Sorry to say, your perceptions do not match my reality. I have fixed skylights so no moving parts. They slip over a curb so there really is no way they can leak unless they are damaged. Perhaps different plastics are used in this part of the country given our extreme UV exposure, but the ones on the house are over 20 YO at this point and not a bother on them. Never had to mess with cleaning around them as they do not catch debris at the curb. Mine are sealed to the house very well and I've not experienced any significant heat loss (or cooling as the case may be). I will say the only downside to them is they do let in heat in the summer but I've found that heat generally stays up in the recessed ceiling where they are located and haven't really noticed the heat migrating lower into the rooms where they are located.
As for LED fake lightwell, whatever floats your boat. It'll be a forever cost and I personally haven't found any LED's that mimic the sun very well (nor the movement of clouds/shade etc...which is a nice effect under the skylights).
Good Luck.
The commercial skylights I worked on had plastic which crumbled in your hands or sealant which looked like alligator skin. They all fail and can be fatal if anyone steps on them. Maybe someday transparent aluminum will exist like Star Trek promised.
Actually, I have set up two aquariums which simulate moonlight, clouds, and rising and setting sun with LEDs and a little board. Movies fake this stuff too. I have seen a bedroom which fakes constellations fairly well. I am sure some commercial space or some celebrity fakes all kinds of stuff. I know a fireplace store which fakes a fire so well people hold their hands up for warmth. They use a colored light which ramps brightness up and down, a pc fan, and some flimsy fabric.
Everything fails at some point. The question is what sort of longevity are you willing to live with? You got 30 years out of your skylights....considering roofs aren't lasting more than about 10-15 anymore, I'd say you did pretty well. I just talked to a peer here at work....his are 45 years old and not a leak to be seen. Now, I didn't consider it before but I suspect many who have issues have pitched roofs. We have flat roofs here so probably explains why we really don't see many leaks here.
And if someone is willing to haul a ladder to my garage, break out a skylight, and drop 15' to the concrete below, well, they probably won't be carrying too much out of there!
Cheers.
They break in through skylight. Escape through fire code required emergency exit. If your tool collection is like mine, a thief, once in, could break out, tear down the building, and build it again if so inclined.
Seasonal Affective Disorder is a real condition. You might know it as the winter blues. For some people it gets quite bad. For others, its incapacitating.
There have been hundreds of studies done on SAD and it's causes and cures. One thing for sure is that it has partly to do with the way sunlight changes throughout the year, affecting a human's circadian rhythm (what makes your sleep cycle work). In a nutshell, Shorter days =Less sunlight =you feel blue. People that spend long hours under artificial light experience SAD at a much higher rate.
You cant "fake daylight" with artificial light. It's not the same thing. Ever eat a fake apple? Daylight changes in color and intensity all throughout the day and changes angles all throughout the year. It's not the same at dawn as it is at noon as it is at dusk. It's not the same in summer as it is in winter.
Your body notices this.
The attachment to daylight is physiological, not emotional.
There actually ARE light sources that can be used as treatment for those that experience SAD. Light therapy is the number one treatment. But those sources aren't what you would use to light your garage.
Unless you decide to go full-on moleman, and never pop your head out into the outerworld again, I'd say that this statement is a bit of an over-reach.
I hope some of this helps. I'm glad to hear that you can work with the overheads open to let some light in.
Good luck,
CD
If I move to someplace which has winters longer than two weeks, I will worry about SAD. Aquariums fake daylight length, intensity, clouds, moonlight, lightning storms. I am very sure somebody with an Arduino has put together a very convincing "The Time Machine" rapid daylength simulating coffee table.
The skylights I used to replace were on hotels and office buildings of every height and roof shape and composition you can imagine. Property owners used to hover and whine about history of repairs and expenses. Most of them were 30 yo. Some were 3 yo.
No windows - security weak spot and use valuable wall space.
2 Velux rooflights in my workshop - fantastic for light and ventilation.
All skylights leak. They may not leak now but they will in the future.
The ones in our 30+ year old town home association were replaced due to excessive maintenance costs for repairs over the course of years. The association paid for this work as roofs are common elements. Some people opted for remove the skylight when the roof was replaced.
Many people attempt to build a highly insulated energy efficient garage but then they install a big hole in the roof and install a poor insulator called a skylight. Makes no sense.
Plus it is not hard to climb on a garage roof, bust open the skylight, drop down into the garage and open the doors from the inside and steal your stuff.
If you need light during a power outage, install an emergency battery operated light.
Finally! ! A man after my own heart! I forgot about thieves. I had a client who was sucessfully sued by a thief who broke his leg in a 30 foot fall.
IME, ain't no such thing...
