How Car Window Tinting Is Done � A Great After-Market Upgrade
Getting a new car is always fun. I personally love that new car smell that comes with your purchase. And making your car more �yours� is always important. Many people will cover their cars with bumper stickers or other types of customization. Some are purely aesthetic while others not only look good but also provide an additional function like safety or the preservation of your car. Any many of these upgrades can be done days or even years after your purchase.
As part of my car buying series (see here and here), I�m focusing on how consumers can save money after buying a lower model car (e.g., the base model) and then buying after-market add-ons to bring it closer to more expensive trimlines but without paying the dealer�s dramatically inflated pricing. One great thing about after-market upgrades, like in this case window tinting, is that you can pick and choose exactly the ones that you want and not get �extras� in a package that you don�t really need.
So let�s take a look at the first thing that I had done on my new car, window tinting. This is an upgrade that I definitely recommend that you do for a variety of reasons:
- It protects the interior of your car from harmful UV rays
- It keeps the interior of the car cooler
- It provides added safety in the event of crash by containing all of the broken glass
- It gives added security from a break-ins since it is more difficult to break the glass
- It provides privacy to your passengers (great for kids)
- And it simply looks great (my opinion)
Many times, you can buy a new car with privacy windows or the window tinting already done. Some of these tints are done in the glass making process itself. Some cars even have double paned glass making them stronger, more energy efficient and, of course, more expensive. But, did you know that many car dealers will actually send out many of their vehicles to get the windows tinted by a 3rd party and then later mark up the price on the sticker.
Car window tinting is actually not as expensive as you might think (starting possibly around $200-300 depending on the installer, your vehicle and location). You can buy do-it-yourself kits (which I DON�T recommend) or you can get it done professionally (which I DO recommend). The problem is, not all window tinters (or the film that they use) are the same. Some tinters use cheap films that don�t stand the tests of time and tend to fade, crack, bubble, peel or turn purple. Also these inexperienced or less expensive tinters might simply do a poor application job with the film. So, it is extremely important to shop around and get recommendations (look at Yelp reviews for example). And DON�T always settle for the least expensive.
For my window tinting, I choose a local installer that had the best Yelp recommendations. I read through all of the reviews (the good AND the bad ones) and then spent some time looking at their website. My installer had been in business for 25 years and was run by a father and son team. They also do audio, GPS, video and alarm system installs, in addition to window tinting, so auto upgrades are their passion.
This post is designed to provide you with some insight into what is involved in the window tinting process. The tinting was done by a company called The Best Guys and I was present to photograph and film the entire process. Most of the time, you don�t normally watch the process but I found it really interesting. If you can, ask to watch the install, especially if you have a couple of hours to burn.
Below is a 20 minute video that first talks about the company and their philosophy and then how my particular installation was done. After this video in the content below are some photos that document the process as well. It�s pretty interesting so watch and read on!
The installation process can be broken down into the following components:
- Choosing the film tints
- Cleaning the windows outside
- Cutting the film (by machine and/or by hand)
- Shrinking the film to remove �the fingers�
- Cleaning the inside
- Laying the film, squeegee and de-bubbling
Choosing the film tints
This is a very personal preference. Also, the tint levels may be determined by state laws. For example, in California, you aren�t legally allowed to tint the front side windows, however, you can pretty much tint the back and rear window however you see fit. The darker the tint typically means that it will dramatically reduce the temperature of the sun coming through it. It also means that at night time, it will be a lot more difficult to see through. My recommendation is NOT to go �limo dark� and do more of a 15% or 20% tint, which is more like what you get from a factory-tinted auto.
The percentage associated with the tint is for the amount of visible light that comes through the film.
I do recommend that if you can tint the front, even with a clear tint, you do so, because you get many of the advantages that I listed initially. You can especially notice that the sun on your arm with the windows closed feels just a bit cooler than without the tint.
I don�t really know much about the different manufacturers of the film but the one that The Best Guys swore by was Llumar, which has a life-time warranty (always a good thing). The Llumar tints that were used for my job were:
- Charcoal ATR 15 (Back & Rear Windows) � 15% visible light transmission, 50% total solar energy rejection, 99% UV rejection, 83% glare reduction and 8% visible light rejection
- Neutral AU 85 (Front Windows) � 85% visible light transmission, 16% total solar energy rejection, 99.9% UV rejection, 13% glare reduction and 8% visible light rejection
Once the tints were chosen, the prep work started.
Cleaning the windows outside
One of the most important steps that is repeated throughout the process is that of scrubbing and cleaning the windows. Any tiny bit of dust or dirt can cause issues. First, the outside of the windows were washed. This was, at first, a bit confusing to me as I thought that tints go on the inside of the car. Why wash the outside? For starters, you have to have it clean so that you can see dirt or bubbles much easier once the tints are being installed on the inside.
Also, as it turns out, the tint is first applied on the outside so that the shrinking step can take place. I will explain the shrinking process later. However, since the film has to be cut/trimmed and shrunk on the outside, you have to be sure that the windows are clean.
Cutting the film (by machine and/or by hand)
There are a couple of main ways to cut the film. A lot of shops now use computers and automatic cutting machines to accurately cut the film. Other shops cut their film by hand. Frequently you have to hand-cut films for older cars or for complex or custom jobs.
The computers store the exact sizes of all of the windows for recent automobiles. You simply look up the year, make and model and the computer displays all of the window templates. With the particular program that The Best Guys used, you could drag and drop the stencils around for best placement on the film and then when you were happy with the arrangement, you sent the cutting instructions to the automatic cutter.
This cutter was so precise that it would cut through the film but not the backing paper underneath. It was pretty amazing to watch it cut out all of my rear windows (rear, 2 small and 2 rear passenger ones).
For the front window, since the tint was a slightly different thickness and the cutting machine was not configured for that type of cutting, my installer, Charlie, who has been putting on window tints for 9 years, cut the film by hand. I was pretty amazed that he was able to cut and size the two front passenger windows so quickly and accurately.
Other cut film is then placed on some glass boards near the car. There were two of these glass boards, one on each side of the car. The boards were used for trimming, sizing, shirking and simply keeping them handy.
https://www.hightechdad.com/2010/10/21/how-car-window-tinting-is-done-a-great-after-market-upgrade/
In this article on the next paragraphs you can discover some reliable points concerning Perth Window Tinting.
There are two kinds of window tinting, also called film-over and in-situ. While in-situ is the old method, film-over is acquiring popularity recently due to the fact that it calls for much less work. So which is better? Which kind of home window tinting is best for you?
If you have an auto or a truck that you use a great deal, then it's a far better alternative for you. This suggests that, if you have a local business that requires a window tinting task done on your workplace home windows, you can utilize this kind of technique. A general regulation when considering home window tinting is that, if you do not drive a great deal, it's most likely not the most effective alternative for you.
So how do you discover if this is the right choice for you? One benefit is that you do not need to pay an arm and a leg for the type of tinting that you get. You don't need to get movie and also you don't have to utilize a cover to apply it. Simply put, you do not have to lose time, money, and effort doing every one of that.
An additional benefit is that the sort of tinting you obtain will certainly be based upon your measurements. When you obtain film-over tinting, the plastic movie that covers your home windows is almost completely affixed to the window itself. Simply put, you need to stick the plastic movie to the home window in order to get any tinting done. This is one downside of the film-over tinting. However, if you do not know just how large your windows are, this may be a good choice for you.
The second kind is referred to as tint. As the name suggests, the plastic movie that covers your windows is reduced to fit the home window and then it is established. look here It resembles using a pattern to the glass prior to you tint it.
Nevertheless, there are benefits to utilizing this type of tinting. For example, you do not need to reduce the plastic film to fit the window. The color can merely be put on the glass.
An additional benefit of the film-over kind is that it can make windows appear larger. This is due to the fact that the movie covers the home windows yet does not entirely cover them. If the glass is bigger, this makes the appearance more dramatic.
The third benefit is that the film-over kind can make a window show up smaller sized. This is due to the fact that the movie can be applied to the window so carefully that you can not see the finish line. This resembles utilizing a hair dryer to obtain the desired impact.
One negative aspect is that there is no way to regulate how much the tint will show up. Considering that the film is reduced to fit the window, you can't simply add more movie up until you obtain the look you desire. Consequently, it's a short-lived remedy.
Another drawback is that it takes a great deal of time. With film-over tinting, you need to stick the movie to the home window up until it dries, which might take weeks. Considering that the color can be used when, you can get rid of the film and begin the process over again.
One benefit is that, if you have a narrow home window, you won't have to stress over it popping out. On the various other hand, if you have a large home window, you could have to choose the second type of home window tinting to keep it from their website breaking or breaking. Certainly, if the film that covering your home windows is also thick, it may crack too.
Now that you understand all of the advantages as well as disadvantages of each type of home window tinting, you can determine which is right for you. Take a look at the products and the instructions meticulously prior to you tint your windows.
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