#TINTED WINDOW FILM 4 MIL THICK CLING INSTALL#

Tunneling can happen with thicker films because of the difference of thickness between the film and the backing liner (which tends to be very thin). This can lead to permanent visible line marks on the film, which will remain on the film after the liner is peeled off. This is when the clear backing liner pops off the film in some places, creating narrow tunnels consisting of line-shaped gaps between the liner and the film. Sometimes a problem known as “tunneling” may arise from the remainder of a roll of a thicker film. However, for security films, this can weaken these spots. If there are bubbles in a few specific spots, you can use a needle to poke the bubbles and let the air out from the gap, helping that spot stick. Unlike cloudiness or streaks, bubbles would likely not disappear once they form, unless they are small enough (those about 1/8 inch or less in diameter can disappear as the film dries). Note that the black felt side of the squeegee would ordinarily be used for this process the other plastic or rubber side can be used when precision is needed, such as corners.īubbles should be prevented in advance. This can help the squeegee glide over the film more easily.

This necessitates applying more pressure with the squeegee than for thinner films.Ī suggested tip is to first spray some soapy water on top of the film after it is on the window, before you apply the squeegee. If there is soapy water left over between the film and the window, the moisture can interfere with the adhesive and cause bubbles to form soon afterwards, even if it was not apparent on the day of installation.īubbles can happen with any film, but they can pose a problem particularly for security films, due to the increased thickness that makes it harder to squeeze out the water. With any window film, it is important that the soapy solution used during installation should be properly squeezed out with the squeegee once the film is up on the window. These are, however, expected to disappear as the film dries, so we recommend waiting a few weeks for these to go away. These can occur due to factors such as the temperature and the fact that the adhesive can be pushed around during the installation process. Some customers have reported streak marks or a cloudy, foggy look appearing on the security film after it was installed. The curing time depends on the temperature and humidity the film can take longer to dry in damp, cold environments. Whereas thinner films can dry in a few days, you may need to wait a few weeks for security films to dry completely. Security films can take a longer time to cure (dry) than ordinary window films. When this is an issue with a thick film that you are attempting to pre-cut to the window size, it can help to measure the piece a little bit smaller than the actual size you need (about 1/8 inch less than the window size).

As a result, after you measure the film to the needed size and then cut it, the film piece might end up being slightly larger than what you intended. Tightly rolled films might not be laid perfectly flat after being unrolled.

These films should be cut to the size of the window in advance. Thicker films such as security films, on the other hand, are harder to trim from the window. Once the film is put up on the window, the extra margin can be trimmed out.

#TINTED WINDOW FILM 4 MIL THICK CLING INSTALL#

Normally, when you cut window film to install a piece onto the window, we suggest having a small extra margin (about 1 inch). There are some things to keep in mind when handling thick films. This unit conversion table shows the comparisons of these units (~ denotes approximations): Therefore, 1 mil is equal to 25.4 microns, and 1 micron is approximately 0.03937 mil. One micron (μm) is 10 -6 meter, or 0.001 mm. When using the metric system, window film may be measured in a unit called micrometer, commonly referred to as micron. One millimeter is much thicker than one mil: since 1 inch is equal to 2.54 centimeters (cm), or 25.4 mm, 1 mil would equal to 0.0254 mm. Some customers may misunderstand “mil” to mean millimeter (mm). Security and graffiti protection films tend to be thicker, having 4, 7, or 8 mil thickness. Many of our films have a thickness of 1, 1.5, or 2 mil (not counting the backing liner attached to the film). Window film thickness is commonly measured in a unit called mil. Film Thickness and Tips for Thicker Films

Tinted window film 4 mil thick cling