DAYLIGHTLiving rooms Kitchens Hallways Bathrooms & more

Off icially the brightest sun tubeThe UK’s only independent test report

Put daylight on the menu in your kitchen

Solarspot, daylight solutions for

Windowless

bathrooms & en suites

Gloomy hallways

Dark landings

Solarspot, delivering natural light into the heart of your home - more light, guaranteed

Put daylight on the menu and brighten up your kitchen

Hallways, landings and stairs

The kitchen is now the heart of the home and yet a surprising number of kitchens get short-changed when it comes to natural light. Ironically this is often the result of an attempt to improve the kitchen with an extension or renovation.

In our first example, a recently refurbished kitchen in the Harrogate area, the home owners had taken all of the usual steps to brighten the room to the levels they desired. White walls, pale units, shiny surfaces and a multitude of spot lights, but the large north-facing window simply wasn’t able to deliver enough natural light.

Whilst the house in question was a two storey building, one side of the kitchen was a single storey extension making it a perfect candidate for the installation of a pair of Solarspots. The home owner had already installed a couple of sun pipes in another room several years ago so had an idea of what could be achieved. But rather than just buy more of

the same, he decided to research the market to ensure that he was buying the latest technology to deliver the brightest results.

Having decided on a pair of Solarspot D-38s as the best product for the job, the systems were installed by the local Solarspot dealer, and despite a small amount of joinery work required to fit the 375mm diameter units into the roof, the job was completed in a day.

This simple yet elegant kitchen is now bathed in natural light from dawn ‘til dusk and the owners have the room that they had always wanted.

“From the moment I made contact with Solarspot they were most helpful by simply listening to my requirements. Their knowledge of the products and installation made it easy for me to make my choice to have two D-38 Solarspot tubes fitted in the kitchen. The installation was carried out without a hitch, and when completed, any mess was cleaned

away efficiently by the Solarspot installer.

“I would not hesitate in recommending Solarspot products.”

In our second example; a long, narrow, bungalow kitchen had plenty of natural light at one end, with a glass door and window, but the other end of the room told a different story. The kitchen table was located away from the window and the owners needed to turn on the lights whenever they sat down to eat or read.

After some research on the web, the owners decided to resolve the problem with a single Solarspot D-25, 250mm diameter system, installed directly above the table. The dome is located on an east facing roof so even when the sun passes over the house, and no longer comes in through the window, plenty of light is still captured from above and transferred in to the kitchen below.

“This simple solution has transformed the end of our kitchen into a bright space to sit and eat”

Above Two Solarspot D-38 sun tube systems brighten up this, previously gloomy, kitchen and transform it into a bright place to sit and eat.

Below A single Solarspot D-25 brings daylight to the far end of this kitchen diner.

Above A single Solarspot D-38 floods this large galleried landing with daylight

Right This bungalow hallway is transformed with a Solarspot D-25 system.

Whether by evolution or design, halls and landings are usually at the back of the queue for windows. Dark halls and landings are at best depressing, at worst dangerous. However, the future of these is areas can be significantly brighter with the addition of a Solarspot tubular skylight.

Installation of a Solarspot usually takes only a matter of hours and there’s no need to redecorate afterwards. The effects are immediate and the results always surprise and delight our customers.

“Familiar problem, our stairs and landing had no natural light so we just wedged the doors open all day. The Solarspot D-38 light pipe was fitted in approximately 4 hours.

“The transformation is remarkable and the system was fitted in December so we can’t wait to see how it looks when we get into spring! The stairs and landing now has light flooding in, the result is better than expected.

“We would recommend this solution to others with a dark area issue.”

Light at the end of the tunnelBungalow hallways are notoriously dark. Locked within the heart of the building the only way to allow daylight in, for most people, is to leave the internal doors open. Hardly an ideal solution, and not great for energy efficiency. This was precisely the case for the owner of this Letchworth bungalow.

“I’d put up with the situation for years, just relying on borrowed light from the other rooms. After visiting a home show and seeing one there I decided to take some action. After some research and a few phone calls, the installer arrived and fitted the Solarspot in a morning.”

Because the hallway is only relatively small, a Solarspot D-25 was selected to light the space. This compact unit is capable of illuminating spaces up to 12 square

meters, around 150 square feet.“The moment the tubes were

connected the light just flooded in. I can’t quite believe the difference. I no longer need to leave all of my doors open, which looks so much neater and saves money on my heating bills.

“I also took the opportunity to have an electric light kit fitted in the tube so that I can also use the same unit when it gets dark. The ceiling is much neater, and I don’t have to dust the cobwebs from the old lampshade.”

“…our extension had robbed the living room of natural light… the addition of the Solarspot has actually made the room brighter than it was originally…”

With the cost of moving at an all-time-high, extending the home is often the first choice for house holders needing more living space. Ground floor extensions and conservatories seem the obvious answer for those needing more space but there can a consequence that is only discovered when the work is complete.

As the walls and windows of the house are pushed out, the original rooms can be left dark and gloomy.

The main picture, and the one immediately below, shows the before-and-after of exactly this scenario. In the process of adding vital space to this 1960’s bungalow, the original living room was robbed of natural light making it dark and un-welcoming.

The addition of a single Solarspot D-38 has transformed the space making is a bright place to sit and relax. The customer also had a smaller D-25 system fitted in their interior bathroom. Both systems were fitted in around six hours with no mess or fuss.

The Solarspot D-38 has a diameter of 375mm, approximately 15 inches, and is capable of lighting spaces of up to 22 square meters. For larger spaces, multiple systems can be employed to provide the desired levels of natural light.

With patented technologies and unrivalled performance in the 325-425mm sun tube sector, the

So how does it work?The tecky bitThe principle of a sun tube is very simple; an opening on the roof that allows light to enter, then a reflective pipe which can be flexible or rigid, and at the bottom a diffuser to spread the light evenly around the room.

At the top - the domeAll systems must use a flat panel or dome to protect them from the elements, and some systems - notably Solarspot - actually use patented technologies to capture light to improve the performance of the system. All Solarspot systems use a dome with RIR® ‘light funnel’ technology to harvest and direct light into the tube so that more can be delivered to the room below. Solarspot systems also feature a secondary lens in the dome to protect the system from cold and condensation.

Dining rooms Beech Cottage, in the picturesque village of Kirriemuir in Angus is the pride and joy of its owners and yet one area stopped it from being their perfect bungalow. The dining room was located between the kitchen and sun lounge and had no windows of its own.

The room was more than just a space to sit and eat, it was the main area of the house for a range of activities that all required electric lighting even on the brightest days. The owner had installed a system that he’d purchased from the internet but the results were disappointing. Following some further research the old system was replaced with a larger Solarspot unit and the difference was immediate and impressive.

“…The objective was to raise the natural light level over the dining table to as near as possible to that which we have in the kitchen and the conservatory. I am pleased to report that our objective has been achieved, the increased natural light intensity for reading, and just for living, will be appreciated each and every day. Thank you.”

Solarspot® D-38 - maximum daylight delivery for living rooms, dining rooms and studies.

Left This living room is beautifully lit by a Solarspot D-38 sun tube transforming it from a dark corner into a bright place to sit and read.

Below left The old living room before the Solarspot was fitted.

In the middle - the tube These vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and vary greatly in quality and efficiency. At the cheap end of the market there are the flexible systems; easy to fit but only around 4% efficient. Solarspot systems use a rigid tube with a reflective value of 99.7% - the most reflective material in the world with efficiency levels that achieve 55-57% - greatly superior to any other sun tube on the market with the ‘next-best’ achieving figures of only 43%.

See back page for more information

At the bottom - the diffuserAt the bottom of the tube is the diffuser. This does four jobs; protects the tube from dust and dirt, shields against UV rays, prevents the transfer cold or hot air and, of course, distributes the light evenly around the room.

Solarspot D-38 is the sun tube system that sets the standard for larger residential and small office spaces. To find out more you can read a summary of the independent BRE report on the back page of this brochure and see the difference for yourself.

If you suffer from a dark, windowless bathroom you are not alone. As there are no regulations concerning natural light in bathrooms, they are frequently left without windows.

When homes are extended the bathroom is often enveloped by other rooms that take priority for daylight, and even if there is a window, it’s the size of postcard, uses obscured glass and faces the neighbour’s house a few feet away. All of which make it virtually redundant as a source of useful daylight.

However, help is at hand. As long as there is space above your bathroom or en suite, the installation of a Solarspot daylight pipe is relatively straightforward and the days of the black-hole bathroom can be banished forever.

The Solarspot D-25 is the perfect choice for most en suites and bathrooms. Despite being only 250mm (10 inches) in diameter, the Solarspot D-25 is able to provide enough light for spaces up to 12 square meters. The system is small enough to fit through even the narrowest standard joist gaps and is effective up to 6m in length.

Fitting is straightforward and can be done as a DIY project for the competent among you. Alternatively why not use one of our registered installers? Systems are installed in one day with no mess or need for redecoration. They take the stress out of the process for you and all work is guaranteed.

“The light tube was installed in less than a day, and instead of a bathroom that looked like a black hole I now have a proper room with daylight. Not only is the bathroom bright and more welcoming but the landing also looks brighter. I cannot express my total delight at the transformation...”

Bathrooms, en suites and shower rooms

Above On the roof, the Solarspot flashing sits neatly into the tiles to give a leak-proof installation.

Right This bathroom also utilises an integrated light kit so that the tube can be used when it’s dark.

Top right A 20 sqm meeting room is lit by one Solarspot D-53 with a square diffuser.Above This small office is lit with a 5m long Solarspot D-38.

The applications for Solarspot daylight systems don’t just apply to the home. Any room that needs natural light and has a route through to outside, via the roof or walls can benefit from a Solarspot daylight tube.

Office conversion Milton KeynesAs the cost of new-build increases,

the trend of converting redundant manufacturing facilities into modular office space has never been more popular. However, the nature of these buildings necessitates that large areas within the centre are unable to have windows. The i:Centre in Milton Keynes is an example of this very common problem.

The building houses 78 self-contained office suites of which around 60% have windows no to let in daylight. On the first floor, internal offices and meeting rooms are able to benefit from natural light delivered into the heart of the building by 5m long Solarspot systems that pipe light from the roof straight down to the areas below.

The advantages of lighting these internal offices with natural light

are not just limited to the reduced use of electric lighting and the resultant saving in energy costs. Occupants of these areas report an improvement in overall well-being. Eye strain and general tiredness are reduced, common complaints from those who work exclusively under artificial light.

When the internal light levels (just using the electric lights) are constant throughout the day; with no change in the light levels, regardless of the time of the year, or even time of the day, staff found the experience generally disorientating. With the Solarspot systems installed, they regained their connection with the outside world. On dull days they may need to supplement the natural light with some electric lighting,

but on bright days their offices were bathed in daylight, reflecting the external conditions.

Solarspot daylight systems are used worldwide in a wide variety of applications. Warehouses, office buildings, schools, colleges and hospitals in countries from France to China have all benefitted from the superior light delivery that only Solarspot can bring. If you would like more information on Solarspot commercial applications, please call us on 01908 299117 today.

“It’s difficult to believe that the whole of our office can be lit through a single 5m long pipe. The office is bright even on cloudy days. And when the sun is out, the effect in the office is stunning”

Offices and light commercial applications

OK, so you’ve decided that you need more natural light in your home and a sun tube looks like your best option. The problem is, which one do you choose? Cheap or expensive, rigid or flexible, the choice is mind boggling. Do you take a punt on that cheap system and hope for the best, or take a more scientific approach to ensure that you get the right system for your home.

To help see through all of the sales jargon and techno-speak, we asked the Building Research Establishment (BRE) to test the Solarspot system against the comparable offerings from Monodraught and Solatube. The results from this highly respected and independent body should give you all the information that you need when deciding on which tubular daylight system is right for you and your home.

The BRE tested our Solarspot D-38 against the equivalent sized products from Solatube® and Sunpipe® and the results were pretty conclusive. The efficiency (brightness) of the Solarspot was shown to be 57% versus 40% and 43% (respectively) for the other two.

So how much extra light you will get? Comparing the Solarspot with the Solatube; in a side-by-side installation, the Solarspot D-38 will deliver around 69% more light than the Solatube 290DS.

Conclusive proof that if you want to ensure the maximum amount of natural light for your home, the brightest choice is Solarspot.

So why is the performance of the Solarspot significantly greater than that of its rivals? It’s all in the technology:

The Solarspot® domeThe dome is completely clear, allowing the maximum amount of light to enter the tube without interference from ‘so-called’ light harvesting prismatic lenses which can actually block out more daylight than they capture.

RIR™ Light FunnelTo maximise light capture in the Solarspot, we use our patented RIR light funnel technology. At the begining and end of the day, the RIR reflects low-level light into the system. As the sun gets higher in the sky, or on overcast days (this is the UK after all), there are no obstructions to light entering the top of the tube – maximising light capture in all weather conditions.

Vegalux® light transfer technologyWith an unsurpassed light reflectivity of 99.7%, our Vegalux extension tubes are able to deliver more light, over longer distances, than any other tubular daylight system.

Buying with confidence - more light for your home No other system will deliver as much light to your home through an equivalent size or length of pipe, and that’s a fact.

Solarspot is the only system that offers you such a complete package of patented light capture and delivery technology, making it Europe’s number one system for maximum daylight delivery.

Officially brighter.Independent BRE test results show the brightest sun tube is the Solarspot®

In conclusion – from the BRE report number 280962:Taking the 3 double/single glazed tubes, the Solarspot with Con-vas lens product had the highest transmittance, 0.57, compared to 0.43 for the Monodraught and 0.40 for the Solatube. In relative terms, it was 33% more effective than the Monodraught at transmitting light, and 44% more effective than the Solatube.

UK Distributor for Solarspot Daylighting Systems

Syneco Limited, Suite 138/A, The i:Centre, Howard Way, Interchange Park, Newport Pagnell MK16 9PY

T: 01908 299117 F: 01908 299124 E: solarspot@syneco.co.uk www.solarspot.co.uk

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450

- 43

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SOLA

TUBE

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- 40%

SOLA

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-38

- 57%

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10%