ᐅ Roof windows: should they always have a ventilation feature?

My new roof is ready to be installed soon. Everything is settled, and I don’t plan any changes except possibly one.

The roof is 14m (46 feet) long. About 7m (23 feet) of the new roof will be designed as an open rafter roof structure.
The hallway in the apartment is approximately 5m (16 feet) long, and 2 to 3m (7 to 10 feet) of it fall under the area of the open rafter roof.
Normally, my hallway doesn’t have a window, but since the hallway to the roof area is now open (previously an attic or partly attic), I’m considering installing one or two roof windows near the ridge to bring natural daylight into the hallway.
For ventilation, I also find one or two roof windows in this location very practical.
I’m less worried about dirt buildup because there would hardly be any roof or roof tiles above the window.
If I install the roof windows, they would face north. I assume that no external shading would be necessary in this case?
Since it’s “only” the hallway, I don’t think roof windows with, for example, solar control film would significantly increase heat in the rest of the apartment.
To give an idea of their size, the roof windows would be around 2 to 3m² (22 to 32 ft²) in area.

What do you think about this idea?

At what height (measured from the hallway floor) would the roof windows be installed? Would they need to be operated remotely? How would you clean them? These are the first questions that came to my mind.

From the floor, it should be about 3 meters (10 feet). Therefore, the windows can only be opened electrically via a switch or remote control. A ladder will be needed for cleaning.

Is an opening even necessary? I see this more as purely a source of natural light.

No, an opening is not strictly necessary.
I was just considering having an opening to ventilate the apartment properly.
I have lived in two attic apartments before, both insulated in the 1970s. They were always very warm in summer, so any window that could be opened was definitely a blessing.
If you have windows at the top that can be opened, it would certainly be very practical to get the heat out of the apartment.

However, the apartment is undergoing a complete renovation, and currently, an additional roof insulation layer will be added according to the latest plans.
Although everyone says that heat buildup will basically no longer be an issue then, I’m still somewhat skeptical. 🙂

garfunkel schrieb:

What do you think about this idea?

If it’s only about lighting, I would use a daylight spotlight in your case; the cost is comparable to that of a good double casement window.

If ventilation is the issue, then _only_ an electrically operable double casement window; this way, you can also let the heat escape. How you will manage cleaning it is, of course, another matter ;-)



Bauexperte