The skin effect is defined as the difference between the skin temperature and the bulk temperature of the surface water. Quantifying lake skin effect and analysing its influencing factors can improve our understanding of the response of lake physical, chemical, biological and ecological processes to global warming. Based on the water temperature gradient, four radiation components and microclimate observations from 2011 to 2020 from the Taihu Eddy Flux Network, this paper quantified the skin effect on different time scales and the difference of the skin effect under different weather conditions. The results showed that the warm skin effect in Lake Taihu was strongest at 15:00-16:00, with a value of 1.95℃. The cool skin effect was strongest at 7:00-8:00 with a value of -0.50℃. The intensity of the skin effect was strongest in spring and weakest in summer. Therefore, the surface temperature obtained by satellites passing over Taihu Lake in the afternoon cannot be validated with the surface water bulk temperature. The validation bias caused by the skin effect can reach 2℃, especially in spring. On an interannual scale, the surface water temperature of Lake Taihu warmed at a rate of 0.14℃/a, which was identical to the warming rate of air temperature during the same period. The surface water bulk temperature warmed at a rate of 0.12℃/a. The warming rate of Lake Taihu described by surface temperature was 0.02℃/a higher than that indicated by surface water bulk temperature. The warm skin effect could reach 1.64℃ under clear sky with light wind. Under cloudy conditions with strong winds, the skin effect was only 0.32℃. Compared to solar radiation, wind speed had a greater effect on the skin effect of Lake Taihu. Thus, wind disturbance was the main factor influencing the skin effect of Lake Taihu. A new parameterisation using wind speed for the skin effect of Lake Taihu was proposed here with 10 years of observations.