Skylight Repair in Los Angeles, CA

Most leaking skylights have sound glass and a failed edge. Water gets in where the frame meets the roof, runs down the light well and shows up as a ring on the ceiling or a drip at the frame. This page covers the repair side of our skylights and roof ventilation work. If the unit is near the end of its life, skylight replacement is the better route.

What does skylight repair in Los Angeles include?

Repair means fixing the failed joint and leaving sound parts alone. We trace the water first, because the stain on the ceiling is rarely under the entry point. Each item below is its own line in the written estimate, so you approve what you want:

• Resealing dried sealant and loose flashing edges
• Reflashing the curb, including head flashing on the uphill side
• Rebuilding a soft or rotted curb
• Fitting a new glass unit or dome where the maker still supplies one
• Lifting and resetting tile or shingle courses around the frame
• Photographing the light well, curb and underlayment before and after

Drywall repair and repainting inside the light well are usually separate work, so ask the estimate to say who does them.

What causes a skylight to leak, and where does the water get in?

The glass is the last place to look. Water finds the joints, and a skylight has several of them.

Heat does most of the work here. Long Valley summers dry out sealant and shrink gaskets, so the first real storm of the winter shows which joints are weak.

Foggy, crazed or cracked: what skylight repair can and cannot do

Fogging, cracking and leaking are three different failures, and they do not all have a repair.

A fogged double-pane unit has lost its factory seal. A new glass unit can sometimes be fitted to the old frame, though only if the same size is available. A cracked pane or dome can be tarped right away and replaced, since a crack does not close up. A crazed acrylic dome, with its web of fine cracks, is on its way out and can break with the next falling limb.

Condensation on the room side of the glass is a different case. It points at indoor humidity, a cold shaft or a bathroom fan that vents into the attic, and sealant will not change it.

How skylight flashing and curb repair works, step by step

1. Trace the water inside. We check the light well, the ceiling and the attic framing around the shaft for stains, soft wood and wet insulation.
2. Climb to the curb. Flashing, sealant lines, fasteners and glazing get checked and photographed.
3. Open the surrounding roofing. On a tile roof, tiles come up so we can see the underlayment. On shingle, we lift the courses beside and above the frame.
4. Show you the options. You see the photos and get repair, reflash and replace prices in writing before work starts.
5. Repair the failed part. That means new flashing, a rebuilt curb or fresh glazing seals, not a layer of sealant over the old problem.
6. Test and check. Where conditions allow, we run water over the area in sections and look at the light well to confirm it stays dry.

Reseal, reflash or replace: how we decide

A reseal is the smallest repair. It fits a skylight with clear glass, a straight frame and a leak that traces to dried sealant or one loose edge. New flashing fits when the metal has corroded, the roofing has been patched badly or the skylight has no proper head flashing on the uphill side. A rebuilt curb fits when the wood has gone soft.

Replacement is the sensible call when the glass has fogged, the frame is bent, the same leak keeps returning or the unit is as old as a worn-out roof. In that case, ask about doing it with the roof, since roof replacement work can include fresh flashing. A leak that turns out to come from the roof and not the skylight is covered in our roof leak repair page, and the vents next to a skylight are covered under attic ventilation.

What affects the cost of skylight repair?

Access and the roof type drive most of the price. A skylight on a steep or two-story roof needs more staging. Tile has to be lifted and reset by hand. Rot in the curb or the framing below adds carpentry. A simple reseal costs far less than a full reflash, and a reflash costs less than replacement. Glass is a separate variable: a standard size may be available as a replacement unit, while an older or odd size can push the job toward full replacement. Several skylights on one roof share a single setup, which helps.

We price each repair after seeing the unit, and the price comes in writing before work starts. When quotes differ widely, compare what each one actually fixes. Our guide to skylight leak causes and fixes lists the questions worth asking a roofer.

Does skylight repair involve a permit or an insurance claim?

Repairing flashing or sealant in the same opening is usually handled differently from replacing the unit or changing its size, but the rules depend on the address. Check with the City of Los Angeles building department (LADBS) or your local agency before work that goes beyond a repair.

Sudden damage, such as a limb that cracked the dome in a storm, may fall under a homeowners policy, while wear generally does not. Photograph the damage and note the date before anything is moved. We can inspect, document what we find and write a repair estimate for your insurer. Only the policyholder or a licensed public adjuster negotiates a claim.

Why Clear Shield for skylight repair in Los Angeles

Reviewers who mention leak work in Van Nuys describe a full water test afterward, so the customer knew the repair held. Another describes a visit the same night for a kitchen ceiling leak, and another a Sunday morning return when a small leak showed up after rain during a job.

We cover the areas around the Valley and beyond. Hot, dry summers in Santa Clarita are hard on sealant, and the concrete tile tracts in Stevenson Ranch are reaching underlayment age, which matters once tile is lifted around a skylight. West Hollywood is mostly apartments and condos, so skylight work there tends to sit on flat and low-slope roofs. Oak Park is mostly HOA tracts, so check exterior rules before a repair changes the look of the unit.

Before the rains, look at each skylight from inside, check the light well for fresh marks and keep debris off the uphill edge. That takes five minutes and catches most failures early.