Application guide

See window film in use.

Representative examples of solar, glare, UV protection, privacy, safety and decorative films on homes and workplaces. How each one reads depends on the glass, the film and the light.

A person drawing a squeegee down a wet sheet of film on a full height kitchen window, the water running ahead of the blade and a spray bottle on the sill — ResidentialSolar film being fitted to a residential kitchen window and worked flat.

Heat reduction

Solar-control film on the glazing that takes the sun. The room keeps its daylight and its outlook; what changes is how much of the sun's heat comes through with them. The images below show some typical applications.

About heat reduction

A living room looking straight out through full height glazing to a sunlit garden of eucalypts, the room bright and evenly lit rather than glaring — ResidentialSolar-control film on full-height residential glazing facing a sunlit garden.

The same building with reflective solar film on the glazing, the facade now reflecting the shopfronts, street trees and sky opposite — CommercialReflective solar film across a commercial facade, the street opposite returned by the glass.

The front of a brick and weatherboard house in late afternoon light, solar film across a group of windows giving each pane an even neutral reflection — ResidentialSolar film across the front windows of a brick home, each pane the same even tone.

A two storey commercial building with solar film across the whole street facade, every pane the same restrained tone and the sky reflected in the upper band — CommercialSolar film across a whole commercial street facade, consistent from pane to pane.

Glare reduction

The same family of film, judged on a different problem: whether a screen stays readable with the blinds open. Glare is about contrast rather than temperature, and the two are specified differently. The images below show some typical applications.

About glare reduction

A home office desk beside a bright window, the laptop screen legible against the daylight behind it — ResidentialGlare-control film at a home-office window, the screen legible against the daylight behind it.

A working office beside a corner run of treated glazing, the desks and chairs evenly lit and the rooftops and sky outside still clearly visible — CommercialGlare-control film on office glazing, the desks lit evenly and the view outside kept.

Daytime privacy

Reflective film works on a difference in brightness. In daylight the outside is brighter than the room, so the outer face of the glass returns the street rather than showing what is behind it. The images below show some typical applications.

After dark, with the lights on inside, that difference reverses and so does the effect. Where privacy is needed at night, the answer is an obscuring film or a film paired with a blind.

About daytime privacy

The front of a suburban house in afternoon light, its large living room window reflecting the street, sky and a neighbouring roof rather than showing the room behind — ResidentialDaytime privacy film on a residential window, seen from the street in afternoon light.

A low rendered commercial building with four large windows, every pane returning the sky, a street tree and the building opposite rather than the rooms behind — CommercialDaytime privacy film on the street windows of a small office, seen from the footpath.

Frosted privacy

Obscuring film frosts the glass itself, so it does not depend on the light and does not reverse after dark. Daylight still enters; the sightline does not. The images below show some typical applications.

About frosted film

A bathroom window with frosted film across the glass, the garden beyond reduced to soft tone and the daylight still entering the room — ResidentialFrosted film on a residential bathroom window, the garden beyond reduced to soft tone.

A person holding a sheet of frosted film against a window pane with a hand card ready in the other hand, a plain spray bottle and a trimming tool on the sill, and an already frosted pane beside it — ResidentialFrosted film being fitted to a bathroom window, beside a pane already done.

A sliding bathroom window with frosted film across both sashes, the garden outside reduced to soft colour and daylight still filling the room — ResidentialFrosted film across both sashes of a bathroom window, the daylight still coming through.

UV and fading

Furnishings fade under the ultraviolet in daylight rather than under its brightness. Film filters the part that does the damage and leaves the room lit. The images below show some typical applications.

About UV protection

Late morning sun falling in a window shaped patch across a jute rug and a dark timber floor, beneath a framed artwork with its colour intact — ResidentialA residential living space beside treated glazing, with sun falling across a rug and timber floor.

Afternoon sun entering a living room through a large sash window and falling across a timber floor and a patterned rug — ResidentialAfternoon sun through a treated sash window, across a timber floor and a patterned rug.

A small workplace behind a glazed partition, afternoon sun falling across a timber table, a bookshelf and a timber floor — CommercialSun entering a small workplace through treated glazing, across a timber table, shelving and floor.

A furniture showroom behind a large shopfront window, upholstered lounges, timber and framed pictures standing close to the treated glass in full daylight — CommercialUpholstery, timber and framed work standing close to the treated glass of a showroom window.

Safety and security

Safety film does not stop glass breaking. It holds the broken pane together in its frame instead of releasing it, which is the difference that matters at the moment of an impact. The images below show some typical applications.

About safety film

A glazed sliding door after an impact: the pane is fractured in a tight radial pattern and is still standing in its frame — ResidentialSafety film holding a fractured residential sliding door within its frame.

A commercial shopfront pane after an impact: cracks run out from a single point and the whole pane is still standing in its frame, with no glass on the footpath — CommercialSafety film on commercial shopfront glazing, the cracked pane still standing in its frame.

Decorative and banded

The same obscuring material used as a surface rather than a screen: a band at seated height, or a pattern that reads as texture from a distance and stays partly open close up. The images below show some typical applications.

About decorative film

A glass balustrade beside a stair in a workplace, a broad frosted band running across every panel and continuing in line around the corner — CommercialA frosted band across a glass stair balustrade, running in line across every panel.

A glazed office partition with a frosted band across it, the band level and continuous through every panel joint — CommercialA frosted band across a glazed office partition, level and continuous through every joint.

Tell us about your glass.

Send us the rooms and the windows. We will confirm which of these films suits them and put a written quotation in front of you.

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An assessment in an unfinished commercial fitout: two people either side of a worktable reviewing a drawing, a tape measure and a folding rule on the bench, a Melbourne street and tram through the glazing behind them