What the light survey is for
A rooflight survey in Cambridge with us is a visit to the room, not only the roof: we look at where you want the light, how you use the space and what the sun will do on that slope through the year.
Most skylight surveys measure the opening and check the roof covering. We do that too, but the part that decides whether you will be happy in five years is the light itself. A south slope over a Romsey kitchen extension gives very different daylight from a north slope over a loft bedroom in Chesterton, and a lantern over the wrong end of a room leaves the table in shade while the hob sits in full sun. The survey is where we work that out on your actual house, before anything is priced or cut.
You can book a skylight survey in Cambridge or anywhere within about 30 miles, for a new opening, a larger or different unit, or a tired older rooflight you want to replace. Use the form on this page, or message us on WhatsApp with a rough idea of the room and a photo or two of the roof.
What happens on the day
The visit follows four steps in a fixed order, so that the light decisions come before the product decisions.
- Light survey. We measure the room, note which way the roof faces and its pitch, and look at what is in the roof above.
- Light plan and quote. A drawing of where the glass goes and where the light will fall, with a written quote agreed before the roof is opened.
- Installation. The opening is formed and trimmed, the unit fitted and flashed, then lined and made good inside.
- Sign-off and guarantee. A final walk-round, then your 10-year workmanship guarantee and the product paperwork handed over.
- Building Control notification, where the work is notifiable: we handle the notification to Building Control, and the completion certificate is sent to you.
- The room and how you use it. We stand where you cook, work or sit and ask what time of day matters. A breakfast table wants early east light; a home office wants steady light with no glare on the screen; a bedroom wants darkness at 5am in June.
- Orientation and the sun path. We take a compass bearing on the slope or the flat roof, note the pitch, and check what shades it: a neighbour's two-storey rear wing, a tall hedge, a chimney stack. On flat land around Cambridge there are few hills to cut the sun, so orientation carries more weight here than in a hilly town.
- The roof and the structure. We measure rafter or joist spacing, the build-up of a flat roof, the condition of the covering, the headroom inside and any party wall or boundary nearby, since those limit where an opening can go under the Building Regulations.
- Rules and consents. We note whether the house sits in a conservation area, whether it is listed and whether the slope faces a road. That shapes the product choice, for example a flush conservation rooflight on a front slope.
Expect the visit to take around an hour for a single rooflight, longer for a loft with several roof windows or an extension with a large lantern. It helps if you have any architect drawings or planning documents to hand, but they are not required.
What the written light plan contains
After the visit you receive a short written light plan: the position, size, glass and shading we recommend, with the reason for each written next to it.
The plan is deliberately brief, usually a page or two. It is meant to be read at the kitchen table and argued with if you disagree. It covers the decisions below.
| Decision | What the plan states |
|---|---|
| Position | Where the opening sits and where the light patch will fall |
| Size | Unit dimensions and why larger is or is not better here |
| Type | Lantern, flat rooflight, roof window or sun tunnel |
| Glass | Double or triple, solar control, laminated inner pane |
| Shading and venting | Blinds, opening or electric operation, rain sensor |
| Consents | Building Control, planning or listed building consent |
Where the choice is close, the plan says so. A west-facing loft room, for example, could take a larger roof window with solar control glass and an external awning blind, or a smaller unit placed lower on the slope. We set out both and say which we would pick. If you want to understand the thinking behind these calls, how we plan the light explains orientation, glare and heat in more depth.
How the fixed written quote follows
The quote is built from the light plan, line by line, so the price matches the thing you agreed and nothing is left to be decided on the day.
Alongside the plan you receive a written quote that names the unit, the glass specification, the upstand or kerb for a flat roof, the flashing kit for a pitched roof, the internal lining and plastering, and making good. It also states whether the work is notifiable, and where it is, that we handle the Building Control notification. Scaffolding or access equipment is itemised, as is removal of any old unit. For general ranges and what moves a price up or down, see our skylight and rooflight costs guide; the survey is what turns those ranges into a real figure for your roof.
Every installation is carried out to current Building Regulations and backed by our 10-year workmanship guarantee, which covers the installation work itself. The quote is yours to keep and compare. There is no pressure to decide on the day, and we would rather you took a week and chose well.
Which jobs the survey covers
Every service we offer starts with the same survey, whether it is one roof window or a whole extension roof.
- A roof lantern or flat roof rooflight over a kitchen or garden room extension.
- Roof windows in a loft conversion, including escape units.
- A misted or failed rooflight you want to replace with a better-specified unit.
- A sun tunnel for a windowless landing, hallway or bathroom.
For a replacement, the survey also checks whether the new unit can use the existing opening or whether a size change would put the light somewhere more useful. Sometimes the old skylight was simply in the wrong place, and a replacement is the moment to move it.
Before you book
A few details in the form help us come prepared, and none of them are essential.
Tell us your postcode, the room, and which way you think the roof faces if you know. A photo of the roof from the garden and one of the ceiling inside are useful. If you are part-way through an extension or loft design, say who the architect or builder is, since the installation has to fit around their programme. We cover Cambridge and the towns and villages around it, and we reply by email or WhatsApp to arrange a time that suits you.
