Velux & Skylights Reading

Roof Windows, Skylights and Dormers

A roof window — Velux is the best-known brand — sits flush in the roof slope and floods a loft, landing or top-floor room with natural light. Installation isn't just cutting a hole: the window must be structurally integrated into the rafters, flashed correctly into the surrounding tiles or slates, and made fully watertight. A poorly flashed roof window is a guaranteed leak, so the flashing kit and the tile integration are as important as the window itself.

Replacing an old or failed roof window is common work — the seals and mechanisms on older units degrade, leading to leaks, draughts or condensation between panes. A like-for-like replacement in the same aperture is straightforward; upgrading to a larger unit or a different type involves altering the rafter structure and the surrounding roof covering. We assess what's involved and price it honestly rather than quoting a swap and hitting you with extras.

Dormer windows are a bigger project — a structural box projecting from the roof slope with its own roof, cheeks and window, used to add headroom and light to a loft conversion. Dormer work spans roofing, structural and weatherproofing trades: the dormer roof (often flat, in EPDM or GRP), the cheek cladding or tiling, and the lead or flashing where it meets the main roof. We handle the roofing elements of dormer work and coordinate where needed.

Roof Windows Across Reading

Loft conversions and roof-light installations are widespread across Reading's family housing, and the roof type dictates the approach. On the concrete interlocking tile of the post-war estates — Woodley, Earley, Lower Earley, Tilehurst — Velux installation is straightforward, with standard flashing kits designed for these profiles. These properties, with their generous loft spaces, are where most of our roof window work happens, typically to light a loft conversion or an upgraded landing.

On the Victorian and Edwardian stock of Newtown, Katesgrove and Caversham, roof windows need more care. The steeper pitches and clay tile or slate coverings require the right flashing approach, and in conservation areas the visibility of a roof window from the street can be a planning consideration — a Velux on a rear slope is usually fine, but on a prominent front elevation in a conservation area it may need consent. We advise on the planning position before cutting anything.

Dormer work is concentrated where loft conversions are adding bedrooms — across the family suburbs of Reading where growing households are converting rather than moving. The 1930s and post-war stock in Tilehurst, Emmer Green, Woodley and Earley has the roof geometry that suits dormers, and we handle the roofing side: the dormer's flat roof in EPDM or GRP, the lead flashing where it ties into the main roof slope, and the weatherproofing that makes the conversion sound. Getting the junction between dormer and main roof right is where leaks are prevented or created.

Getting Light and Air Right in a Reading Loft

A roof window does two jobs — light and ventilation — and specifying for both is what makes a loft conversion or upgraded room genuinely comfortable rather than just brighter. Position and size govern the light: a window on a south or west-facing slope floods a room but can overheat it in summer without blinds or solar-control glazing, while a north-facing window gives steady, even light without glare. In a Reading loft conversion, we advise on orientation and size against the room's use, because the right window in the wrong place creates a greenhouse or a gloomy corner rather than the bright room the homeowner wanted.

Ventilation through a roof window matters especially in the well-sealed modern loft conversions common across Reading's family housing. A converted loft is a warm, occupied space directly under the roof, and without ventilation it accumulates the moisture and stuffiness that lead to condensation and poor air quality. An openable roof window provides the passive ventilation that keeps the space healthy, and where a loft room is used as a bedroom, the window may also need to meet the minimum openable dimensions for means of escape under Building Regulations — a detail a competent installer checks rather than discovers at sign-off.

The junction between the window and the roof is where installation quality shows, and it's specific to your roof covering. On the concrete interlocking tile of the post-war estates, the standard flashing kits integrate cleanly. On the plain clay tile or slate of Newtown, Katesgrove and Caversham's period stock, the flashing needs adapting to the smaller, flatter units and steeper pitch, and the tile cutting around the window has to be precise to stay watertight. Getting this junction right on the actual roof covering — rather than forcing a standard kit onto a covering it wasn't designed for — is what separates a watertight installation from a future leak.

Velux & Skylight Prices — Reading 2026

Indicative 2026 ranges for Reading. Dormer projects are priced individually following survey. All roof windows are flashed and made fully watertight. Figures include VAT.

Building Regulations require roof windows to meet specific requirements for structural opening, thermal performance and, where used as a means of escape, minimum openable dimensions — which is why a correctly installed roof light involves proper rafter integration and flashing, not simply fitting a unit into a cut aperture.

What Reading Homeowners Say

Do You Actually Need Flat Roofing?

A failing flat roof shows as pooling water, blisters, splits or damp appearing in the room below — most common on the ageing felt garages and extensions across Reading's estates.

• Ponding water that sits for days after rain
• Blisters, cracks or splits in the membrane
• Damp or staining on the ceiling of a room below a flat roof
• A felt roof over 15-20 years old
• Lifting or failed edge trims and flashings

When it is not the answer: If the deck is sound and the membrane is only locally damaged, a repair or overlay is the sensible fix — a full strip is oversell where the timber beneath is dry. Read the full guide.

What to Expect: Flat Roofing in Reading

Typical Timescales

GRP needs dry, mild conditions to cure — we schedule fibreglass work around the weather to avoid a compromised finish.

Access, Scaffolding & Permits in Reading

Most flat roofs are single-storey — ladder or tower access — so scaffold is rarely needed unless the roof abuts a second storey. Scaffold is specified for: flat roofs abutting a second storey, or where edge protection is required for a larger area - always itemised in your written quote, never a hidden extra, and we arrange it.

Reading's mix of Victorian terraces in Newtown and Katesgrove and post-war estate housing in Whitley and Lower Earley means access varies from tight terraced frontages to open estate driveways. Pavement scaffold and skip permits go through Reading Borough Council; allow a few working days on streets like Newtown terraces off the Oxford Road, the narrow streets of Katesgrove where space is tight.

What Flat Roofing Costs in Reading

What moves the price

• Roof size in square metres
• System chosen (EPDM vs GRP)
• Deck condition — reuse or replace
• Number of upstands, drains and penetrations
• Insulation requirement (heated space below)

Worked example: A failing felt garage roof on a 1970s Lower Earley property, deck sound, replaced in EPDM with new trims: around £1,150 including waste removal.

No deposit for garage and small extension roofs. Staged payment on larger jobs when materials arrive. All prices include VAT.

What the 10-Year Guarantee Actually Covers

The membrane carries a 20-year manufacturer guarantee; our workmanship on the installation is covered for 10 years in writing.

• Covered: workmanship for 10 years, in writing, transferable if you sell.
• On top: manufacturer warranties on materials (terms vary by product).
• Not covered: storm or impact damage - that is an insurance matter, and we will document it for your claim.

If a fault appears in covered work, we come back and put it right. No quibbling, no re-charge.

What It Is Like While We Work

Low-level work with minimal disruption — some fumes during GRP curing, so we keep the area ventilated and clear. You do not need to stay home for external work - we just need power and access agreed in advance.

EPDM can be laid in most conditions; GRP needs dry weather to cure properly, so we weather-plan fibreglass jobs. Thames Valley damp is well within both systems’ range once cured. Thames Valley humidity and the Kennet and Thames river corridors slow drying and accelerate moss, especially on north-facing slopes.

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