@ James A, yes. It has provided us with some addition privacy. Very pleased with it.
@ YaminiM LEED AP, Not exactly sure I can give you a %. To give an example, our home is 2800 sqft with two SEER 13 HVAC units. Our last energy bill was $109.19. I can feel less heat coming through the windows than before prior to having the window film applied. I have notice the HVAC unit for upstairs does not turn on as often as it did prior to the film being installed. Both units are
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set to 74 degrees during the warmer months and 69 during the winter months.
Our film is rated: Rejects up to 71% of the heat coming through your windows.
We are energy conscious people, so the window film may not be the sole reason for the power usage. We have installed CFL in every fixture. Total about 55 bulbs have been changed. I installed a Hot water heater timer also and use energy efficient appliances. Again, not sure as to how much the window film has contributed, but I'm sure it is not hurting the effort. Also, the design of your home and the direction it faces makes a difference also. South facing homes is going to get more sun then North facing homes will get therefore, the window film would not be as effective on a North facing home and your savings probably wouldn't be as noticeable.
Thank you for the information Derrick, Is this something that can be a DIY? I am very interested since I have a west facing house and have a lot of windows facing west and the house gets really warm in summer. We avoid the AC and use fans but sometimes it gets unbearable. The CFL's, programmable thermostat and water heater timer have been on list but I haven't had a chance to get to it. I know I must atleast this summer. Thank you for the inspiration Derrick!
@ Thomas J. Marino, Inc. We went to Home Depot here in Clermont< FL that had a demonstration set up. It is from Home Depot, but it is actually through Engineered Sun Company an authorized 3M dealer located in Sanford, FL. The owner of the company was actually the one that came out to our home since it was on a weekend and gave us a better deal than what was quoted. Took off several hundred which I was very happy about. He showed us the price list they usually use and took a lot off
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that. We had a total of 6 windows done. A couple of the windows are large 4'x4' with cladding on the windows that had to be removed and reinstalled. Roughly $90-100 per window including tax and installation cost.
@ Maria, We did not install the film ourselves. Price depends on which 3M film you choose.
@Tom, Home depot sells window film that is DIY which I was going to do myself. I use to tint car windows when I was younger to make money, so I felt I could do it, but the 3M product compared to the film that Home Depot sells that is DIY is nowhere near close to performance of the 3M film. Plus, The 3M has a life time warranty. If it ever peels or bubbles, they come back and replace it for free. It really is a case of you get what you pay for.
@ Lissa, I would replace the older windows first with more energy efficient windows before having the film installed. You can't buy the 3M Window Film itself unless you are an Authorized Dealer. So as a consumer, you have to go through an Authorized dealer to purchase 3M window film which will say only Authorized installers can apply the film if you want the life time warranty. 3M won't honor replacement if a dealer does not install the product. The installer did a great job on our windows and covered the windows with one seamless film. Corner to corner, no bubbles, no ugly seams.
@ Matthew, the windows were done by one installer who came in, removed all the cladding on the window and measured all the windows first. All the windows were completed in 2-3 hours including the window above the front door that is 4'x4'. The front door is 8 feet tall and the bottom of the window is another 3 feet above the front door. This window and all the windows were install with one solid film. No seams or lines. The installer reinstalled the curtains and rods. Very professional and pleasant.
I have noticed the window film absorbs the heat from the sun, but does not transfer it into the home. I have a laser thermometer and the film will register 120F+ on a 90F+ summer day, but the light on the floor through the window registers about 25-30 degrees cooler than if the window was up letting direct light into the room. I did an experiment with the window up letting light through for 30 mins then closed the window and the difference was significant 30 mins later. The film also blocks 99% of UV rays which will fade carpet, hardwood, curtains and furniture.
Derrick, Thank you so much for this detail information. You seemed to have mastered the entire process. it really helps to be this informed when shopping.
Hi -- I just came across this post and I see that the job was completed in April. I would like to add: I had this product in Arizona on a home with the energy efficient windows that are double paned with the gas in between the panes. While it is great for shutting out some heat, in my experience the application to these double paned windows can lead to failure of the seal and then the whole window glass needs to be replaced. The window repair people that I used would not put it on and
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stated to me that to apply it would void the warranty on these windows. This was just my experience but seems like one should explore the issue before applying the product to energy efficient windows.
If I didn't reply until now, I am very sorry. I haven't been on the site for a while.
@Jean, I can see the double pane windows being an issue due to the design of the window itself. Our windows are not double pane. I have noticed, believe it or not, the transferred heat energy into the home is much less, but that solar energy doesn't dissappear obviously. (Energy is neither created, not destroyed). The film itself appears to hold (absorb) the heat instead of letting it come
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through the window. I have a laser thermometer and on a 95F degree day, the window film can easily read well over 100F. 105-110F as opposed to a clear window only reading slightly above the normal 2-3F difference due to the energy being allowed to come into the home. With that being said, that energy may not be ideal for a double pane window with internal structures, but for my single pane, there isn't a issue that I can think of or experienced. Thanks for sharing your experience you had. It is always good to know the good and the not so good.
@YaminiM LEED AP, The film on our windows are still in place and has saved us so far about a whooping $10-15/month compared to the electrical bill from the previous year for the same month's electrical bill. I have been keeping up with the difference and so far it appears to be performing exactly as indicated. The rooms especially upstairs are noticably cooler (heat rises) and the A/C unit upstairs does not have to run constantly as it once did. We keep the temp upstairs @ 75F and the unit downstairs at 74F. The unit upstairs still runs more than the unit down stairs, but that could be just the design of the house and the way the air circulates with the open floor design. The units both are 3 yrs old and are kept on a maintance schedule so they run pretty effieciently. There are many times during the day in the middle of summer that neither unit is running (rare), but it happens and I think the window film has a lot to do with it along with proper insulation in the home of course.
@Maria Rosario, no I didn't install it myself. This is a 3M product and only an authorized dealer can install it for the warranty to be active.
@ YaminiM LEED AP, Not exactly sure I can give you a %. To give an example, our home is 2800 sqft with two SEER 13 HVAC units. Our last energy bill was $109.19. I can feel less heat coming through the windows than before prior to having the window film applied. I have notice the HVAC unit for upstairs does not turn on as often as it did prior to the film being installed. Both units are ...»
Our film is rated: Rejects up to 71% of the heat coming through your windows.
We are energy conscious people, so the window film may not be the sole reason for the power usage. We have installed CFL in every fixture. Total about 55 bulbs have been changed. I installed a Hot water heater timer also and use energy efficient appliances. Again, not sure as to how much the window film has contributed, but I'm sure it is not hurting the effort. Also, the design of your home and the direction it faces makes a difference also. South facing homes is going to get more sun then North facing homes will get therefore, the window film would not be as effective on a North facing home and your savings probably wouldn't be as noticeable.
@ Maria, We did not install the film ourselves. Price depends on which 3M film you choose.
@Tom, Home depot sells window film that is DIY which I was going to do myself. I use to tint car windows when I was younger to make money, so I felt I could do it, but the 3M product compared to the film that Home Depot sells that is DIY is nowhere near close to performance of the 3M film. Plus, The 3M has a life time warranty. If it ever peels or bubbles, they come back and replace it for free. It really is a case of you get what you pay for.
@ Lissa, I would replace the older windows first with more energy efficient windows before having the film installed. You can't buy the 3M Window Film itself unless you are an Authorized Dealer. So as a consumer, you have to go through an Authorized dealer to purchase 3M window film which will say only Authorized installers can apply the film if you want the life time warranty. 3M won't honor replacement if a dealer does not install the product. The installer did a great job on our windows and covered the windows with one seamless film. Corner to corner, no bubbles, no ugly seams.
@ Matthew, the windows were done by one installer who came in, removed all the cladding on the window and measured all the windows first. All the windows were completed in 2-3 hours including the window above the front door that is 4'x4'. The front door is 8 feet tall and the bottom of the window is another 3 feet above the front door. This window and all the windows were install with one solid film. No seams or lines. The installer reinstalled the curtains and rods. Very professional and pleasant.
I have noticed the window film absorbs the heat from the sun, but does not transfer it into the home. I have a laser thermometer and the film will register 120F+ on a 90F+ summer day, but the light on the floor through the window registers about 25-30 degrees cooler than if the window was up letting direct light into the room. I did an experiment with the window up letting light through for 30 mins then closed the window and the difference was significant 30 mins later. The film also blocks 99% of UV rays which will fade carpet, hardwood, curtains and furniture.
@Jean, I can see the double pane windows being an issue due to the design of the window itself. Our windows are not double pane. I have noticed, believe it or not, the transferred heat energy into the home is much less, but that solar energy doesn't dissappear obviously. (Energy is neither created, not destroyed). The film itself appears to hold (absorb) the heat instead of letting it come ...»
@YaminiM LEED AP, The film on our windows are still in place and has saved us so far about a whooping $10-15/month compared to the electrical bill from the previous year for the same month's electrical bill. I have been keeping up with the difference and so far it appears to be performing exactly as indicated. The rooms especially upstairs are noticably cooler (heat rises) and the A/C unit upstairs does not have to run constantly as it once did. We keep the temp upstairs @ 75F and the unit downstairs at 74F. The unit upstairs still runs more than the unit down stairs, but that could be just the design of the house and the way the air circulates with the open floor design. The units both are 3 yrs old and are kept on a maintance schedule so they run pretty effieciently. There are many times during the day in the middle of summer that neither unit is running (rare), but it happens and I think the window film has a lot to do with it along with proper insulation in the home of course.
@Maria Rosario, no I didn't install it myself. This is a 3M product and only an authorized dealer can install it for the warranty to be active.