Jan 2011 Editorial by Virginia L. Kubler As glass is increasingly used in American e, more and more homeowners are turning to professionally installed icontrol window film to help guard against fading, to reduce the sun's glare and for energy savings. Clearly there is a confict between a homeowner's desire for a spacious, airy interior incorporationg large expanses of glass and the ravages wrought by the sun. Furthermore, there is an energy price to pay. passes readily through glass--approximately 50 percent of a home's utility bills are wasted by loss of heat and and heat gain through untreated glass. Consumers have become incresingly aware of the sophisticated solar window films that are available and attributes they offer. Solar window films are environmentally friendly. They save energy. They help protect furnishings and art from fading and help eliminate glare and hot spots. Finally, they allow homeowners to make optimum use of outdoor views afforded by modern spacious windows. In today's business climate, as we approach the 21st century, there exists a strong, growing potential market for window coverings retailers and suppliers to increase business with a multifaceted solution for solar control problems. Solar control window film should not be confused with the automotive black tinting of the past. Today's sophisticated solar window film provide an efficient as well as economical solution to solar problems. The product is a high-tech laminate of polyester and titanium coating bonded by distortion-free adhesives. It is designed to deal with the individual electomagnetic wave-lenghts of the sun's energy in such a manner as to curb heat passing through the glass(infrared), control light transmission and virtually eliminate ultraviolet radiation, which is the main cause of fading. The amount of energy savings achieved per household depends on the solar window film used, the buildings construction and the climate in which the building is located. For example, there are solar window films available that reject form 35 percent of the solar energy for a neutral film that is vurtually impossible to detect to 84 percent for a privacy film. And there is a wide range of films available today to serve residential and commercial needs for energy savings, aethetics and security. New energy saving window films have been introduced recently. They are known as Low-E films. Low-E stands for low emissivity, a measurement of a surface's ability to absorb heat. The lower the emissivity, the less heat is absorbed by the glass the more room heat is reflected back into the home. For solar window films, the lower the emissivity rating, the better. For example, a solar window film with an emissivity rating of .45 percent reflect back 55 percent of the room heat that would be lost through untreated glass. An emissivity rating of .36 percent means 64 percent of the room heat would be retained. Additionally, today's high-tech solar winow films will reject exterior solar energy that reaches windows--most of which is substantial savings on air conditioning in the warm months of the year. Windows fitted with a high-quality, high-tech, Low-E solar window film should provide excellent visibility, transmitting 49 percent of all visible light, and offer an economical alternative to purchasing Low-E glass and replacing a standard window. One of the challanges facing homeowners in a warm, sunny climate is to control the sun's energy during the day and to preserve privacy as well as night-time views. Many high solar rejection window films actually prevent people inside a home from seeing out but allow those outside to see in. New "night-vision" solar window film, however, have a high solar rejection rate, up to 84 percent, and yet provide clear visibility from the inside day or night. These films are constructed with an exclusive, clear, distortion-free adhesive system and a special scratch-free face coating that allows for easy maintenance using stadard window cleaning products. They provide and added safety benefit by forming a shield across the glass on which they are fitted. If the glass were to be broken, most of the fragments would be held in place. As a retrofit item, solar window film is applied on the inside of windows and is campatible with either single or double-pane (thermal) glass of any shape or size normally found in today's homes. Solar window films often are used with decorative window treatments as a prtective complement for draperies, curtains, blinds, shades and even awnings. The installation of solar window film is critically important to aesthetics and longevity. The best films will be marketed through highly trained specially selected dealers who are responsible for installation. These dealers need to be trained to help the homeowner match the choice of film to the domestic challenge to be faced. Professionall installation is quick, without nmess and without the need to interrupt normal day-to-day activities.