Make The Most Of Natural Light

Quick Facts Affordability Cost Savings CO2 Reduction The affordability measure is an average for the various things you can do to maximize daylight.		Daylight is by far the best light source. It is free, sustainable and can give a sense of energy and well-being. Some housing is not well designed to catch sunlight, but by making the most of the light that is available, you are likely to achieve some energy savings and create a more comfortable and healthy living space. Affordability The cost to maximize daylight will depend on the measures you decide to take. Rearranging furniture can be free, painting walls with lighter more reflective paint can be relatively inexpensive and installing light shelves or retrofitting windows and skylights require a more substantial investment. You can also harness the sun's natural energy with simple solar-powered lights to illuminate landscapes and paths. Cost savings Daylight is a valuable resource available for free every day. Maximizing your ability to use it will help you keep lights off during the day, saving you money by the minute. Health & comfort The role of interior daylight in increasing people’s productivity and satisfaction has been demonstrated in numerous studies. Daylight can also be a source of natural home heating in the winter. Use proper passive design techniques to ensure that daylight does not overheat your home in summer. Environmental considerations Using daylight does not require electricity generation, does not produce greenhouse gases emissions and it generally involves little to no product resource extraction, manufacturing or shipping.

What you need to know

To take full advantage of daylight may require costly renovations, but to use what is available to your best advantage can be quick and inexpensive. It can be useful to seek the advice of a designer with experience in passive solar, electrical and heating/cooling design techniques in order to get the most benefit from the least amount of work.

Disperse the light

A single south-facing window can illuminate 20 to 100 times its area. Dispersing light reduces heat and glare while reducing the use of overhead lighting. 

• You can adjust the angle of Venetian blinds to aim light where needed. Angling it toward the ceiling can reflect light downwards without causing significant heat gain. Blinds can also reduce unwanted heat and glare while making use of light.
• Paint walls and ceilings in light colours and use reflective sheens on ceilings.
• Solar lights or sky tubes are excellent for maximizing daylight and the technology of the reflector and reflectance of the tubes makes the amount of oncoming light very usable. In addition, they are much easier to install than a skylight 
• Install a light shelf to reflect light deeper into a large room, providing natural overhead light. Light shelves will also reduce glare and heat next to windows.

Rearrange

• Organize the floor plan of each room to take advantage of existing light and minimize glare and excess heat.
• Make the most of southern exposure. South facing windows tend to be great sources for light year round and offer beneficial heat effects. Lower angle winter sunlight will bring warmth and light through south facing windows. The summer sun is higher, so you can easily block direct light and the associated heat, but benefit from reflected daylight.
• A lot of reflected light can also come from the north, so don’t discount putting skylights or windows on the north side.
• Note that skylights in the south or west, as well as with windows in the west, will add much heat gain in the summer.

Taking it further

Make daylighting a priority in your next move or renovation.

• If you are planning a home reno or building a new house get a designer to you help you plan around the angle of the sun. Design additions so that they make maximum use of the sun’s light year-round. A little advance planning can mean years of energy savings in return.
• If you are moving or buying a home, look for southern exposure, which will maximize natural light benefits.

FAQ

Will using daylight fade my furniture and flooring?
Direct sunlight will fade fabrics and other materials, but there are ways to minimize damage. Indirect or low angle winter sunlight is much more gentle and while it will eventually fade fabric, it will likely take years of exposure.

Where you have direct light, you can use blinds to direct it upwards. By reflecting the light upwards, it can bounce off the ceiling and provide overhead light. For windows that receive direct sunlight in summer, there are window shades or tints, you can apply to your windows that reduce the light coming in and protect fabrics. Some are removable, allowing you maximize both heat and light benefits year-round. ENERGY STAR-approved windows are another great way to benefit from natural light without gaining unwanted heat or damaging your furniture. See our Shade Your Windows tip in Home Cooling for more information

Another way to maximize daylight year-round is to plant a deciduous tree, which will filter the direct light in summer, but drop its leaves and allow more light to enter in the winter.

There isn’t much sun here in the winter. How would daylight make a difference?
Daylight doesn’t have to be bright sunlight to make a difference. In fact, direct sunlight can be too hot in the summer or can cause glare. A few hours of winter light in the north or in a rainy coastal region is worth catching and people living in these areas benefit from maximizing their exposure to daylight. Make the most of the light available to you

How can I use daylight in the summer without making my home too hot?
More light doesn’t have to mean too much heat. South facing windows provide light and heat in the winter when the sun is lower in the sky. In the summer, if you shade them with deciduous trees, tints, awnings or blinds, they can still provide light without the extra heat. Shading the outside of the windows stops heat gain most effectively, but you can use interior curtains and blinds to cut excess heat as well. Close the curtains on windows that receive direct light. You can also tilt the inside edge of the louvers on a Venetian blind upwards to let light in, but less heat.

Note that west facing windows get a huge amount of direct solar radiation in the summer and should be minimized or shaded to avoid excess heat gain.

Other window coverings can also be used to balance seasonal light and heat needs.  See Shade Your Windows in Home Cooling for more information. Keep in mind that incandescent lighting produces heat. Heat effects from lighting can increase air conditioning costs by as much as 20%.