http://cancer.about.com/od/skincancermelanoma/a/driving_skin_cancer.htm

Now image what that is doing to your furniture at home?

There was one minor issue. The glass kept falling out of the building! This obviously concerned city residents and government officials, alike. A multi‐block area was cordoned off around the building for what seemed like years. This debacle prompted Time Magazine to publish an article entitled “Those Window Pains” in October of 1973. In fact, the building came to be known by locals as “The Plywood Palace” due to the 3500 plus pieces of plywood put in place to replace the fallen glass.

Numerous steps were taken to correct the flaw. Counterweights were installed at both ends of the building to minimize sway; every window was replaced with thermally tempered glass, and the entire structure was stiffened with the installation of additional steel bracing throughout. These efforts alleviated many of the issues but did not completely eliminate the glass breakage issues.

Then, along came a local window film manufacturer, Madico, Inc. of Woburn Mass., a suburb about 10 miles north of Boston. Working in conjunction with the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Madico developed a safety film that, when applied to the glass with a pressure sensitive adhesive and attached to the window frames using a decorative mullion, would hold the broken glass in place and prevent dangerous shards from injuring pedestrians walking below the 600 foot tower.

To Madico’s knowledge this is the first recorded usage of attached safety film.

Over the past decade, safety films have become widely recognized for their ability to protect people and property from terrorist bombings, industrial accidents, wind borne debris from windstorms, and nuisances like intrusion and graffiti. These materials are generally manufactured from layers of polyethylene terathalate (PET) and various types of adhesives. They are applied to glass much like wallpaper, bonding to the glass with proprietary pressure sensitive adhesives. Once cured to the glass, the films hold the glass together in the event of breakage and, if attached to the window frame with one type of the many available attachment systems such as FrameGard® or Frameflex®, can help prevent blast loads and debris from entering a building when subjected to such forces.

But one question persists: How long can a window film last?
Most film manufacturers subject their products to rigorous accelerated weathering testing before releasing these products to the public. This testing is comprised of high intensity ultraviolet (UV) light exposure, high and low temperatures, as well as extraordinary levels of humidity. This testing is designed to emulate years of use in the field. Many testers also expose films to natural environmental conditions at independent facilities throughout the “sun belt” ensure their real world weatherability. All safety films should also be tested at independent laboratories to determine the level of blast, windstorm, intrusion, and safety standards they will meet.

But time is the real test … and Madico has some remarkable results.

Recently Madico had the opportunity to test the safety film it applied to the Hancock Tower over 24 years ago. While the accelerated weathering the films are subjected to provide a good idea how the films will perform over time, there is no substitute to real life experience.
During this evaluation Madico tested for:
• Peel value, the force needed to remove the film from the glass. This is a measure of how well the film will hold onto the glass when broken,
• Tensile Strength, the actual strength of the PET and,
• UV blocking, the amount of ultraviolet radiation blocked by the film.
The results were enlightening. Peel value remained +/‐ 3% of the original manufactured material. Tensile strength tested at over 90% of its original value. And UV Blocking maintained nearly 95% of its original blocking power.

Madico prides itself on making the highest quality window safety film available. By having the opportunity to test safety films that have been in place for nearly a quarter century, Madico can say with unmatched confidence its safety films will continue to protect people and property from glass failure, natural disaster and even terrorist bombings for decades.

How are safety films constructed?

These films are constructed using PET (polyethylene terephthalate) a polyester which is the same as a plastic water bottle. This material is very thin and has a mounting adhesive with a scratch resistant coating on it. In the mounting adhesive a UV inhibitor is added to protect the polyester from discoloring over time. These films vary by how many layers, how thick the adhesive layer is and how thick the polyester layer. The idea is simple, keep the glass from shattering. The thicker the material the stronger the glass becomes and the harder to break through. Solar control films usually come in 1-2 mil thick and security films come in 2-15 mil thick.

The adhesive is the most critical component of the film. All safety films have more adhesive per sq ft than any traditional solar films. There are many brands of window film and some brands are very well-known names but have very poor construction and adhesive properties. Some adhesives are so bad that they advertise in a positive light “… our adhesives remove easily in case the film is damaged …” this is not a good thing. It is imperative that there is a sufficient high quality adhesive on the film so that the glass will stick to the film upon a high impact situation. The difference may seem subtle, but it is one of the key reasons why safety films work well.

Different forms of glass

There are three main types of glass readily used in houses and commercial buildings, annealed, tempered, and laminated glass. Annealed glass is the most common and most dangerous of the glass. Annealed glass is molten sand plus a variety of metals added and slowly cooled. This glass is very clear and distortion free but when it breaks it breaks into very large and sharp shards. Tempered glass starts with the same principle as annealed but undergoes an extra step of rapidly heating and cooling the glass. This glass becomes 4 times stronger and breaks into smaller and less sharp pieces. It is mandated that all entry doors and sidelights must be tempered. Laminated glass is two layers of glass laminated together by PVB (polyvinyl butyral). Car windshields are installed using this glass. This glass is much stronger and withstands a high amount of impact before shattering.

Security films are designed to work with all types of glass and make even the most basic form of glass stronger than laminated glass at a fraction of the cost. The beauty of the film is that it comes in many color densities including clear so that no one can see the film on the window but you have the security you need. Here are a couple of photos of the material installed on a commercial store front window and a short video of us attempting to break a window with our films installed.

http://news.cnet.com/2300-11128_3-10001941-1.html?tag=mncol

Another tool I found out years ago is a simple device and can be a fun tool that a lot of kids enjoyed using as well. It is called a Kil-A-Watt.

http://www.p3international.com/products/special/P4400/P4400-CE.html
Has anyone used one of these and if so what is your experience with it?

Jonathan

SUNsational Solutions

What is Comprehensive Duct Sealing?

Comprehensive Duct Sealing tests the whole house envelope and duct system for any air leakage. This process looks for duct work that was incorrectly connected or where duct joints started to leak over time. The supply registers and return registers are also sealed to keep any air infiltration out.

Why is Comprehensive Duct Sealing so important?

As your home ages the mastic (a rubberized material used to seal duct work) begins to crack allowing leaks for cool or warm air from the HVAC unit to blow into the attic space instead of going to the interior of the home. This is air flow that you are paying for going to cool or warm areas of the home that are not needed. Most homes have a duct leakage of 30% or more. Our goal with comprehensive duct sealing is to allow less than 10%. If your home is older than 5 years you should strongly consider having done.

How much does Comprehensive Duct Sealing Cost?

The price is based off of the sq ft of your home and the number of HVAC units you have. Many energy providers offer rebates or credits to have this performed. We have found that the payback period of comprehensive duct sealing is less than 3 years and most cases is 1 year or less after the rebates or credits. For example: Austin Energy offers a rebate of $0.12/sq ft and Texas Gas customers can receive an additional $0.08/sq ft. If your home is 2500 sq ft with one HVAC unit the cost for duct sealing is $699.00 (an additional $135.00 for second HVAC unit). Austin Energy’s rebate is $300.00 and Texas Gas is $200.00 leaving an investment of $199.00. CPS Energy customers in San Antonio receive $100.00 for each HVAC unit.

How much money can I expect to save with Comprehensive Duct Sealing?

In our experience this summer customers have been getting between $20-45/month savings from their electric bills. Keep in mind that this is always determined by the condition of the duct work prior to our work and how each person uses their particular HVAC system. These energy savings don’t just occur during the summer according to Austin Energy these savings continue in the winter time with the same effect.

During this process we install any additional weather stripping on exterior doors or furnace closets to ensure that no unnecessary air flow through the building envelop.

If anyone has had experience with Comprehensive Duct Sealing I would like to hear your feedback.

jonathan@sunsationalsolutions.com

If you have R-19 (approximately 7.5″) of attic insulation in your attic we will need to add and additional R-19 to get the minimum requirement for Texas. To calculate the rebate for Austin Energy assuming your home is 1000sq ft we multiply 1000 sq ft by 19 (Added R-value) times .0035 + $45= $111.50. If Austin Energy customers also receives Texas Gas Service then Texas Gas Service will match the Austin Energy rebate. This now totals to $223.00. To add R-19 we charge .45/sq ft in most cases. That is $450 minus 111.50 minus 111.50 minus 135.00 (30% Tax Credit) = $358.00 in total rebates and credits. This comes to ONLY $92.00 total investment. According to our calculations this 92.00 will come back within one year of energy savings.

I felt this is something everyone should try and utilize before the year is out.

We are here when you need us. 512-246-8468

Before: with solar screens

Every customer gets a thank you letter and survey so that I can track my employees and it gives a customer to offer suggestions for my company. We RARELY get anything less than a 4-5 out of 5. A lot of times we get responses that make me smile with such pride like this one in Austin.

Hi there Sam,

I wanted to “Thank You so much” for all your help & time helping me decide on the perfect tint for our new house.

Like I told you, we had just built our house, moved in & love all our big windows, however the sun & heat coming in was horrible! We knew we had to do something to help keep the sun, glare & heat away. We thought that getting “solar screens” would be the thing to do. After a couple weeks of researching, 5 bids, 2 sample windows…we decided to have solar screens put on our house. What a huge mistake that was! Leaving our house one Sunday with windows, we arrived home later that day having big brown screens, where were all our big pretty glass windows? To my surprise we did not like the solar screens! We felt like they over powered the house! It looked like a prison! We missed seeing all the pretty glass.

After: with window film

The next morning after the rain we could not see out the windows at all, the rain got stuck in the thick screen. Not only did the screens look horrible from the outside, but we could not see out from the inside. That day I knew I could not live with the solar screens. So I made the call “to have all the solar screens taken off” I made a big mistake, a big costly mistake, but the screens had to come off. With the screens off, we were back to square one…sun, heat, glare, etc…

That’s when I started researching tint companies. Once I talked to you, the research & calling around was over! I was so impressed with you, your company & your tint brand & quality! I thought it was great, that after talking with you that first time, you were able to come to my house 2 hours later, give me a bid, talk about my opinions & brought samples of your tint. After my visit with you is when I knew “tinting is what I should have done from the start” The next day when Jeff showed up to tint a sample window, to make sure we’d like it… I was so impressed! He was so professional, fast & totally knew what he was talking about. We love the way our house looks now with the tint.

The tint looks beautiful, not only does it make a huge difference in the heat, sun & glare…I love the way it looks from the outside. One of my biggest complaints before was being able to see into our house & seeing the white wood blinds from the curb..Yuck! Now that is no longer a problem. All my friends & neighbors say it looks great…a lot better than nothing & tons better than the thick ugly solar screens. It was truly a pleasure doing business with you. I am a very picky person, and our home is our lifetime investment & I’m glad it was you, Jon, Jeff & SUNsational Solutions that came to our rescue. I have & will continue to pass along your name & company to all my friends, family & even strangers, ha!

Thank you again!

Sincerely,

Michelle & Jim
Cedar Park, Tx.

Don’t get me wrong, dyed films aren’t all bad, manufacturer’s can control colors easier and develop very pretty films with dyes, inks, or pigments. Some (maybe two or three) manufacturer’s have develped pigmented (color stable) films that will hold up for a good amount of time and look nice during its life but be careful when selecting these products as they age they will start to fade clear before turning color.

Questions to ask the sales person:

What gives this film its color?

How long has this technology been around? There are two or three “new” technologies that have been changed or tweeked. The manufacturer’s have adjusted their manufacturering process of the product to make them look different a.k.a. adjusting the pigments to meet certain looks.

How does this film reduce heat? Absorbed/Reflected/Transmitted are three methods (the only methods) If no documented information about absorption is posted be cautious about this material!!!!!

Be cautious with their answer do not except it blocks all the IR (Infra-Red) heat energy. I will go into greater detail another day about IR.

Ask to see a installation with the film that is more than 4 years old if available.

Where is this film manufactured? Get the manufacturer’s address to confirm this information. You’ll be surprised how many companies label themselves as a manufacturer but aren’t and how many are considered a manufacturer by the IWFA (International Window Film Association) but don’t have a manufacturing plant. Call the IWFA and ask who is registered as a manufacturer or distributor. They will tell you.

Are they a member of the IWFA? If they are a member they pay a membership fee which goes to the IWFA to promote windowfilm. I do not recommend going with a company who is not a member.

Are they a Solar Control Film Specialist by the IWFA? This means they passed a test about their knowledge of window films using the IWFA standard. I recommend you choose a company who is a Solar Control Film Specialist because they know more about the construction of films and how they work more than an average window tinter. I say this because the manufacturer’s do not qualify their dealers very well. It is a unregulated industry and most window film companies are very small companies (which isn’t a bad thing) but they come and go so quickly that as a consumer if there is a problem with the installation you never know who is going to be around next year.

This information was gathered through a LEED certified Gold building in California.

Solar screens do not qualify in any way close to this. This just proves that solar screens are very poor for removing heat loads at all times of the day.

This study makes me smile!