Can you put a roof lantern on a roof terrace?

Why a roof lantern on a roof terrace needs extra thought

Hardly anyone ever goes onto an ordinary flat roof. A roof terrace is different: people walk there, furniture stands there and children play there. A roof lantern on a roof terrace therefore sits right in the middle of how that roof is used. That calls for different choices than a roof lantern in a flat roof that is only accessed for maintenance.

The principle is simple. A roof lantern is a roof window, not a floor. The glass is made for snow, wind and rain, not for someone stepping on it or a planter being pushed onto it. Build that into the design from the start and you will have little to worry about later.

How do you place a roof lantern safely on a roof terrace?

Choose a spot at the edge of the terrace or in a zone where nobody walks, for example behind a planter or a low screen. A railing or fixed bench around it makes it clear straight away that the glass is not part of the floor. Read more about moving safely around glass in fall protection and safety.

Choose laminated glass on the inside. If the glass does break, the fragments stay stuck to the interlayer. The difference between glass types is explained in safety glass and laminated glass.

• Place the roof lantern outside the walking route
• Shield it with a railing, planter or fixed bench
• Choose laminated glass on the inside
• Never put furniture, planters or tiles on the glass

Upstand and drainage on a roof terrace

A roof terrace often has paving on pedestals or decking above the roof covering. That puts the walking surface higher than the roof itself. The upstand of the roof lantern must therefore be tall enough to rise well above that surface, so that standing rainwater and meltwater cannot run over the edge and inside.

Keep the drainage clear as well. Water from the glass must be able to run beneath the terrace floor to the gutter or downpipe. Do not block that route with paving or decking laid tight against the upstand.

Privacy, sun and planning permission

From a roof terrace you look straight down into the room below. If that is a bathroom or bedroom, frosted glass in a roof lantern is a logical choice. If the terrace faces south, consider solar control glass, as you will be sitting in the sun there too.

The roof lantern itself usually needs no separate permit, but a roof terrace with a railing sometimes does. Check with your local council and read the explanation on planning permission for a roof lantern.

Frequently asked questions