How Long Does It Take to Fit a Pitched Roof Rooflight?
A like-for-like pitched rooflight replacement usually takes a single day, and a new opening that cuts one rafter takes one to two days, with the roof watertight by the end of the first day either way. The roof is never left open overnight. What stretches the timeline is scaffold, which goes up the working day before, bad weather that stops safe roof work, a deep or handmade pantile covering that needs slower flashing, and internal plastering, whose drying time sits on your programme rather than ours.
This answer covers the how-long question. The full stage-by-stage method is on the main pitched roof skylight installation page, and the structural side of a new opening is on forming the structural opening.
Like-for-like replacement: about a day
Swapping an existing unit for a new one of the same size is the quickest job, because the opening already exists and no structure is being cut. The old unit comes out, the covering is lifted back around the opening, a new flashing kit and fresh underfelt and insulation collars go in with the new frame, and the covering is re-laid. On a straightforward two-storey roof with a tower or modest scaffold, that is a day, with the roof watertight by mid-afternoon and any internal finishing to follow.
A new opening: one to two days
A new rooflight where none existed adds the structural work, so it runs a little longer:
- Morning of day one: access up, loft and room below sheeted, opening set out from inside, covering stripped back in whole courses and stacked for reuse.
- Middle of day one: trimmers fixed top and bottom, props in where the span calls for it, rafter cut, opening squared and trued.
- Afternoon of day one: underfelt collar formed, frame set to the right depth, apron and side soakers fitted as the covering goes back, head flashing dressed in. The roof is watertight at the end of this.
- Day two: insulation collar and vapour seal, sash hung and adjusted, reveals splayed, plasterboard where in scope, trims fitted, hose test and handover.
So a single new unit with one rafter cut is a one to two day job. Two or three units on the same slope run to two or three days. A full loft conversion glazing package is programmed around the conversion works and its structural design, so the rooflights are one part of a longer build rather than a standalone job.
What moves the timeline
| Factor | Effect on time |
|---|---|
| Scaffold instead of a tower | Goes up the working day before, so add a day at the front |
| Deep or handmade pantile covering | Slower flashing, dressed lead soakers, add up to half a day per unit |
| Structural design needed, trussed or multi-rafter | Engineer’s drawing first, days of lead time before we start |
| Internal plastering | Drying time on your programme, not a working day of ours |
| Bad weather | Roof work stops when it is unsafe, so a wet spell can shift the date |
| Multiple units | Roughly a day each after the first, less on the same slope |
Scaffold and access
A single unit on a reachable two-storey roof often needs only a tower, which goes up on the day. A taller, steeper or restricted roof needs proper scaffold, and that is erected the working day before so the crew starts on a safe platform. Scaffold does not slow the fitting itself, it just adds a day at the front for erection and one at the end for removal.
Weather
We open a roof only when we can weather it back safely the same day, so heavy rain or high wind stops roof work. This matters more on the east-coast slopes at Felixstowe and Harwich, where driven rain and wind off the North Sea can close a working day that would be fine inland. We plan the strip around the forecast and never leave an opening exposed overnight.
Covering
Flat slate and plain tile are the quickest to weather. Deep clay pantiles and irregular handmade Suffolk pantiles take longer, because the flashing has to be dressed into a deep profile and sometimes each lead soaker is formed by hand. That can add up to half a day per unit, and it is time well spent, because the alternative is a flat kit that leaks. The covering-driven cost side is on does fitting cost more on slate than tile.
The roof is never open overnight. Whatever the job, we set out the day’s work so the opening is formed, collared and weathered in before we leave, and the unit is watertight at the end of the roof stage. Internal finishing can follow on a later day without the roof being at risk. If weather threatens to prevent that, we do not open the roof.
Lead time before work starts
Separate from the days on site is the wait for the unit to arrive. Standard sizes in common finishes are typically one to two weeks. Escape units, conservation patterns, triple glazing, electric openers, deep-profile flashing kits and made-to-size units run longer. Nothing starts on site until everything, including the correct flashing kit for your covering, is physically in stock, so the installation itself is not held up part way through waiting for a part. If a job needs an engineer’s structural design, that adds its own lead time before we can even order.
Related questions
How long the job takes is tied to how big and how involved it is, so the size and structural questions on the minimum roof pitch for a rooflight and the cost breakdown on pitched roof rooflight installation cost are worth reading alongside this. If you are re-roofing anyway, doing the rooflight at the same time saves a separate scaffold and visit, which is covered on whether to replace rooflights when re-roofing.
Common questions about installation time
How long does it take to fit a rooflight in a pitched roof?
A like-for-like replacement is about a day. A new opening that cuts one rafter is one to two days, with the roof watertight by the end of the first day. Two or three units on the same slope run to two or three days. Scaffold adds a day at each end, a deep pantile covering adds up to half a day per unit, and internal plastering drying time sits on your programme separately.
Will my roof be left open overnight?
No. We set the day’s work so the opening is formed, collared and weathered in before we leave, and the unit is watertight at the end of the roof stage. Internal finishing follows on a later day with the roof already safe. If the weather would stop us weathering it back the same day, we do not open the roof at all.
How far ahead do I need to book?
Allow one to two weeks lead time for a standard unit in a common finish, longer for escape units, conservation patterns, triple glazing, electric openers or made-to-size units. Nothing starts on site until the unit and the correct flashing kit are in stock. If your opening needs an engineer’s structural design, that adds lead time before we can order.
Get a date for your pitched rooflight
Tell us whether it is a replacement or a new opening and roughly what the roof is, and we will survey, confirm the days on site and the lead time, and give you one written fixed price. Every installation carries a 10-year workmanship guarantee and the installers have 25 years fitting rooflights behind them.
Request a fixed quote for a pitched rooflight in Ipswich, Suffolk or north Essex, or read our published prices first.
Thinking about this job? We survey across Ipswich, Suffolk and north Essex and give you a fixed price before any work starts, with a 10-year workmanship guarantee.