This is a concern of many window film shoppers. How do you achieve privacy with the addition of window film? Well, there are a couple of ways, but none of them include 24 hour privacy. A reflective film like Night Vision 15, can give you daytime privacy, but it just isn’t possible for it to provide privacy at night, and none of our solar films will. The reason for this is lighting. Whichever side of the glass has the most light, will be the side that is most visible.
I loved Police Academy and Naked Gun movies growing up. I have very sophisticated taste in cinema. Anyhow, there is a scene in I believe Police Academy 1, 2, 3, 4 or whatever that comes to me when I think of explaining privacy film to a customer. They’re conducting a Police Lineup with several different men. The Witness who is about to identify the suspect is visibly nervous, and is assured no one can seem him, because it’s dark where they are and light where the suspect is. Right as the Witness points at the Suspect, because this is Police Academy, someone of course pops in and turns on the light. The Suspect sees the Witness, and of course starts yelling “I’m gonna kill you” or something along those lines.
It’s a great example of how lighting works with regards to privacy, and how window film helps that. 3M does have some terrific one way films. These are the films you might see on the glass in a police interrogation room, however without specific lighting controls, they are not able to provide absolute one way visibility either.
Now lets get back to something less dramatic and talk about how we can use window film to make our home more private. There are two options. You can go with a solar window film like Night Vision 15, this will provide great daytime privacy. There is just one caveat. It will not provide privacy at night. You’ll need to draw the curtains after sunset.
If you’re looking at adding a film for daytime privacy, the most important number you’ll want to see on a window film data sheet is the amount of exterior light reflected. The higher this number the better. Our most reflective residential film is 3M Night Vision 15. There are more reflective ones, but your HOA might not be happy with those choices.
Night Vision 15 is a great product for anyone trying to achieve daytime privacy, as it’s reflective but also attractive. It is approximately 39% reflective on clear double pane glass, and generally HOA approved. There are more reflective films, but they’re typically silver, or bronze. Something you’d see on a 1980’s skyscraper, but not something you’d want to see on your home.
Another great option for full time privacy is a frosted film. These are a great choice because they’ll add privacy to your glass without blocking the light, and there are tons of options when it comes to a decorative or frosted film. The caveat here is that you cannot see out.
While we still don’t have the perfect option for one way film yet, we do have some great options that’ll add privacy to your home, while providing many other benefits from glass efficiency to better aesthetics.