I see you are right. Just for kicks I checked out ebay. $100 for the 10" kit, no accessories. That is a heck of a lot cheaper. Other kits range from $200 to $250 for the 10" and $320 for the 14".

Original 10" Solatube Kit - eBay (item 220284958987 end time Sep-25-08 15:07:58 PDT)

found these at my favorite place..10" Velux Rigid Sun Tunnel
Cheaper than the last ones I found online (still can't find the site)

That one doens't seem to have the neato light trapper gizmo like the solalight does though.

I finally found the original site where I first learned of these. The price range is about what you said Daox.
Tubular Skylight - Home

I like the idea of putting a switch on one. I may look more into that.

Solar tubes are great.

They really add a lot of light and are MUCH easier to install that skylights.

They are available to the handy home-owner at Home Depot and other similar big box home improvement stores.

The best use for these are dark, internal areas of a house, such as the inside hallway on a ranch-style house, or bathrooms without windows.


Ideally, a house should be designed to use as much natural lighting as possible, but these are probably the BEST way to aftermarket in some natural daylight.

by chance has anyone ever installed something that required cutting a hole in the roof? Vents, plumbing, etc.....I never have and I've been thinking of the solatubes today. Kinda nervous about cutting a hole in a roof that's only 3 years old
(new thanks to hurricane Katrina)
Anybody know any roofers out there that can give some tips / advice.

Daox- I found some installation instructions here:
http://www.solatube.com/downloads/20...60DS_290DS.pdf
if you look at page 7 of 11, under "Spectralight Infinity 0-90 degree extension tube"
I'm thinking this may work for your application of a horizontal installation.
The instructions are detailed and pertain to many different roof types.

We have four seperate units installed in a house we own in Gilbert, AZ; they were already in place when we bought house. They add a significant amount of light to a room. We are planning on adding a couple to the house we live in now in Fountain Hills, AZ this Jan. after workload for wife who works from home decreases. Will have installed due to concerns about roof integrity.

I added two of the homedepot solar tubes when I was reroofing the house two years ago. I believe it's a 12" in the kitchen and a 10" in the bathroom. The bathroom doesn't have a window and when it's sunny there is absolutely no need to turn on the lights. The kitchen absolutely glows from the 12". Installing them was a pain because my attic space is tiny to try and work in. Other then that though they are great. If/When I move I'll be adding them again. I'll also try to time it with a roof job since that should save a bunch of time