You have to choose the right film to begin with. Then there are no penalties for tinting, and it won’t interfere with your driving.
The first thing you should take into account. the degree of light transmission. Tinting density of rear windows is not regulated by State Standard. But there are some nuances. If you have no side mirrors it is not allowed to use tinted glass with less than 70% light transmission.
Mirror tinting is forbidden, it is regulated by the State Standard and the technical regulations for the admission of a car. Also, do not use colored films and chameleons.
Let’s see what type of film can be used on the rear window.
- Dyed. Inexpensive film. Doesn’t last long, burns out fast. On the rear window is often damaged at the point of contact with the heating elements.
- Metallized. Considered one of the best options for rear window. It is practically not subject to damage from regular heating. Tinting is achieved by metallic spraying between polymer layers. Do not get the variant with aluminum sputtering, such a film has a mirror effect.
- Spatters. Metal spraying is done directly on the polymer. Do not stick such a film on the rear window, there is a risk of short-circuiting the conductive heating element.
- Athermal. Polymer film resists heat well, so it does not deform. Serves long. Completely protects the interior from ultraviolet rays.
- Carbon film. A thin layer of graphite is sprayed on the polymer. Has a matte finish. Resists temperature fluctuations. The disadvantages are high cost.
- Tinted glasses. You can find tinted glass for some car models. Ideal solution, but expensive and not always possible to buy.
In addition to the above, there is a silicone removable toning. It is not very good-looking, and there is a risk to lose the film with heating.
You should choose a film based on your needs and the specifics of your car model. Do not buy too cheap variants, they do not serve long, they often have no reliable protection from overheating. It is better to buy an athermal or metallized film. Carbon fiber tinting will also be a good option.
How to do the tinting with your own hands
It seems that many motorists have more than once looked with envy at passing cars tinted “to zero”. No doubt, good-quality tinting changes the exterior view of your car, making it visually attractive. However, in addition to its purely aesthetic role, tinted car windows also performs useful functions. For example, allows you to reduce the temperature inside the car in summer, not letting in a solid portion of the solar energy, and in winter contributes to the accumulation of heat. because the sun’s rays are better heated dark surface. over, toning performs a protective function, hiding from the eyes of ordinary people what is in the cabin and the trunk (if it’s a hatchback or wagon) of the car. The only inconvenience that tinting can cause is reducing visibility at night.
The windows of many modern cars can be covered with tinting already at the factory. The manufacturer often defines a comfortable degree of tinting (the bandwidth of the tinting film) in accordance with the world standards of safety. The traffic police have no claims to such tinting. If the film used to tint the car windows has a capacity that does not meet the specified standards, the traffic police can fine the car owner and force him to remove the tinting. By the way, we are speaking about the windows of front doors only: according to GOST the capacity of a tinting film for these windows must not exceed 30% (i.e. tinting must absorb not more than 30% of the light).
On the glass rear doors and trunk, which today many automakers toning themselves even at the conveyor, these rules do not apply. Consequently, you may tint them “at zero”, i.e. with a tinting film with transmission power from 5 to 15%.
Let’s assume that you have decided to tint the glasses of your car. But you do not trust the firm that does the tinting and want to do everything yourself. Commendable. We will try to help you with a few tips.
Tip Choosing a film.
You are certainly not your own enemy, so you should choose the film responsibly. First of all, remember that a good film that is durable and has an optimal transmission capacity not only for the sun’s rays, but also for the driver’s eyesight, is not cheap. However, is it worth saving your budget when it comes to high-quality tinting of the car?? Secondly, it is necessary to define, what glasses will be tinted. You can tint all panes of your car, but the windshield, rear window, and side window film will have different penetration rates. You want to tint all your car windows with tinted film. Then the film with 50% transparency will be good for windshield, for front side windows. 35%, and back windows and trunk windows can be tinted with film with 15% transparency.
In addition to the film’s degree of transparency, you must also take into account its color. An optimum choice is carbon gray, which is comfortable for the eyes of car’s passengers and well interferes with penetration of sun rays and strange sights into the salon.
Advice Preparing for wrapping with tinted film.
You have purchased a tint film, now you need to prepare the tools, materials and the very windows of the car for tinting. Of tools you will need a construction dryer, a utility knife, a spray gun, a marker, a plastic spatula, a needle, a piece of clean cloth. For materials. the tinting film itself, soap solution (5 drops of washing-up liquid per 1.5 liters of water).
Now the only thing left is to dismantle and clean the glasses. We advise to take them out as tinting film on glasses of the car without its taking out is a difficult business, and you can not do without experience. It is better not to risk and take the windows out. Then they should be thoroughly washed with a soapy solution, difficult dirt should be removed with a solvent, and then washed again with a soapy solution. The next stage. preparation of a “pattern”. To do this, take a piece of tinting film, place it on the window and mark the margins of the edges with a marker, leaving a tolerance of 5-7 millimeters. Then we cut this pattern with a paper knife.
Hint: Wrapping your car windows with tinting film.
The soapy water we used to clean the windows from dirt is also useful in the tinting process. It is important to remember that this procedure must be performed in a clean and dust-free room, otherwise microparticles could get under the film and damage its appearance. Spray a thin layer of soapy water on the surface to be coated with a spraygun.
This is to allow the piece of film, which is used to glue the glass, to move freely across the surface of the glass during adjustment. Then wash your hands and moisten your fingertips with soapy water. Take the tinting film in one hand and take the protective film from its inner surface with the other. Moisten the loose adhesive side with the soapy solution. Then, with care, apply the film to a clean and damp surface, taking care that there are no horizontal folds. Vertical. allowed. Then carefully start smoothing the film with a plastic spatula, moving it from the center of the pane to the edges. The film should be warmed up with a construction hair dryer.
difficult task? Very. Therefore it is better to laminate the glass surface with a tinting film with an assistant who will, for example, warm up the surface while you are smoothing out the vertical folds.
It is very important to watch that the film touches the pane as tightly as possible, do not let bubbles form. If you can not avoid it, and bubbles on the surface of the film appeared, the air or excess soapy solution from them can be removed by piercing the bubble with the tip of the needle. the hole will be microscopic and will not affect the appearance and the service life of the film. When the film is applied, leave the worked glass for several hours for drying, and let’s start the other one. Having finished all operations, watching carefully, we install the tinted glasses in their places. the work is ready.
Materials and tools
On a network you will find numerous video lessons, plus you can read about experience of independent window tinting on Drive2. Sources of information abound.
But the procedure requires all the necessary materials and tools. You can’t do without:
See also
Torque wrench for the car: how to use
- the required amount of tinting film;
- paper towels;
- degreaser (you can just alcohol);
- hair dryer;
- A rubber trowel;
- sharp knife;
- scissors;
- sprayer for aqueous solution;
- scraper;
- good light;
- water;
- soap or detergent;
- good mood.
You can do without a hairdryer, but only if it is a removable tint. And films, on the other hand, require a hot air source.
I want to remind that not so long ago we already discussed questions of tinting of front and rear headlights. According to the traffic code, you can’t tint only the windshield completely. For the rest of the requirements are more lenient, and on the side they do not apply at all.
The nuances of removing tinting from the rear window
Remove tinting yourself from the rear window of the car by yourself is possible, but it requires more care and accuracy. It is very easy to damage the windshield with careless movements. You should also be careful not to scratch anything.
Any method of removing tint from the rear window must have a previous heating procedure with a hair dryer. It is not the best way to remove tinting with solvents. Softer substances for removing tint can preserve the integrity and safety of your car. The requirement to remove tinting applies to both the front windshield and the rear window. The taking off procedure must take place in comfortable conditions, and the temperature outside must not be below zero. this may damage the glass even without heating.
Choice of Tinting
The most common and affordable way to tint the rear window is the use of tinting film. By the way, if we talk about the most modern achievements in the field of toning, it is worth mentioning the so-called electronic toning, which recently appeared on the market of auto services. Its main feature is its unique ability to change its light transmission in seconds. One press of a button on a special key fob, and tinted glass turns into plain glass. One more push, and vice versa.
However, this tinting is still a luxury because of the high cost (up to 10 thousand U.S. dollars). It is also impossible to do it at home, because it requires special equipment. Regular tinting film is affordable and available in a wide range of colors. So if you’re thinking about how to tint your rear window, I can safely recommend its use.
Detailed instructions on how to make toning your car yourself
It is much cheaper to tint a car with your own hands than if you give it to a car service.
The inside of the car will not heat up
Tinting will give the opportunity to feel comfortable in the summer when the sun is burning outside.
UV protection
Tinting reflects more than 90% of ultraviolet light, which gives protection from its harmful effects on humans.
Increased strength of the windows
Tinting gives extra protection for the windows, minimizing the chances of being broken.
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Keeps out curious onlookers
Not only that unauthorized people will not look into the salon, so also burglars will not see valuables left in the car.
Aesthetics
Undoubtedly, a tinted car looks more presentable and tinting gives it a certain chic.
Installing tinting nets on the front windows
Tinted car glass (with light transmission less than 70%) can be installed on the front windshields!) is prohibited by the Highway Code, nor are nets if they interfere with a driver’s view while driving. But, risking to be fined, the drivers still install a tinted screen-grid on the front auto glass at their own risk. Let’s consider how these nets are fixed on Chevrolet Lanos.
Grids for Lanos are designed in frames, each of them has a label on the inside. Mesh tinting is fixed with four steel hooks, covered with plastic material, hooks have a bent shape.
- Open the front door, pull the window all the way down;
- A total of four hooks to secure the mesh, see where these points are located;
- The first point is at the bottom of the frame, behind the glass;
As you can see, the nets are very simple to install and easy to remove. In order not to get in trouble with the traffic police, you can remove the grid during the trip. It is necessary to note, that the shutters are not forbidden on any rear window, so you can safely install them without fear of problems with the traffic cops. There are also window blinds, which are held in place by magnets, they are even easier to remove and install.
Applying tinting film on the rear window
Process of cleaning of rear window of the car is a little bit different as it has heating threads and it is necessary to be very careful not to damage them. It is also recommended to use a plastic scraper instead of a scraper.
- After cleaning, wash the glass with a hard sponge, wipe it dry with a stiff cloth and wipe the perimeter with a cloth.
- Before applying the tinting film, abundantly moisten the glass with the solution, while covering the back shelf with a rag or some other improvised material so as not to pour water on the car electrical equipment.
It is better to have an assistant for installing tinting film on the rear window.
- When removing the liner, immediately moisten the exposed adhesive layer with a water and soap solution.
- Carefully, without touching foreign objects with a layer of glue, bring the blank onto the window. this is a very responsible operation and requires a certain skill.
- Take care not to let the film curl, crinkle, or bend.
The glue layer of the mould must touch only the treated glass surface and in no case neither the interior parts of the car, nor clothes of the installer.
Align the pattern on the glass so that there are no gaps, and start smoothing it out, using a rubber gouge.
When tinting the rear window smooth the film from the center to the edges so there are no air and water bubbles under the film. Use a plastic spatula in hard-to-reach places.
- Next, moisten the toning film and squeeze out any remaining mortar from underneath it with a stiff squeegee.
- Press out along the heating strands. from the center to the edges.
- Then do the same operation with a rigid vinyl, but already wrapped in a napkin.
The final step is to press the tinting film around the perimeter with a dryer while heating the glass from the outside with a hairdryer.
Be careful not to overheat the glass with a hair dryer. it may break!
To properly apply a tinted film in most cases, experts carefully pull out the car window, and then do all the work on a specialized work bench, covered with glass or smooth linoleum. In case you don’t want to do it or you don’t have such an opportunity, you can use papyrus paper attached to the car glass to further outline all the contours. After these procedures you will have to cut out a mold with very clear boundaries, and then transfer it to the tinted film. This way, you can cut the film to exactly fit the shape of the car glass.
