Water Dripping Through Your Skylight? A public service message from an old-time “brownstoner”

Don't worry–it happens whenever their's a real blizzard–heavy snow combined with strong wind. Snow blows through the skylight housing vents, melts on the leaded glass beneath, and drips down. It's a rare occurrence in Brooklyn. We've had our house since 1974. The first time I noticed this happen was in the two blizzards of late January and early February 1978. Since then snow has blown into our skylight vents perhaps a half dozen times. Interestingly this did not happen during the [so far] record snowfall of February 2006, when there wasn't much wind.

Don't worry–just put down towels to catch the water. It doesn't mean that there's anything wrong with your skylight housing–it's just another charming feature of old house living.

I assume that skylights have vents because they were designed in the pre-AC era?

...they released heat in the summer.

My poor SO's room only has a skylight for light and it is now completely covered by snow. So her room is very dark. At least it's not leaking. 

I wonder if NYC will get a spike in Blizzard Babies in October. 

Skylight housings  ARE vented to release heat, but mainly in the cockloft [the space between the roof and the top floor ceiling], not the living space. They're analogous to attic vents in frame houses. 

Skylight housings  ARE vented to release heat, but mainly in the cockloft [the space between the roof and the top floor ceiling], not the living space. They're analogous to attic vents in frame houses.