Made For Australia

Australia is the ultimate challenge for any skylight – but VELUX is made for it. VELUX has passed every Australian test... even a hail test, which no other glass skylight has passed.
Have a look at the eight extreme tests VELUX has endured – each representing a serious challenge faced by skylights in Australia.

Watch the videos for an architect's perspective on the importance of product testing.

VELUX skylights are WERS energy rated and have achieved the maximum 5 stars for their summer performance. The High Performance double glazing keeps out up to 80% of the heat and 99% of the UV Harmful rays. All VELUX skylights are double glazed, Argon gas filled and Low E3 coated. VELUX is one of very few skylight brands that have been certified by WERS for use in residential applications. Your VELUX skylights will keep the heat outside and prevent your furniture from fading in the sun.

Up to 80% heat block

99% UV Harmful rays block

Case studies

Videos

Test results

In a country of extremes, severe drought can turn into torrential rain in a matter of minutes. VELUX is prepared for anything Australia can throw at it. VELUX skylights have passed the same watertightness test as roof tiles (AS4285) and they are proven to perform outside the lab as well – just have a look at our case studies.

Testing is not limited to Australia – it also takes place in the USA and Europe. Check out the video from northern Europe’s largest test facilities and see for yourself...

Watertightness test

Case studies

Video

Test results

Even though hailstorms are Australia’s costliest natural disasters, there is no official hail test for glass skylights. VELUX Australia has replicated the recognised American Solar Collector Hail Impact Test (ASTM E822-2009)...at a more extreme level.

In fact, the VELUX skylights were hit with ‘hailstones’ the size and weight of cricket balls at speeds of up to 172 kph – faster than any fast bowler has ever delivered a cricket ball! Check out the test brochure and the video...

Case study

Brochure

Test results

Video

Testing with concentrated loads of 110kg on the two weakest spots – the middle and the corner – for a full minute doesn’t leave a mark (AS4285). So in theory a grown man can safely stand on a VELUX skylight – although we wouldn’t recommend the practice! Even a 50 kg tyre hitting the weakest spot leaves a VELUX skylight unaffected.

See for yourself – have a look at the test results and the video...

VELUX hit by 50 kg tyre

Case study

Test results

Video

Bushfires are part of life in Australia and with record temperatures they’re getting increasingly severe. VELUX High Performance skylights have been approved for building in bushfire prone areas (AS3959) by Warringtonfire in Melbourne.

Has any other skylight on the Australian market passed the tough Bushfire Attack Level 40 (BAL 40) test? We doubt it. The test exposes the skylight to a staggering 930°C heat – check out the video and feel the heat...

VELUX exposed to 930°C

Case studies

Video

Test results

VELUX High Performance skylights are suitable even for cyclonic conditions in Australia’s tropical far north. The test (AS4285) required the skylight to be fixed to a test bed and sealed to prevent air escaping. Air was then pumped underneath the skylight to expand it and sucked back out again. Not once, not twice...but more than 10,000 times before the torture was over!

Testing is not limited to Australia – it takes place in the USA and Europe as well. Check out the video from northern Europe’s largest test facilities and see for yourself...

VELUX can withstand tough cyclonic conditions

Case study

Test results

Videos

Thanks to its toughened safety glass on the outside, it is almost impossible to smash a VELUX skylight. It has survived hailstones the size of cricket balls and a 50 kg tyre hitting the weakest spots. If a VELUX skylight with High Performance glazing does break, however, there’s laminated safety glass on the inside to keep it together – just like the windscreen on a car.

VELUX skylights with high performance double glazing comply with the Australian Standards 1288. Compliance with AS1288 is required for sloping glass placed 3 metres or more above floor level.

Safe overhead skylights

Test results (AS1288 compliance)

Videos

 

Noise pollution in  and around city centres can be a real headache and rarely, if ever, stops. So products that can minimise  constant noise pollution can be a blessing. In the CSIRO test facility, VELUX skylights were put up against some of the worst offenders to test their acoustic performance; airplanes, jack hammers, and sirens. These noises were reduced to that of a distant hum.

Test results (AS 1276.1)

Videos