Skylight Repair and Installation Types
The mounting style decides how a skylight is flashed, and the flashing decides most of the leak risk. HomeGuide traces most skylight leaks to installation, missed maintenance, aging low-grade materials and poor roof drainage.
Curb-Mounted Skylights
A curb-mounted unit sits on a raised wooden box built on the roof deck, and the flashing wraps up the sides of the curb. HomeGuide says curb units are easier to install because they sit above the roof line.
Deck-Mounted Skylights
A deck-mounted skylight fastens straight to the sheathing and sits lower and flatter, with a flashing kit from the same maker. It takes longer to install than a curb unit. Fixed models run $1,500 to $4,000 installed and resist leaks better than venting models ($1,600 to $4,700), which are the only skylights that open. Where the room below has an attic over it, a framed and drywalled shaft has to be built through the attic, and HomeGuide puts that total at $2,600 to $5,700.
Tubular Skylights
A tubular skylight is a small dome on the roof with a reflective tube that runs down to a ceiling diffuser. HomeGuide puts the installed job at $500 to $1,000, with the unit itself at $150 to $500, so it costs less than most glass skylights.
Skylight Leak Repair: Flashing or Seal
A leaking skylight gets one of three fixes, and they price very differently. Reflashing the outside of the frame costs $150 to $500. Resealing the glass with liquid sealant costs $75 to $250, and new rubber or foam weather stripping $75 to $300. Cracked glass runs $300 to $650, and HomeGuide says that if the whole unit has to come out to replace the pane, replacing the unit makes more sense. Ask which of the three the roofer found, and how, before anyone caulks over the frame.
Replacement During a Reroof
HomeGuide's advice is to replace an aging skylight when the roof is replaced, because the labor per skylight is lower with the roof already open. Reusing an old skylight in a new roof usually voids the skylight's own warranty. The code backs this up for the metal: R908.5 of the Florida Building Code, Residential, 8th edition, bars reinstalling flashing or counterflashing that is rusted, damaged or deteriorated. The roof replacement page covers the rest of the reroof scope.
Removing a Skylight and Decking Over
A skylight you no longer want can be taken out and the opening framed and sheathed. HomeGuide lists removal alone at $125 to $250 and removal with roofing over the hole at $350 to $1,000, depending on roof type. Ask for new sheathing to match the existing deck thickness and nailing; roof decking replacement explains what that involves.
Why Tallahassee homeowners call Tallahassee Expert Roofing
- Your request reaches one roofer, never a call list
- Homeowners pay nothing to use this line
- Ask for the shingle wind class and Product Approval number in writing
- The roofer's estimate is free and you're not obliged to hire
Skylight Flashing Rules in the Florida Code
Florida's residential code requires flashing around every roof opening (R903.2.1), and metal flashing has to meet a minimum thickness, for example 0.024 inch for aluminum or copper (Table R903.2.1). Any chimney or penetration more than 30 inches wide needs a cricket on its ridge side (R903.2.2). Unit skylights get an exception: one flashed to the maker's instructions can go in without a cricket. For a skylight, then, the maker's flashing kit is what the code relies on. When you compare quotes, ask which flashing kit each one includes and whether it matches the skylight's brand and model. Skylights are also named in the scope of a Florida roofing contractor under Fla. Stat. 489.105, so a roofer can take the whole job, flashing included.
Skylight Repair Cost and Timeline
HomeGuide's 2026 figures put the typical skylight repair at $100 to $650, and roof call-outs carry a $150 to $300 minimum. Time on the roof depends on the job:
Replace the unit in the same opening
3 to 5 hoursNew skylight in a new opening
1 to 3 days
HomeGuide lists $100 to $500 nationally for the permit and inspection on a new skylight. The City of Tallahassee and Leon County each set their own rules, and roof replacement lays out both. Ceiling repair is a separate trade cost: drywall repair runs $300 to $1,500 or more, so ask whether a quote includes the interior finish.