The short answer
Yes. Many sun tunnels can take a small electric light inside the ceiling diffuser, usually sold by the manufacturer as a light kit made for that model. It gives you a lamp in the same opening that brings in daylight, so the room is lit by the sun in the day and by the fitting after dark. The kit has to suit your tunnel's diameter and be wired by a qualified electrician, and in a bathroom it needs to be rated for damp.
How a sun tunnel light kit works
A sun tunnel is a tube with a clear dome on the roof, a reflective shaft and a diffuser at the ceiling. A light kit swaps or adds to that ceiling end. A lamp unit sits at the bottom of the tube, or within a slim frame at the ceiling, and the diffuser stays in place so the opening still looks like one piece.
The lamp is normally a low-energy LED, often fed through a small driver or transformer tucked in the loft. Some kits give a warm white light, some a cooler one, and a few have a dimmable output. Because the shaft is mirrored, the light it throws is spread by the same surfaces that carry daylight down, so the glow reads as soft and even rather than a hard spot.
Not every tunnel has a matching kit. Kits are made for particular ranges and diameters, and the fitting has to be chosen when the tunnel is chosen. If you already have a tunnel, check its make and size before buying anything, as a kit from another range rarely fits.
Light kit or ordinary ceiling downlights
The alternative is to leave the sun tunnel alone and put downlights or a pendant in the same ceiling, nearby. Both are reasonable, and they suit different rooms.
- Light kit
- One opening, one finished circle in the ceiling, and the diffuser doubles as the lamp cover. It suits a small landing or bathroom where a second hole would crowd the ceiling.
- Separate downlights
- More freedom over position and brightness, and several can be used to light a bigger room. Each one is another hole in the ceiling to cut, make good and finish, which matters in a lath and plaster ceiling.
If you only want a gentle glow at night, a kit is usually the simpler answer. If you need real task lighting, say over a basin or a hallway table, a light kit alone is seldom bright enough to do the job.
Using it as a sun tunnel night light
People often ask about a sun tunnel night light: a dim glow for the bathroom or landing at 3am, without switching on the main light. A kit with a low output setting, or a separate low-level LED circuit, can do this. A tunnel lit at full power at night can look harsh after the eyes have adjusted, so a dimmer or a low setting is worth asking for when the kit is chosen.
It is worth remembering what the lamp cannot do. It does not make the tunnel brighter in the day, and it adds nothing to the amount of daylight reaching the room. For that question, see how much light a sun tunnel gives, which depends on diameter, length and the roof it sits on.
Bathrooms and damp rooms
Bathrooms are where many sun tunnels go, and they are also where an electric fitting needs the most care. Electrical work in a bathroom is controlled by zones around the bath and shower, and fittings in or near a zone must carry a suitable IP rating for water. A sun tunnel diffuser sits at the ceiling, which is often outside the wettest zones, but a shower directly beneath it changes that. The electrician will check the position against the zones before choosing the lamp.
Steam is the other point. A sealed, damp-rated fitting copes better than a basic one, and the tunnel's own seals matter too. Good extraction in the room keeps moisture away from the tube and the lamp alike. If you are choosing a tunnel mainly for a bathroom, our guide to sun tunnels for bathrooms, landings and hallways covers position and finish in more detail.
The wiring and the rules
Adding a light to a sun tunnel means a new electrical point, so it falls under the Building Regulations for electrical safety, Part P. In a home, new circuits and work in special locations such as bathrooms are normally notifiable, or must be carried out by an electrician registered with a competent person scheme who certifies it. A cable has to be run from a switch and a supply, often through the loft, and the work is tested and signed off.
Fitting the tunnel itself is a separate matter. A sun tunnel needs a small opening cut in the roof and ceiling, which is handled through our usual survey, written quote and Building Control notification where required. Planning is rarely an issue for a small tunnel dome on a house roof, but flats, conservation areas and listed buildings can differ, so a quick call to the council planning team is worthwhile if one of those fits your property.
It is far easier to plan the wiring before the ceiling is finished than after. Once the lining is plastered and painted, running a cable to the opening means opening up decorated surfaces again.
Planning it with the finish
This is where a light kit and the ceiling finish meet. The lamp, the diffuser ring and the plaster edge all end up in one small circle, so the details are on show every day: how the diffuser sits against the ceiling, whether the paint line is clean, whether a cable has been left visible in the shaft.
When we survey for a sun tunnel with a light, we note it on the finish schedule: the ceiling type, the tunnel diameter, where the lamp unit sits, where the supply comes from and how the opening is made good around it. That way the electrician, the fitter and the finisher are all working to the same drawing.
What to do next
Decide first whether you want a night glow, a working light, or simply a lamp in the same spot. Then tell us the room, the ceiling type and whether you already have a tunnel. If it is a new tunnel, the light kit is chosen together with the tunnel so the two match. If you are comparing it with other roof glazing, our page on sun tunnel installation sets out the options, and the answer on how sun tunnels cope on cloudy days is useful if you are weighing how often you will lean on the lamp.
To raise it with us, ask for a quote and mention the light, so it goes into the written specification from the start.