in various times of history. Many new homes and institutions in places such as Wisconsin are featuring skylights. However, in some older buildings, the need for skylight repair has resulted instead in replacement or removal of this feature. This is a shame since skylights are a venerable and even beautiful architectural feature of the past.
Skylights: A Brief History
Skylights can be dated at least back to Ancient Rome. The architecture of the period of the Pantheon – (constructed between 118 and 125 AD), featured an open skylight. Called an “oculus” for eye, this engineering gem was the largest of its kind. Prior to the Pantheon, no one had successfully created such an immense skylight.
It was a feature commonly present in later Byzantine and Neoclassical architecture. A feature in Syrian structures in the 5th, 6th and 10 centuries, it also had a strong presence in Myrelaion Church (c. 920) in Constantinople. During the Neoclassical period, this form of skylight made a reappearance. This specific style remains today in many modern structures including the Ann Hamilton Tower by Jensen Architects, in Geyserville, California.
However, today’s skylights are not exact replicas of occuli. While an oculus tends to be round and sits atop a dome, skylights are a variety of shapes and adorn roofs of homes and the tops of various structures. Open to the elements is also not essential. In fact, today’s skylights have been “closed” since the manufacturers of the Industrial Revolution began to produce glass more efficiently and economically. Son every Victorian and post-Victorian row house boasted a skylight This soon gave birth to thriving skylight repair services, a trade continuing into the present.
In the United States, skylights became more popular briefly after Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), the third president of the United States, installed several in Monticello. These older style specialized windows performed as they do today, adding light and even saving energy. The latter is one reason many are adding skylights to their homes. New builds see them as an opportunity to make a house more energy efficient. Industries, shopping centers and schools cite the addition of natural daylight as providing positive benefits e.g. increased retail shopping, improved class performance.
Skylight Repair
Older skylights were open to the elements. Later ones featured glazing. Glass panes within wooden frames followed suit. Metal frames followed. Today, technology is different. While some shops in Wisconsin continue to provide skylight repair to the older wooden examples, others remove and replace these relics of the past with sturdier, more weatherproof frames and double-pane glass.
If you are looking for reliable and high quality Skylight Repair Wisconsin, your best option is the W. L. Hall Company. Their team of innovative and talented experts works hard to provide their clients with some of the most inventive and utmost quality exterior and interior building systems. Their wide assortment of product types is matched in worth and reliability only by the quality of their installation and follow-up services. For more information about what the company and its professionals can do for you,