The many ways that specialty window film can help homes, offices and institutions by installing security window film, UV window film and thermal window films.

Specialty Window Film – Specific Use Cases and Types

Eastern Solar Glass is well known for its installation work involving Security, Decorative, Privacy, Solar, and Thermal Films, but did you know that they also carry numerous specialty films?

These films and finishes are built for specific use cases, making it that much easier to refresh instead of replacing your glass or fixtures for issues that homeowners and business owners alike run into when dealing with a large influx of solar heat and UV rays.

Our specialty films include:

FEATHER FRIENDLY® BIRD STRIKE WINDOW FILM

This film keeps our feathered friends, as well as our windows, safe from bird strikes.

CASPER® CLOAKING TECHNOLOGY BY DESIGNTEX

For ensuring privacy compliance while still maintaining an open office feel.  Casper® Cloaking Technology lets you see in but blocks the view of any digital screen behind the protected glass.

3M™ POST-IT® FLEX WRITE SURFACE

No more worrying about a permanent marker on the whiteboard.  3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface wipes clean and are installable anywhere.

3M™ ANTI-GRAFFITI FILM

No more replacing glass or scrubbing graffiti off your storefront.  This film takes care of this issue with easily removable sheets of film that take your building back to its original state after tagging, quickly and easily.

3M™ DICHROIC GLASS FILMS

Obtain beautiful colors and a unique look and feel with this film with color shifting technology with 3M™ Dichroic Glass Film.

TURF GUARD WINDOW FILM

A lawn or field comprised of turf is placed in front of a building with a large window; the reflection of the UV rays off that window can melt your turf, leading to a costly replacement.  Turf Guard solves that problem.

This article will dive into what makes these films unique; Feather Friendly, Casper® Cloaking Technology by Designtex, 3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface, Anti-Graffiti Films, 3M™ Dichroic Glass Finishes, and Turf Guard.  We will be discussing how the films work, some of the possible use cases for each film, and the benefits that each film delivers.

Picture showing detail in Feather Friendly Film, and how it works to stop bird collisions.
Feather Friendly Film helps to mitigate bird strikes, keeping our feathered friends safe, as well as our windows.

Feather Friendly® Bird Strike Window Film

Several solutions prevent birds from hitting windows, though Feather Friendly® bird strike window film is one of the most functional products for residential and commercial applications.

Feather Friendly® Bird Strike Film is placed on the exterior side of a glass surface to reduce the reflection from the glass, which entices birds to fly into them; they see nothing but a clear pathway.  The film markers show birds that the space is too small for them to fit through and is the reasoning behind the specific width and spacing of the markers.  

Trusted Solution to Prevent Birds from Hitting Windows

Feather Friendly® a trusted solution to prevent bird strikes, having impressive case studies backed up by their excellent reputation, holding the highest performance rating both in reduced collisions and longevity.

Feather Friendly® is approved and endorsed by the American Bird Conservancy (ABC) and Fatal Light Awareness Program (FLAP) fabricated by 3M™.  This endorsement means that all Feather Friendly® films come backed by the performance standards and durability assurances 3M™ requires.  

Feather Friendly® can maintain its performance without failure in all types of environments and climates, making it the best film for bird window-strike prevention.  It also boasts clear visibility for humans while looking out their windows. 

All these factors combined are why Eastern Solar Glass uses Feather Friendly® as its bird strike film of choice.

Proven Prevention for Bird Window Strikes

Feather Friendly® uses simple adhesive window decals applied to exterior glass at specific spacing intervals, making it visible to both mature and immature birds of all species.  This scientifically proven solution to bird strikes comes with numerous benefits, in addition to protection against bird-window collisions:  

1.  Affordability

Feather Friendly® will also provide you a decrease in maintenance fees you may incur when locating and disposing of bird strike remains.

2.  Longevity  

Feather Friendly® comes with a 6-year 3M™ product warranty, though the decals themselves have an expected lifespan of more than eight years.  This film is also not affected by the routine washing of windows. 

3.  Visibility 

Feather Friendly® films provide over 98% clear viewing, maintaining optical clarity for building occupants while maintaining the same protection for our feathered friends. 

4. Aesthetic 

Feather Friendly® window markers are aesthetically pleasing, unobtrusive, and designs that maintain the building’s natural appearance and architectural features. 

Regardless of what a window is treated with (or if it is entirely bare), the surface of the glass will reflect the foliage and sky, making it easy for birds to assume it is an open sky and contributing to bird strikes.  While interior markers may help reduce collisions, they are nowhere near as effective as an exterior application film like Feather Friendly® solutions. 

Casper® Cloaking Technology by Designtex

When it comes to privacy film, cloaking film technology offers unrivaled confidentiality while still maintaining an open feel, fostering communication and collaboration.  Casper™ Cloaking Film from Designtex is a glass film that obscures digital screens for an outside view. 

Unlike other privacy films, which obscure the view from the outside through tint or reflectivity, Casper™ is a privacy-forward architectural glass film. For customers, Casper™ is a breakthrough solution to a growing problem.

 How Casper® Cloaking Technology Differs from Traditional Privacy Films 

This office window privacy film acts as a clear shield to efficiently protect data privacy while providing the peace of mind to work together freely in any environment. 

Casper™ cloaking film protects sensitive information from anyone not meant to see it, upholding HIPAA compliance and ensuring that data remains only in the hands of the people intended to have it. 

This technology removes the need for vertical blinds, shades, drapes, permanent dark tints, or any other visual obfuscation method you have taken previously to keep meetings secure. 

How Cloaking Technology Works

Casper™ privacy glass film works by only cloaking the light transmitted by LED displays and nothing else. Viewers standing outside the room can see everything except your screens, which will appear “blacked out” when being viewed through the film.

By seeming both transparent and obscure simultaneously, Casper™ cloaking film balances openness and confidentiality in the office while effectively eliminating any threat of visual hacking.

The Casper product line includes multiple graphic patterns that add a layer of subtle privacy in situations where fully transparent glass is not desired. 

The cloaking technology alongside the patterns allows clients to choose the perfect balance of openness and privacy to suit their needs perfectly.  With Casper Cloaking Technology – Seeing is believing.   

3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface

Two women make a presentation in from of another man on a 3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface covered wall.
3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface can turn anything into an easily erasable whiteboard.

Have you ever mistakenly written on your whiteboard in permanent marker?  Or, maybe, you have had to lug around a heavy, cumbersome whiteboard from office to office while giving presentations.  3M™ realized these in addition to many other use cases where 3M™’s Whiteboard technology just wasn’t entirely cutting it.  Enter, 3M™ Post-It Write Surface.  We will allow one of the project supervisors from 3M™ to explain the reasoning behind the creation of this product in more detail: 

“The idea behind Post-it® Flex Write Surface was to create a film that would be very easy to keep clean, with only water. This product eliminates the fear of writing with a permanent marker.  The technology allows even writing done in permanent ink to be removed easily with water. Being able to write on the Flex Write Surface with permanent and dry erase markers together lets people use a whiteboard in ways they haven’t been able to before,” says Erika Saffer, technical supervisor on the project.”

As open-concept offices tailored for collaboration became increasingly popular, 3M™ recognized that businesses needed more flexibility to collect and share ideas.

The research discovered general dissatisfaction with dry erase paint, which turns entire walls into a writing surface because they are difficult to erase and clean, over time becoming blemished with unremovable markings.  The Post-it® Flex Write Surface is a solution that creates easy-to-clean, collaborative writing surfaces.  

How 3M™ Post-It® Flex Write Surface Works

The Flex Write Surface performs so well because of its hydrophilic, or “water-loving” writing surface. The surface accepts ink as usual, but it easily releases the ink when water is added because it loves water so much. 

The super-hydrophilic technology that creates the Post-it® Flex Write Surface has been used in fingerprint technology, electronics, and some cleaning solutions but has never been used on a whiteboard surface.

The adhesive that permits easy installation of the Post-it® Flex Write Surface is a new formulation of the repositionable adhesive you find on Post-it® Notes.  

Anti-Graffiti Film 

Anti-Graffiti film is an exterior film that protects your glass surfaces from vandalism. The anti-Graffiti film gives your glass a solid first line of defense against paint, gouging, scratching, and even acid etching. 

Graffiti shown on a window that could be easily fixable, if it had 3M Anti-graffiti film installed
By utilizing an Anti-Graffiti film, you have little to no downtime, as removing the vandalism is as easy as removing your old film and replacing it with a new sheet.

Vandalism not only damages your image but may deter limited-time customers from giving your store a chance, so being able to fix the damage promptly is crucial. 

By utilizing an Anti-Graffiti film, you have little to no downtime, as removing the vandalism is as easy as removing your old film and replacing it with a new sheet.  Glass replacement is costly and more disruptive to install, meaning downtime for your business.  

3M™ Anti-Graffiti Film can be taken down and replaced quickly and without the need to remove your windows. 

More Benefits of Anti-Graffiti Films 
  • Stop vandalism with protection from graffiti. Defend your surfaces against most scratches, acid etching, gouges, and tagging with 3M™ Anti-Graffiti Film.
  • Remove and reinstall quickly – without the hassle of replacing your windows.
  • Money-saving option that is only a fraction of the cost of new glass.
  • Rejects 99% of the UV rays that contribute to fading, helping extend the life of display merchandise.
  • Transparent protection without detection. Protect your glass and your budget.

 

3M™ Dichroic Glass Finishes

The original meaning of dichroic, from the Greek dikhroos, two-colored, refers to an optical device that can split a single beam of light into two separate beams with different wavelengths. 

Dichroic films are high-end decorative films that create visually stunning shimmering and color-shifting effects as the view angle is changed.  These films can be used on architectural glass, making them a versatile and unique film, whether installed residentially or commercially. 

Image of store demonstrating effect of 3M™ Dichroic Glass Finishes
3M™ Dichroic Glass Finishes can give your home, building or institution an added touch of unique aesthetic, so you are able to make your space exclusively yours.
Dichroic Glass Finishes for Commercial Use 

The dichroic film is a popular choice for decorative glass treatments on partitions and windows of office buildings, schools, hospitals, and more.  

The color-changing properties of this film add a layer of privacy for meeting rooms, windows of offices, and glass partitioning, making them feel warmer and more welcoming and less like an observation room or a fishbowl.  

Dichroic glass films’ unique shimmering and color-shifting effects add a unique aesthetic that will set your business apart from the rest.  It will produce a creative artistic vibe in your space or be applied internally on outside facing windows; the film can give your entire building a fun, fresh new look.  

In addition to completing an entire job in Dichroic film, it can also create eye-catching signage, decorative features, and logos due to its flexibility and ability to adhere to even plastic surfaces.  

Artistic and Residential Use Cases for Dichroic Film 

Although we typically see this film used for commercial applications, residential applications, such as glass tables, doors, and showers, can benefit from Dichroic Film technology.

These films can give the same visually stunning effects on your residential projects that they do on your commercial projects.  Your residential surfaces can also gain a modern, artistic look, with film options ranging from warm to cool tones.  

Dichroic Glass Films can be used outdoors but must be sandwiched between layers of glass or acrylic to protect them from the elements.  It has become a popular feature in outdoor glass sculptures, giving the statue a permanent ever-changing color pattern and shimmer. 

You can find Dichroic film installations in many of the significant art and entertainment districts around the world.  We have seen it used in upscale residential buildings, in showers, on entranceways, and everywhere in between lobbies to master bedrooms, giving the residents that artistic flair they crave.  

Turf Guard Window Film

Is your glass or your neighbor’s glass killing your grass or melting your siding? Prevent your grass from burning and synthetic turf and siding from melting by installing turf protecting film.

Utilizing artificial grass has many benefits, such as easy maintenance and aesthetic appeal.  However, as time goes by and the summer season rolls around again, artificial grass can melt due to the heat reflecting off your windows.  Damage from these hot spots is visible in areas where your turf may look dried and withered instead of lush and green. 

A picture containing grass, outdoor, sky, and a home utilizing Turf Guard Window Film
Turf Guard Window Film can stop the melting of your artificial turf due to reflectivity of the sun off of your windows and help to keep your homes internal temperature regulated at the same time.
The Benefits of Turf Guard Window Film 

The main benefit against turf damage that this window film brings to the table is its non-reflectivity.  Unlike many other traditional films, which may have a reflective property, Turf Guard does not reflect the sun’s rays.  The non-reflectivity of the material means it does not increase the sun’s temperature by reflecting it off a glass surface (your windows), which would intensify the heat enough to melt your artificial lawn. 

Other benefits of Turf Guard include its ability to not block the daylight from coming in through your windows during the day.  Letting sun in is a massive bonus since other options of saving your turf include closing your curtains and blinds, leaving people in the dark during the daytime hours.  Turf Guard lets the light in but does not reflect it, stopping lawn damage. 

Turf Guards surface also adds a measure of privacy since it is lightly tinted, meaning that you can get privacy, sunlight and save your lawn, all with the installation of one film. 

In Closing 

We hope this article opened your eyes to some of the more unique and exciting ways that both businesses and homeowners can utilize window films and finishes.  By keeping your cost and downtime low, you can get the protection, decoration, or privacy you want at a fraction of the price that a traditional glass re-installation would cause. 

If you have any questions about our line of specialty films, please feel free to contact us at any time.  We are here to help educate and assist the public in making more eco-friendly, time-saving, and affordable solutions to solve their everyday problems. 

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