Acrylic and glass are not two finishes of the same skylight. Acrylic is a plastic dome or lite that can yellow and go brittle in Austin sun. Glass is a pane, often insulated, that cracks, fogs, or holds a coating. Hail hits them differently. Energy tables attach more cleanly to rated glass. Choose the material, then the opening.
This is not glass versus a full unit swap. That page is a repair path. This page is which material belongs on a Travis, Williamson, or Hays County roof.
What you are looking at
Older houses in Crestview, Allandale, and 1970s Round Rock often have acrylic domes. They sit low. They can be a skylight dome or a solar-tube dome. If daylight travels down a tube to a ceiling diffuser, it is a tube even if the roof piece is acrylic. See solar tube repair.
A framed glass unit has a curb or a deck-mount frame and a well in the room. You see sky. You can often add a shade. City of Austin Climate Zone 2 maxima for skylights are U-factor 0.60 and SHGC 0.28. Those numbers live on glass product sheets more often than on an old acrylic dome. Confirm the sheet. Confirm the city or county tables for your lot.
Acrylic that has gone yellow is a light and UV story. Glass that has gone milky between panes is a seal story. Foggy glass between the panes is the wipe test. Do not scrub an acrylic dome with a glass cleaner habit until the installer names the material.
Hail
The September 24, 2023 Central Texas hailstorm was the costliest Austin-area hailstorm on record. Estimated losses were about $600 million for Travis and Williamson counties combined. Round Rock saw hail up to about 4 inches. Acrylic can puncture or spider. Glass can crack or lose a seal without looking open from the kitchen. Impact-resistant glass is a glass spec. It is not a way to turn acrylic into laminated glass.
A leftover acrylic dome after a shingle re-roof is a common mismatch. If the roof is already coming off, that is the moment to decide whether the next object is glass, a new acrylic dome, or a tube. Adding a skylight during a roof replacement is the sequence.
Heat and the room
A kitchen or west living room in Pflugerville cares about SHGC. A hallway tube cares about a path through the attic. Acrylic is not automatically cooler. Glass is not automatically hotter. Coatings, shades, orientation, and attic air decide more than the material nickname. SHGC and Austin heat stays on rated glass.
Prices for either material could not be confirmed here. Part availability on a discontinued acrylic kit often decides the job more than a preference.
How Bright Sky ATX fits
We match you with experienced, insured independent skylight and solar-tube professionals. The pro you hire names the material on the roof and replaces it. We do not. See skylight installation and skylight glass replacement.
When to call us
Call when you need the object on the roof named, acrylic or glass, before anyone orders a pane that will not fit. Call (737) 477-8898.