Do you have a commercial building, office space, or facility that you just can’t seem to keep cool on hot days? Are you sick of keeping the curtains and blinds closed to mitigate the sun’s heat, and you’d prefer to be able to work in natural light and enjoy views of the outdoors?
Well, with 3M sun control window film from 3M’s Prestige Series, you can maintain comfortable indoor temperatures and keep your windows uncovered all day long. Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about this amazing product.
What Is Prestige Series 3M Sun Control Window Film?
The 3M Prestige Series is the best of the best in heat control and light control window films. It blocks out approximately 97% of infrared light to reduce solar heat gain through windows, rejects 99.9% of the harmful UV rays that cause fading and skin damage, reduces glare, and provides many other benefits for commercial buildings.
How does 3M sun control window film work?
3M window films are composed of a thin, pliable, polymer-based coating that gets applied right to your building’s windows and other glass surfaces to provide certain benefits, as an alternative to window replacement.
In the case of 3M sun control window film, specifically the Prestige Series, these benefits are related to mitigating heat and light from the sun.
3M solar control window film is a spectrally-selective film, meaning that it rejects certain types of light, including infrared and UV light, while continuing to allow the majority of the natural light that you can see in through your windows.
What sets 3M Prestige Series window film apart from other light control window films is its precision. As light waves reach the film, certain types of light (i.e. visible natural light) is allowed through, while infrared light and UV light are reflected by hundreds of microscopic layers of film.
3M Prestige Series light control window film actually increases in performance as the angle of the sun increases. So, your windows are most protected when direct sunlight is hitting them the hardest.
Summary of how 3M Prestige Series window film works:
- Sticks directly on top of existing glass surfaces
- Allows high transmission of natural light into indoor spaces
- Blocks 97% of infrared light (the light that we feel as heat)
- Rejects 99.9% of damaging UV rays (that cause furnishings to fade)
- Reduces glare
Why blocking infrared light with sun blocking window film is important
Infrared light is responsible for a large percentage of solar heat gain, which is the heat that passes through your building’s windows when they receive sunlight, significantly warming up indoor spaces.
Solar heat gain increases your reliance on AC systems to keep indoor spaces cool, and is thus directly responsible for a portion of your monthly utility bills.
By applying the solar blocking window film, also known as heat blocking window film, you can drastically reduce solar heat gain. And, along with it, you’ll reduce your usage of air conditioning and lower your energy costs.
In fact, 3M Prestige Series window film is so effective at improving the energy efficiency of your windows that it can become carbon neutral in as few as six months from the date of installation.
Over time, the amount of money you can save on your cooling costs by installing heat control window film eventually pays off the investment. In some areas, you can even receive energy efficiency tax rebates for installing certain types of window films.
Why rejecting UV rays with solar control window film matters
Ultraviolet (UV) light is the light from the sun responsible for causing furnishings to fade and causing skin damage, which can eventually lead to skin cancer.
While the biggest danger to humans is from spending too much time outdoors in the sun without proper sun protection, indoor UV exposure can still contribute to sunburns and sun-related skin problems.
As for furnishings, if you’ve ever placed a photo or a piece of furniture near a window that receives direct sunlight throughout the day, you know how fast the sun can cause these types of items to fade.
Since 3M solar control window film blocks an impressive 99.9% of harmful and damaging UV rays, it greatly prolongs the lifespan of your office furnishings.
Other reasons to install 3M solar control window film
Since Prestige Series window film helps improve indoor comfort and building energy efficiency, reducing the need to constantly run the AC, it can make your commercial building’s spaces more appealing to prospective building tenants and help you keep tenant occupancy rates high. And, of course, high building tenancy means an even better net operating income (NOI).
Additionally, sun control window film can be combined with other window film finishes improving the aesthetics of your building. For example, you can give your building’s facade a complete contemporary facelift by applying mirrored, colored, or color-shifting window film in addition to heat control window film.
For older buildings, this can make a huge difference in how the building is perceived, and may even allow you to raise lease prices, thus adding even more to your bottom line.
Summary of additional benefits of 3M Prestige Series window film:
- Improves indoor comfort for building tenants
- Reduces the need for tenants to run AC to stay cool
- Makes available office spaces and workspace more enticing to potential tenants
- Can help keep building tenancy rates up
- Can be combined with other window films to improve aesthetics, which raises property value and curb appeal
Conclusion
There are many different sun-blocking window films out there, but you aren’t going to beat 3M sun control window film when it comes to performance and durability.
3M solar window films come with a 15-year commercial warranty, but they can last even longer. When you consider how high your energy savings can be over 15+ years, it’s easy to see why installing 3M Prestige Series window film is a worthwhile investment.
Campbell Corporation is a six-time 3M dealer of the year and we offer a full range of 3M window films, including light and heat control window films. Contact us today for your free consultation.
