Malibu Skylight Installation & Repair

The Malibu repair calls we get most often are replacements of corroded aluminum frames on skylights that were installed with inadequate coastal specifications. The pattern is consistent: a skylight installed 10–15 years ago with a budget aluminum frame that was not rated for marine exposure, now showing visible corrosion at the corners and hardware points. Sometimes it is leaking, sometimes it is just failing cosmetically. Either way, the unit is at end of life and needs to come out.

Coastal corrosion is not theoretical. Salt air attacks aluminum at joints, fasteners, and hardware points. The difference between a budget frame and a Velux frame in a Malibu environment shows up clearly after 10 years. We specify corrosion-resistant hardware and frames on every coastal installation, not as an upsell, but because the alternative means replacing the unit in a decade instead of three decades.

WUI fire zone requirements apply to most of Malibu. Chapter 7A of the California Building Code requires fire-rated glazing for skylights in WUI zones, tempered or laminated glass, not acrylic or standard polycarbonate. Velux FCM laminated glass units qualify. We provide the compliance documentation required for permit submission.

Malibu splits between City of Malibu and unincorporated LA County jurisdiction depending on the specific address. Coastal Zone properties require a Coastal Development Permit for exterior modifications. We check jurisdiction and Coastal Zone status for every Malibu address before starting the permit process, getting this wrong adds weeks to the timeline.