VELUX Sun Tunnel Before and After: What a difference!

Check out why a VELUX Sun Tunnel is a great and inexpensive option for a windowless or dark room with before and after photos.

*This post is sponsored by VELUX Skylights who provided me with a Sun Tunnel for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The first time I saw our house and fell in love with an extra space for a home office, I was sold! But the spare room pretty much looked like a cave with no windows. My realtor suggested installing Sun Tunnels as a cost effective way to bring in natural light.

I wasn’t sure what a Sun Tunnel was so I started researching right away. I had read lots of great reviews on friends’ blogs about VELUX Skylights so I knew I wanted to use the reputable brand. Sixteen months after moving in we finally have natural light in the space. What was the darkest room in the house is now the brightest!! I can’t believe what a difference it makes.

*Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see what a Sun Tunnel is and why I chose a Sun tunnel vs a skylight.

What really put the Sun Tunnel installation into action was the New Year New Room Refresh Challenge. This five week challenge to refresh a space was the perfect opportunity to finally create the office of my dreams. After talking to a local VELUX skylight installer I decided on a 14 inch Sun Tunnel with a light kit.

The Sun Tunnel was the first thing in my home office design plan. I wanted to give you more information about this wonderful home improvement now that the room is complete with a good before and after so you can see what this amazing Sun Tunnel can do!

Here is the room when we walked through during inspection. As you can see the living room lights were on and the sun streams in from the left but the “bonus” room was still completely dark. I started the room makeover by installing interior french doors to block out all of the “loving conversations” between the kiddos and tv noise and to add more architectural interest.

The Sun Tunnel with a light kit was next to be installed. It replaced the outdated semi-flush light fixture and can still be used as a ceiling light at night. The sudden abundance of natural light made the rest of the room makeover so much easier.

Fast forward three weeks with the addition of moulding, wallpaper, built in desks, and many other fun details, here is the final office reveal highlighting the new Sun Tunnel skylight. It is just absolutely more than I could have imagined. It’s so nice to be able to walk into the office in the mornings to work and not have to turn on a single light.

What a difference! I can’t wait to start my day in this beautiful space and I feel so much happier with all the natural Sun Tunnel light compared to the gloomy space I’ve been working in the past year. The slim and modern Sun Tunnel looks so much better than the previous outdated light fixture and of course there’s no comparing the benefit of natural light.

The other side of the room is a sitting area perfect for reading and lounging. The kids and I are spending so much more time here. It’s so wonderful to have an extra bright and usable space.

What is a Sun Tunnel?

Now on to the nitty gritty. You may have been following along the New Year New Room Refresh challenge or perhaps you landed here to see what a Sun Tunnel is all about. A Sun Tunnel is a highly reflective metal tube that acts as a mirror to reflect and channel light. It connects between your ceiling with a diffuser and roof with a weather proof globe.

Sun Tunnel vs Skylight

So why did I choose a Sun Tunnel vs a skylight?

• First, the size of the room. At roughly 10 x 11 feet I knew 1-2 Sun Tunnels would be sufficient for the small room. Sun Tunnels take up very little space on your roof and ceiling and minimize heat gain in the summer and heat loss in the winter.
• The installation of a Sun Tunnel is much quicker than a sky light. The Sun Tunnel doesn’t require significant renovations. My installer worked by himself and had the VELUX 14 inch Sun Tunnel with light kit installed in about 3 hours.
• The cost is much less for a Sun Tunnel. I’m usually working on a tight budget so knowing that I could have natural light for under $1000 was definitely appealing! Plus savings from using natural light instead of electricity will help us recoup the the cost in no time.

If you have a windowless space or a dark bathroom, closet, or hallway don’t wait 16 months like I did. Installing a Sun Tunnel could be the perfect solution for you!! If you are wanting to bring natural light to a bigger space, read about the benefits of installing a “no-leak” VELUX skylight and check out the VELUX installer locator.

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