Window Tint

[Randy]

The windshield doesn’t look any darker than stock. Just want to protect my nice new dash

70% Ceramic Film will do the job... stick with a good brand. Lulu, XPEL... stay away from Suntek, 3M and all other REBOXERS

FULL SHIELD will set you back anything between low$150 to high $250

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[Ol Bromy]

70% Ceramic Film will do the job... stick with a good brand. Lulu, XPEL... stay away from Suntek, 3M and all other REBOXERS

FULL SHIELD will set you back anything between low$150 to high $250

My guy used LLumar film and I’m very happy with the results. This is the 3rd or 4th vehicle we’ve had him tint. These guys are extremely good, but they’re typically booked out a month or more

 

[MarkR]

I own and operate my Shop here in Florida, stay away from the kits... do yourself a favor, go to a reputable shop and stop being cheap on window tint.

A Ceramic Tint job on the Ranger will run you $300-$650 at my shop and will perform for years of ownership. Pay up, and you will be grateful you did. Else, removal of poor quality film and new installation can run you 3 times as much. I even did my full windshield on 70% Ceramic, I never run my A/C above #1 fan speed.

Go to www.tintlaws.com for state by state details

Do you tent over the factory tent or just the front doors and the windshield? Someone told me the factory tent doesn’t work as well as a quality tent

 

[ColoRanger]

Do you tent over the factory tent or just the front doors and the windshield? Someone told me the factory tent doesn’t work as well as a quality tent

Factory Privacy glass, is exactly that. it is a process of "dying" the glass and is apart of the actual glass, cannot be removed., so any factory tinted window would have to have tint applied over it, so that has to be taken into consideration when looking at tint laws and the darkest allowable. it does not provide the IR block that the higher end ceramics can provide. Like Randy said, shop around, ask around find a good installer with high quality film. I also do my own tinting, and a good quality ceramic on the windshield will help dramatically even in the 70% and up category.
The part that is misleading, or difficult to grasp, is where "heat" comes from when talking glass.
In simple terms, using this graphic, (take it for what it is, some numbers may not be actual but close) your "heat" coming through your glass can be split into the 3 groups below:

Almost all window films will reject usually around 99% UV, but that only makes up the 2-3% of the solar energy/heat coming in your window. So finding a high quality "ceramic" that has a rating around 80-95% IR takes out the HUGE chunk of the 45-50% of IR coming through your window. And then obviously you have the Visible light coming through, that will be affected by the "shade/darkness" of the film you choose.

So quick example- 20% High IR ceramic (95% IR rejection, 99% UV) blocks 46% of IR ( 48.9% X.95 = 46%) blocks 1.7% of UV ( 1.8% X .99) and blocks 39.9% VLT ( 49.2% X .8) so basically saying that it has a "Total Solar Energy Rejection" of around 87% (46%+1.7%+39.9%). *please take note these are roundabout numbers and there are several other factors that will be taken into account, as there are a couple different spectrums that IR is read in*
This can help give you an idea of how the heat is blocked, and when you hear an installer talking "Total Solar Energy Rejection" it may make more sense what it means.
This is why "heat box" demonstrations work and show you how well the film works.
Sorry for nerd'n out, but I like the technology that has come into the window film/tint world in the past 10 years or so, and it is intriguing!

 

[Randy]

Factory Privacy glass, is exactly that. it is a process of "dying" the glass and is apart of the actual glass, cannot be removed., so any factory tinted window would have to have tint applied over it, so that has to be taken into consideration when looking at tint laws and the darkest allowable. it does not provide the IR block that the higher end ceramics can provide. Like Randy said, shop around, ask around find a good installer with high quality film. I also do my own tinting, and a good quality ceramic on the windshield will help dramatically even in the 70% and up category.
The part that is misleading, or difficult to grasp, is where "heat" comes from when talking glass.
In simple terms, using this graphic, (take it for what it is, some numbers may not be actual but close) your "heat" coming through your glass can be split into the 3 groups below:

Almost all window films will reject usually around 99% UV, but that only makes up the 2-3% of the solar energy/heat coming in your window. So finding a high quality "ceramic" that has a rating around 80-95% IR takes out the HUGE chunk of the 45-50% of IR coming through your window. And then obviously you have the Visible light coming through, that will be affected by the "shade/darkness" of the film you choose.

So quick example- 20% High IR ceramic (95% IR rejection, 99% UV) blocks 46% of IR ( 48.9% X.95 = 46%) blocks 1.7% of UV ( 1.8% X .99) and blocks 39.9% VLT ( 49.2% X .8) so basically saying that it has a "Total Solar Energy Rejection" of around 87% (46%+1.7%+39.9%). *please take note these are roundabout numbers and there are several other factors that will be taken into account, as there are a couple different spectrums that IR is read in*
This can help give you an idea of how the heat is blocked, and when you hear an installer talking "Total Solar Energy Rejection" it may make more sense what it means.
This is why "heat box" demonstrations work and show you how well the film works.
Sorry for nerd'n out, but I like the technology that has come into the window film/tint world in the past 10 years or so, and it is intriguing!

 

[Randy]

Nicely reported ColoRanger, but numbers change depending on film and location. These numbers will not hold true in colder states and or hotter ones. There are variables of course.

Yes, I tinted my rear doors and back split windows over the Factory dyed glass. I always do on all my trucks, and always recommend all my clients at the shop that bring in an SUV to do so. I also do HEAT BOX DEMO's and it is a great sales addition and helps me convert sales from standard tint to Ceramic almost 80% of the time.

As a shop owner and installer it is WORTHLESS to install Standard Window Film anymore, the benefits of Ceramic far outweighs the added cost depending on your vehicle. I don't do volume at my shop and I am happy taking my time on each vehicle. 3-5 each day I am super happy and allows me to service each client with the confidence they need. I do quite of bit of Luxury units, so I don't need to do 9-13 cars a day like many other CHEAP ones nearby.

 

[ColoRanger]

Nicely reported ColoRanger, but numbers change depending on film and location. These numbers will not hold true in colder states and or hotter ones. There are variables of course.

Yes, I tinted my rear doors and back split windows over the Factory dyed glass. I always do on all my trucks, and always recommend all my clients at the shop that bring in an SUV to do so. I also do HEAT BOX DEMO's and it is a great sales addition and helps me convert sales from standard tint to Ceramic almost 80% of the time.

As a shop owner and installer it is WORTHLESS to install Standard Window Film anymore, the benefits of Ceramic far outweighs the added cost depending on your vehicle. I don't do volume at my shop and I am happy taking my time on each vehicle. 3-5 each day I am super happy and allows me to service each client with the confidence they need. I do quite of bit of Luxury units, so I don't need to do 9-13 cars a day like many other CHEAP ones nearby.

Agreed. Like I said in the post, the numbers need to be taken as more of a reference of the portion of heat they make up, not the specific number, and why I was saying there are so many variables that contribute to the actual TSER#, with different spectrums. It is often difficult sometimes though to break those down and discuss them openly when you are not in the industry, or work with the stuff! I mainly wanted to make it an easy to read to understand what your tint is actually doing for you. Nice to see other members in the industry!

 

[MarkR]

Agreed. Like I said in the post, the numbers need to be taken as more of a reference of the portion of heat they make up, not the specific number, and why I was saying there are so many variables that contribute to the actual TSER#, with different spectrums. It is often difficult sometimes though to break those down and discuss them openly when you are not in the industry, or work with the stuff! I mainly wanted to make it an easy to read to understand what your tint is actually doing for you. Nice to see other members in the industry!

I really appreciate both replies. I’ll probably do the 90% on the front and 35% on the front doors. I’m really leaning towards going over the factory now that you guys explained it to me. I really don’t want them darker so I’ll probably use a ceramic like the front. Thanks again

 

[Randy]

I really appreciate both replies. I’ll probably do the 90% on the front and 35% on the front doors. I’m really leaning towards going over the factory now that you guys explained it to me. I really don’t want them darker so I’ll probably use a ceramic like the front. Thanks again

Do like a 30-40% on the rear doors and bed glass over factory, and 30-35% on the front doors if you don't want to be too dark.

I have 20% front doors and 30% rear over factory Ceramic with 70% Blue Ceramic on the Windshield. I rarely run my a/c fan over 1 speed in the middle of the summer in Florida.

 

[MarkR]

Do like a 30-40% on the rear doors and bed glass over factory, and 30-35% on the front doors if you don't want to be too dark.

I have 20% front doors and 30% rear over factory Ceramic with 70% Blue Ceramic on the Windshield. I rarely run my a/c fan over 1 speed in the middle of the summer in Florida.

Sounds good. That should work well

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