Operating system · Trades & Home Services

Become your metro's daylighting specialist — win the jobs roofers mis-flash, bank the replacement-and-repair funnel off an aging installed base, and upsell solar venting skylights the competition never even quotes.

The complete operating system for a residential skylight and daylighting installer — the owner-operator running one crew on new installs, replacements, sun tunnels, and leak repairs across pitched and low-slope roofs. It answers what most people entering this trade get wrong: they position as "a roofer who also does skylights" instead of a dedicated daylighting specialist, they seal with caulk instead of the roof-covering-matched flashing kit that actually keeps a skylight from leaking, and they never build the replacement-and-repair funnel off the 1995–2010 installed base that is now 15–30 years old and the trade's most durable demand.

What's inside

A banker-grade business plan covering the specialist's spine — positioning as a VELUX / Solatube certified installer and the manufacturer "No Leak" workmanship warranty that becomes your moat, the threshold contractor-license-and-permit map plus surety bond, the roof-work insurance stack (general liability, the expensive workers'-comp roofing class codes, commercial auto), OSHA fall-protection duties (29 CFR 1926.501/502 and 1926.1053, including guarding the open rough opening as a fall-through hazard), and the van-financed $45k–$75k low-capex startup a lender will actually underwrite.

An editable Excel financial model — real, changeable assumptions (the ~$2,200 blended ticket across sun tunnels, like-for-like replacements, new deck-mount cut-ins, and $2,800–$6,000 solar "Fresh Air" venting units; a ~47% blended gross margin on a materials-and-labor basis; 1–2 installs per crew per day; and the ~1.20× summer / ~0.65× winter seasonality with a rain-driven repair queue that smooths the trough), not a static PDF.

Up to 17 operations playbooks — the flashing-kit-by-roof-covering craft (EDL for asphalt shingle, EDW for tile, EDM for metal, the adhesive deck-seal underlayment frame, and the cricket/saddle on wide curbs) that is your number-one leak-prevention control, the product ladder from fixed to manual to solar venting plus same-day tubular sun tunnels as a low-friction entry product, getting onto a manufacturer installer/dealer locator as your cheapest qualified-lead channel, weather-gated scheduling with neighborhood route batching, and the "my skylight leaks" diagnostic that converts panic calls into full replacements.

Who it's for

Built for the roofer, carpenter, or remodeler going out on their own as a dedicated skylight and daylighting installer with a van and a ladder rack. Delivered instantly at checkout; single-buyer license. Editions differ by how many playbooks are included — compare the tiers below.

Choose your edition

Edition	What's included	Price
Starter	Business plan + financial model + essential playbooks	$149	Buy Starter
StandardMost popular	Plan + model + all 12 core operations playbooks	$299	Buy Standard
Premium	Plan + model + all 17 playbooks (core + growth & scale)	$499	Buy Premium

Please read before purchasing. This product is an informational and educational operating system — a research-grounded business plan, operations playbooks, and an editable financial model. It is not legal, tax, accounting, financial, or investment advice, and using it does not create a professional-client relationship. Bytell Press does not guarantee any specific business, funding, or financial outcome. You are responsible for your own decisions and for consulting a qualified professional licensed in your jurisdiction before acting.