Exterior Renovations That Bring In More Natural Light

Miller Construction & Design March 15, 2019 Exterior Renovations

Brighten up your life and your home by doing some exterior renovations that bring in more natural light. Most of us are spending nearly all of our time indoors, under artificial light, and have been conditioned into thinking the Sun’s rays are harmful to us. Sadly, we don’t realize that we are missing out on several health and wellbeing benefits because we are simply not getting out into nature enough.

Benefits of Adding Natural Light to Your Home

Using sunlight to enhance your living space is fundamental to creating a healthier, happier home. The global trend of “greening” our environment has taken off with a bang, as people everywhere are converting their homes to be environmentally friendlier, and more sustainable. The benefits of bringing more light into your personal space are illuminating:

Save energy and money by not using electricity to brighten up your space
Reduce environmental impact
Increase the value of your home – generally brighter homes are perceived as being bigger
Happiness and better health are associated with the feel-good endorphins released by our brains when we are exposed to sunlight
Indoor plants thrive when exposed to natural light
Appreciate your surroundings with bigger windows so you can take in the view

Renovations that revitalize your home need not be extensive, but rather chosen for their effectiveness.

You can achieve immediate impact, by carefully considering the areas you would like to let light shine through, and consulting with expert home improvement contractors. Before you meet with a specialist contractor, consider some of these solutions to opening up your home:

Bay Windows

Older homes were traditionally built with smaller windows to conserve heat, but modern developments in building materials and understanding construction better allows us to create larger, brighter spaces with natural light. Replace those small windows with much larger bay windows, especially in kitchens and living areas for a warmer, more inviting extension of your home.

Skylights

When you feel like you have exhausted all options, and still seek more sunlight, turn your gaze upwards and consider installing a skylight. Strategically placed skylights can enhance bathrooms and kitchens, and even bring a dull living room to life again. A fairly simple alteration to make, utilizing modern technology that allows the convenience of pre-programming covers that open and close to allow both light and heat in, thus contributing to the climate control of your home too.

Sliding Doors

Instead of installing larger windows or skylights, another alternative is to replace the existing windows with glass sliding doors. These not only let in a far greater amount of natural light, but literally become an extension of the interior to the outside. Glass sliding doors as well as French doors offer a better flow of space and are best suited to living areas that open onto gardens or patios.

Sunrooms

If you are looking for a way of enjoying the scenery of the outdoors with the comfort of the indoors, a sunroom or solarium is a stunning solution. Traditionally built to allow the light in while keeping the other weather conditions out, you can tend to your indoor garden and selfishly soak up the sun all year round.

In addition to making external modifications, you should also consider magnifying the effects of the light that is already entering the space. This can easily be achieved when using paint. Choose colors carefully, remembering that darker colors absorb light, while lighter ones reflect it. Select a paint with more sheen, such as a semi-gloss or a satin finish to reflect more light and give the room a brighter, bigger feeling

Improve your health and your wealth by bringing more natural light into your living space with simple calculated renovations that will bring the outside, inside, and you closer to nature