I have a window that gets good sunlight but looks directly into another building, so I want to cover it with something like this.
Anybody seen this around?
Most home depot kind of places should have that. It is a plastic foil and can have various styles and decorations.
I covered windows on our balcony with one years ago and it still holds great.
We got some on Shopee last year.
Works well but it’s kinda hard to apply yourself well. The corners on ours have started to peal.
I watched a YouTube video as I wanted to avoid small bubbles. The trick is to apply slightly soapy water on the glass. This enables you to move the foil around a bit and makes easier to push out the bubbles.
Two people makes it easier too.
I’ve tried the standard privacy film for my bathroom window and it’s okay, but honestly, it’s not as flexible as I hoped. Sometimes I still feel like I want to let more natural light in without losing privacy, and the static films just don’t adapt. Also, after a year or so, I noticed the edges starting to peel up, especially in humid weather. The installation wasn’t too hard, used soapy water just like mentioned, but if you want perfectly clean lines, it can get frustrating.
Most bathroom windows just use frosted glass or those glass with the grids pressed into it. I’m not sure what they’re called.
Stick on ones will peel off but you know you could just use reflective window tint, but they probably require professional installation to ensure durability.
And since it isn’t a car you can make them as dark as you want.
And yes, the static stick on ones will peel off eventually.
You can get frosted window spray that has the same effect, but applies like spray.
if you look online you can get various styles and designs not just the frosted, there is mirrored, colours and perforated film the trade off for more light is privacy especially when the light source is reversed at night.
Its been a good few years since I put up window graphics for work, but if you take you time you can get them to adhere well, even with the humidity.
Wet application for adhesive based and dry for static cling, make sure the window is properly cleaned and dry before you start (even for the wet application), I normally use alcohol spray to make sure there is no grease then clean with water, dry with paper then give it a few minutes while I prep the film.
Cut bigger than the window (I normally do 25mm) line up the top left then apply with the extra to the bottom right, trim using a ruler and a scalpel with a fresh blade. Trim it on the glass, don’t press hard, you just need to cut the vinyl not mark the glass, leave a couple of mm gap all round so the vinyl has room to expand and shrink with the heat.
I put up some of the basic static cling stuff from the hardware store in my last apartment and it was still fine 6 years later.
Also, a friend actually upgraded their office with smart glass, and now they can just hit a button to switch between clear and frosted anytime. It looks sleek and is really handy if you ever want to change things up, especially in rooms where you want both sunlight and privacy without switching out curtains or films all the time.