Condo, Face west, Top floor (w loft), Mid Atlantic

June 8, 2010

So I've looking to have window tint applied to 6 separate panes of my condo in my great room and kitchen.

Heat is definitely the #1 thing I'm battling, second would be glare as I have no trees whatsoever.

Since I'm on the top floor (of 3) and have a loft, it can get rather warm and bright around 4pm (especially this time of year).

One company is recommending Vista as their brand of choice, the other is recommending Huper.

I called a company in Florida and ended up speaking with a guy that knew both brands and he gave me some great advice.

1. Said the Vista had stronger heat rejection due to the reflectivity

2. Huper would be more HOA friendly

My initial gut was leaning towards Huper. As far as price, we're only talking about $40 more... so that's not really a huge deal if you ask me.

One last thing worth noting is my bedrooms (2, each with 2 double hung windows) had new high-end windows installed (got them free as part of a lawsuit)... They were $3000, double pain, low-e, all that stuff... You can almost see a green tint from the outside... but these were part of a big HOA suit against the builder, so I didn't have to worry about approval. At this point, I'm not looking to tint these as the main room is the biggest concern with heat.

I live in Northern VA if people want a climate reference!

Thanks for the help.

June 8, 2010

The company that you talk too in FL summed it up pretty well. If you got their contact info from a blog then you were dealing with a very knowledgeable member from this forum. I would add that you want to not only take into account the HOA factor but also the film warranty especially in regards to thermal breakage. Both of those films carry good coverage options. Lastly, a film is only as good as the person who installs it. Get references, you want a good installer, it can make all of the difference.

V4V · June 8, 2010

The company that you talk too in FL summed it up pretty well. If you got their contact info from a blog then you were dealing with a very knowledgeable member from this forum. I would add that you want to not only take into account the HOA factor but also the film warranty especially in regards to thermal breakage. Both of those films carry good coverage options. Lastly, a film is only as good as the person who installs it. Get references, you want a good installer, it can make all of the difference.

You left out good looking! :poke

June 8, 2010

The company that you talk too in FL summed it up pretty well. If you got their contact info from a blog then you were dealing with a very knowledgeable member from this forum. I would add that you want to not only take into account the HOA factor but also the film warranty especially in regards to thermal breakage. Both of those films carry good coverage options. Lastly, a film is only as good as the person who installs it. Get references, you want a good installer, it can make all of the difference.

You left out good looking!

:spit I'm sorry

June 8, 2010

The company that you talk too in FL summed it up pretty well. If you got their contact info from a blog then you were dealing with a very knowledgeable member from this forum. I would add that you want to not only take into account the HOA factor but also the film warranty especially in regards to thermal breakage. Both of those films carry good coverage options. Lastly, a film is only as good as the person who installs it. Get references, you want a good installer, it can make all of the difference.

You left out good looking!

I'm sorry

So V4V references the website I called... small world. :heh

It's really hard to find any info on the installers... how much can you really trust the testimonials on their web site? I tried looking around on yelp, but couldn't find much...

I think it's neat that Huper is used on the Stealth! Going with the warranty, it seems theirs is strong as well? I guess I really just need to see samples to confirm what I want... My parents had a big window done and so I attached a sample to the window above my fireplace. I also shined my B&D thermal gun against it. What was interesting is that the part of the window with the sample film on it was noticeably warmer, however, when I pulled down the blinds, that part of the window was a few degrees cooler than the normal glass area...

Is it safe to say that tint in general is absorbing the heat, thus is hotter at the window/glass itself, versus letting the heat pass on in, I.e. to the window treatment and beyond????

June 8, 2010

The company that you talk too in FL summed it up pretty well. If you got their contact info from a blog then you were dealing with a very knowledgeable member from this forum. I would add that you want to not only take into account the HOA factor but also the film warranty especially in regards to thermal breakage. Both of those films carry good coverage options. Lastly, a film is only as good as the person who installs it. Get references, you want a good installer, it can make all of the difference.

You left out good looking!

I'm sorry

So V4V references the website I called... small world.

It's really hard to find any info on the installers... how much can you really trust the testimonials on their web site? I tried looking around on yelp, but couldn't find much...

I think it's neat that Huper is used on the Stealth! Going with the warranty, it seems theirs is strong as well? I guess I really just need to see samples to confirm what I want... My parents had a big window done and so I attached a sample to the window above my fireplace. I also shined my B&D thermal gun against it. What was interesting is that the part of the window with the sample film on it was noticeably warmer, however, when I pulled down the blinds, that part of the window was a few degrees cooler than the normal glass area...

Is it safe to say that tint in general is absorbing the heat, thus is hotter at the window/glass itself, versus letting the heat pass on in, I.e. to the window treatment and beyond????

Window film filters out varying degrees of UV, Visible Light, & Infrared Radiation. All of these if left to transmit into your home will be felt as heat in varying ways. You were probably shown the Huper Optik ceramic which is a very durable non-metal/non-dye film with very low reflectivity.

You do well to have samples installed so you can see what each film looks like inside and outside, day and night. Most companies can point you to a commercial installation in a public place so you can see the workmanship. Some may have references that you can call. Go with who you feel most comfortable with.

Oh, and don't let V4V talk you into 3M.

F1windowtinting · June 8, 2010

The Thermal gun used is a misleading tool. The cermaic film is absorbing the heat. What should be done for a true measurement is either point the gun at the floor below the window and take a heat measurement. Then have them tint the window and take a thermal measurement on the floor after. You could also use a btu meter. The btu meter will show a higher reading without film then a lower reading after the glass is tinted.

That is a very quick answer and not very techical

June 8, 2010

Thermal gun on the floor is probably your best bet, the BTU meter doesn't translate to anything significant. Dataloggers are great but you have to tint the whole room 1st and that kind of defeats your whole sampling investigation thing. :thumb

EWF · June 8, 2010

Speaking of BTU meters, does anyone know specifically what bandwidth they read? We sell quite a few of them but all we can ascertain as that they are "broad spectrum" measuring devices.

We also sell various IR meters, but they read only a single wavelength.

Quite a few dealers we know use a heat lamp, sample plate and BTU meter for doing demonstrations in the field.

-Howard

June 9, 2010

Speaking of BTU meters, does anyone know specifically what bandwidth they read? We sell quite a few of them but all we can ascertain as that they are "broad spectrum" measuring devices.
We also sell various IR meters, but they read only a single wavelength.

Quite a few dealers we know use a heat lamp, sample plate and BTU meter for doing demonstrations in the field.

-Howard