Warehouse skylight replacement is work on openings that already exist. The curb, the membrane around it, and the people under the deck are the job. It is not the same as a first-time commercial skylight installation.
Austin industrial roofs collect these units for decades. Acrylic yellows. Seals fog. Hail cracks a dome and leaves its neighbor looking fine until the next storm. Replacing one unit in a field of twenty is sometimes right. Replacing the field during a re-roof is sometimes right. The visit has to say which.
What usually fails first
The glazing. Yellow acrylic cuts light and can go brittle. Glass can fog between lites or crack. After the September 24, 2023 hailstorm, Round Rock saw hail up to about 4 inches, and Travis and Williamson losses were estimated at about $600 million combined. A warehouse north of town that sat in that path should not be judged from the parking lot.
The curb and the flashing. Membrane splits at the corner. Fasteners back out. A later overlay was run up to the old curb and never detailed. Water then uses the skylight as a drain, which is how a “skylight leak” becomes a deck leak.
The layout. Older factories sometimes have too many small domes, or too few, relative to current racking. Replacement is a chance to change count and size, but only if the structure and the fire/smoke plan allow it. Do not assume a one-for-one swap until someone has looked at the steel and the current code path for that occupancy.
A remaining-life number for acrylic or glass at warehouse scale could not be confirmed. Read the unit. Photograph the field. Let the independent contractor map which openings are glazing-only and which are curb-and-membrane.
Occupancy and the roof as a system
People work under these roofs. Interior catch, night or weekend cuts, and how long a hole stays open are planning items. No arrival window, crew count, or “we work around your shift” promise belongs on this page. Those are in the contractor’s work plan.
Fall protection on a low-slope membrane is not optional theater. Ask who provides it. Ask how the interior is protected from dust and fasteners.
If the membrane is near replacement, putting new units into a dying field is usually a short delay. Pair the skylights with the re-roof. Flat roof drainage still applies. A new curb in a ponding bay will leak even if the glass is new.
Hail spec belongs in the replacement sheet. Impact-rated glazing is a product question, not a Texas-wide mandate we can cite. Confirm what the maker rates and what your insurer cares about. Residential Climate Zone 2 maxima (U-factor 0.60, SHGC 0.28) are for houses. Commercial values depend on use. Confirm with the authority that holds the permit.
One-for-one versus a new layout
Keep the curb when it is sound, the membrane detail can be redone, and the opening still serves the floor. Change the unit when the product is discontinued, the acrylic is done, or the light level is wrong.
Change the count only with a structural and life-safety look. Adding openings is closer to new installation. Removing openings means infill that matches the roof system. Either one is more than a dome swap.
Jurisdiction is local. City of Austin, Round Rock, Pflugerville, an ETJ, and unincorporated county lots do not share a desk. The contractor names the office.
Dollar savings, rebate amounts, and a free inspection promise are not published here. Lighting impact depends on the fixtures you already run.
How Bright Sky ATX fits
We match Austin-metro facilities with experienced, insured independent skylight professionals. The pro you hire replaces the units. We do not. See commercial skylights and daylighting and skylight replacement.
When to call us
Call when a warehouse or shop roof in Travis, Williamson, or Hays County has tired, cracked, or leaking skylights and you need a field plan, not a residential curb quote. Call (737) 477-8898.