DAYLIGHTING SYSTEMS: A Solatube installation review

Earlier this Summer, GetWithGreen.com selected a Solatube Model 160 DS Daylighting System for a residential hallway installation. A daylighting system was selected because a dimly lit hallway constantly required energy consumption for lighting — even during daytime hours.

Solatube was selected by GetWithGreen.com because of the sheer amount of clear information on the company’s and reseller’s website, and because it was so easy to find the product locally. It’s now time to update you on the install, and our final opinion of this specific daylighting system.

The Solatube 160 DS installation was a snap. Our GetWithGreen.com contractor installed the daylighting system within 90 minutes, and if you use a Solatube dealer this time could likely fall well below an hour! Our installation did require the wiring of electricity to the daylighting system, so that it could be used during the night as a light as well.

So what happened to the once dark hallway?? The hallway is now brilliantly bright during the day, and often glowing with moonlight in the evenings. GetWithGreen.com did use both a diffuser AND a softening lense for the installation because the light coming through the Solatube was too bright at first!! In addition the light was very white, and not as soft as a traditional incandescent bulb. The diffuser and the softening lenses took care of this. (Special thanks to Marjorie at Sunlight Concepts for allowing GetWithGreen to sample the various diffusers and softening lenses!) Should you still want to tone down the light, or perhaps change the color of the light, you might be able to use a colored gel to further alter the color and mood of your daylighting system — but this has not been confirmed by Solatube.

It does take time to get used to a new daylighting system. For weeks following your daylighting system install you will reach for a light switch because you will think a light has been left on!! You may also feel it is too bright, but we urge you to give it a few weeks. You will grow accustomed and fall further in love with your free and environmentally friendly light source.

GetWithGreen.com gives daylighting systems two green thumbs up!! In our opinion, the Solatube daylighting system performs beyond expectations, and Marjorie at Sunlight Concepts (our dealer) was amazing to work with. If you are considering one of these systems, GetWithGreen.com urges you to take the plunge. If you haven’t considered a daylighting system before, then take note and check out these incredibly eco-friendly products for lighting your home!!!

Read more about Daylighting Systems on GetWithGreen.com.

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