Nearly all buildings have windows on them, especially hotels and apartments, as well as houses and most offices. But what makes for a good window? Not only should it fit securely in its frame and prevent air drafts, but a good window will also help protect the building’s climate control. Double-paned Energy STAR windows can do this to contain warmth in a building during winter, and commercial security window tinting can help keep a building cooler during warm seasons and sunny weather. Not only that, but workplace window tinting can offer some privacy, too, and a building manager may soon reach out to commercial safety film companies to have this tint added to their structure. When is it time for commercial security window tinting, and how does it save energy for a building?
Windows and Sunlight Hazards
It may seem odd at first, but windows and sunlight play a central in any building’s energy efficiency, whether it is a regular home or a huge skyscraper or office building. During warm weather, direct sunlight can get into a building via its windows, and that light contains a lot of warmth. The problem is that all this warm sunlight will heat up the building in a hurry, and this will prompt the air conditioning to respond and turn on. But this will use up a lot of electricity to keep cool, and take note that the average American home dedicates nearly half of its electricity to HVAC utilities. A commercial building will also suffer a very high electric bill if the heater or air conditioner is being overworked like this, and it’s all because of sunlight through bare windows. These bare windows may also admit a lot of UV radiation from the sun, too; nearly 50% of UVA rays can pass through regular windows.
On top of that, the glare can make an office or room uncomfortable to work in, not to mention how sunlight can fade carpets, drapes, and home furnishings. Around 52% of all respondents to a recent International Window Film Association survey said that they are concerned about sun fading all those features and more. In extreme cases, prolonged sunlight exposure can also damage the skin of people inside buildings; contrary to popular belief, sunlight in a building may indeed harm a person’s skin.
So, while window blind and screens are a fine solution to all this, a larger building (such as a skyscraper) will need commercial security window tinting work done. How might this work?
Commercial Security Window Tinting
It is one thing for a house to have window screens or drapes installed to block hot sunlight and create privacy, but that is not practical for a large office, where dozens or hundreds of people would have to coordinate in their offices. Instead, the building manager may consult tinting firms to upgrade all their windows and add film to them, and such film can automatically tint windows once they are exposed to a certain level of sunlight. This way, all of the windows in the sunlit side of a building will tint all together, without needing any person to adjust them. This will block a lot of warm sunlight from getting in, which keeps the building pleasantly cool and helps ease the strain on the air conditioner. This can save a lot of money for a large building; window tint may block as much as 79% of all solar heat, and a homeowner can save 40% on their utility bill this way. Offices can enjoy similar savings.
Such tinting not only slashes energy costs, but these tinted windows can reduce glare by around 50%, and they can allow 30-80% of visible light to still pass through. This creates a more convenient and comfortable setting in any office, and nearly all UV light will be blocked, too. All this can help protect couches, drapes, and carpets from the fading effects of sunlight. As a bonus, it is difficult for outside parties to see through these tinted windows, so the offices and other rooms inside have some added privacy.
