Lighting a landing via skylight

[Lobster]

I want to get some natural light into an internal landing. There's very little space above the bedroom doors which could be used for glass window; and I don't fancy half-glazed doors; so the following occurred to me...

The landing has an access hatch into the loft. How about I replace the MDF trapdoor (it just drops in) with a timber frame, holding a pane of toughened, frosted glass? Or a double-glazed unit for better insulation? I then install a skylight in the tiled roof above the hatch. I could attach a couple of sheets of white-painted hardboard to the attic wall above the hatch, to help reflect light down.

Is this a totally stupid idea, or a good one?! I can see it might get grubby easily, and heat loss could be an issue.

I remember you used to see glass roof tiles - are these still around and could they be used simply to replace normal tiles? I wouldn't want a swish Velux window (wouldn't need it to open) - are there cheapie, easy-to-install fixed skylights available?

TIA David

[Andrew Mawson]

Acrylic translucent tiles are certainly available in the 'Redland 49' concrete tile style but are rather expensive at £10 each.

Don't forget that you will need to remove any underfelting.

Andrew Mawson

[Peter Parry]

Have a look at light pipes such as

[Paul King]

You might need planning permission and building regs approval too :-(

Paul

[Anne Jackson]

The message from [e-mail] (Lobster) contains these words:

A lady I work for had a similar arrangement built into her new bungalow. A Velux window in the roof, and below that a double-glazed "skylight" built into the floor of her attic, brings a lot of natural light into an internal hallway. It works well.

[John Armstrong]

[jacob]

Yes good idea - not unusual - quite often done in larger victorian or georgian houses. You would need access to clean both sky lights.You would also gain a light roof space/attic.

Cheers

Jacob