Window Works

3M Fasara Decorative Window Film: Stripes Forever

January 18, 2016 by Window Works 3 Comments

If your home or office is a little boring, you might consider the use of stripes. Stripes add energy and a modern feeling to any building. You can add them via striped rugs, wallpaper, or wall paint, as outlined in this article from Freshome, 40 Daring Striped Interiors. When our clients say they want a bold, fresh look we ask them to consider 3M Fasara decorative window film (in particular stripes!).

Series on 3M Fasara Decorative Window Film

This is our first in a series on this wonderful decorative window film. Here are two other posts in the series:

Control Light and Privacy

You have the ability to control light and privacy with all 3M Fasara deco window film. With the striped films, you can alter the width of the stripes depending upon how much light or privacy you need. For example, the wider stripe in the 3M™ FASARA™ Arpa lets more light through. And you can cover part of the window or the entire pane of glass.

Use a Combination of Thin and Wide Stripes

To give your room a fun, jazzy look, why not combine thin and wide stripes? If you need ideas for how stripes would work with your interior, Houzz can give you inspiration. With 3M Fasara window film, you can use thin and wider stripes.

Fun Plus Sophistication

Like polka dots, stripes are fun yet sophisticated. You can use stripes to elongate or stretch a room, making it seem bigger, wider, or taller. Stripes in a room do the same thing as stripes on a person, and can make your room look taller and sleeker.

Cost Savings

Besides improving your life, window film can save you a lot of money. Rather than purchasing or creating etched, cut, sandblasted, or textured glass, you have the option of modernizing your look with window film. Many of our clients love the flexibility that decorative window film gives them.

A Look Interior Designers Love

If you’re a designer, you’ll love the look of 3M Fasara window film. And did you know about our Referral Agent Program? Check it out and then give us a call!

Anti-Graffiti Film Can Save Your Glass

January 8, 2016 by Window Works Leave a Comment

Many urban areas are facing a growing problem: graffiti. Graffiti can appear on all types of surfaces, but we want to talk to you about glass today.

Anti-Graffiti Film Saves You a Bundle

The cost of anti-graffiti film is is miniscule compared to the cost of window glass replacement. The anti-graffiti film protects your glass from etching, gouges, and scratches, as described on 3m’s page.

Graffiti Leads to Crime

The results of a study detailed in the Nov. 21, 2008 issue of the journal Science, support and expand on the so-called broken windows theory which forms the backbone of many crime prevention programs in major cities such as New York. Read more about how graffiti triggers crime.

Easily Replaced

When vandals strike, the anti-graffiti film can be easily removed, along with any graffiti or marking that could mar the glass surface. The glass will then be ready to have the film replaced. The replacement is quick and fast and does not have to disrupt most work schedules, unlike replacing a huge sheet of window glass.

Main Uses

Anti-graffiti film protects surfaces in elevators, escalators, bathroom mirrors and glass counter tops, as well as hallways, doors, and anywhere there is glass that could be vandalized. There are other types of commercial window film and here are some frequently asked questions.

Anti-Graffiti Film Growing in Popularity

Anti-graffiti film is becoming increasing popular for its ease of use, low cost, and installability. By reducing or eliminating graffiti quickly the surface affected and the entire neighborhood can be improved.

Give Us a Call

When you decide that your building or property needs anti-graffiti film, give WindowWorksCA a call. We are in Santa Clara and service the San Francisco Bay Area.

The Northern California Facilities Expo ~ Santa Clara

September 17, 2015 by Window Works Leave a Comment

CAL_expo

We’d love our local friends to come and see us at the Northern California Facilities Expo. The Expo will take place Wednesday and Thursday, September 23rd and 24th, at the Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great America Parkway, Santa Clara, CA 95054. It’s very close to Levi’s Stadium.

The Santa Clara Builders Exchange will be at the booth with us. They are on Twitter if you’d like to follow them there.
WindowWorksCA will be at Booth 423.
The Expo is free of charge.
We’re excited at the list of scheduled talks. You can get a list of the talks here.
Hope to see you there!

Referral Agent Program

September 2, 2015 by Window Works Leave a Comment

Referral Agent Program

Are you an Interior Designer, Energy Consultant, Window Treatment Shop, Flooring Rep, or other trade related to Interiors, Homes and Energy Savings? If so, and your clients have a need for Energy Savings, Window Film, Fade Reduction or Safety Film; then become a Referral Agent by sending them to us and receive a commission!

Excluding your coworkers and family, think of someone you know that would be happy to win $200 right now. Don’t move until you’ve thought of someone. The RAP provides our agents with opportunities to build stronger relationships with existing clients and future contracts.

Do you have someone in mind? Great! Here is the link so that you can refer customer leads to Window Works:

go.3M.com/Refer-WindowWorks

Compensation

Once the window film is installed and payment collected, the 3M dealer (WindowWorksCA) will send you a check for up to 10% of the gross.

Our Window Film Product

Super cool protection.

The first of its kind, the 3M™ Ultra Prestige Series films are made from up to 42 micro layers of clear, tear-resistant film.

That strength is combined with Prestige Series sun control films to reject up to 60% of the heat coming through your windows and 97% of the sun’s infrared light.

These films also reject 99.9% of harmful UV rays, reducing the effects of fading on your furnishings.

Ultra Prestige Series films allow 50% to 70% of the natural light into your home. The result is films that offer all the benefits of sun control with safety features built in.

With these films, you’ll block heat, reduce hot spots and damaging UV rays, while also helping to hold glass together in the event of break-ins or severe weather.

Want More Info?

Here are Seven Ways Window Film Can Improve Your Life. We are located in the San Francisco Bay Area (near the San Jose Airport), and we service businesses and homes in the Bay Area.

Bigfoot’s Guide to Beating the Heat

August 12, 2015 by Window Works 3 Comments

Although fall is coming, we are still seeing hot days and hot nights. The planet is experiencing record temperatures due to global warming. Here in California we are facing severe droughts, water rationing, and wildfires. Everyone needs ideas on how to stay cool, but for this article, we thought we’d ask an expert: Bigfoot.

Button Up Your Man-Cave

When asked about his first rule of staying cool, Bigfoot said to lay low. “There are all these museums devoted to me. The humans think they’re doing the right thing by opening the windows. Keep the windows closed, move at night, and don’t talk to anyone.”

Stay Inside

Stay in your cave when it’s really hot outside. Do not go outside and burn your fur. Your beautiful fur will get bleached by the sun and you will sweat. You can use some leaves to fan yourself. If you don’t have AC, you can go to a public mall, library, or to a movie to cool off. Bigfoot added that he “would need to be prepared to run, since most people do not believe in Bigfoot.”

Wear the Right Clothing

The right clothing doesn’t always means shorts and a tank top. Having clothes that breathe and wick away sweat is good for some situations while having long sleeves and loose pants work for desert conditions.

Water

Hot weather is a good excuse for a cold shower or a dip in a lake to help you cool you down. And an icy cold drink can be very helpful as well.

Keep the Fur Trimmed

You know your fur will grow back, so keep it short during the summer months. Manscaping is a good thing, especially during the dog days of summer.

Wear a Hat

A hat with a wide brim keeps the sun and the heat off your face. Make sure it is festive. And sunglasses are always cool, in both senses of the word.

Window Film

Back to all those Bigfoot Museums for a minute. They could just get window film for their windows. Window film keeps your man cave or museum cool. If you’re near San Jose or in the San Francisco Bay Area, give WindowWorksCA a call!

Residential Window Film Can Protect Your Family

July 29, 2015 by Window Works 2 Comments

You have the best health insurance, including dental and emergency coverage. You always use seat belts in the car. And you make sure that your kids look both ways before crossing the street. But did you know that ultraviolet (“UV”) light could be hurting your family? Yes, it’s true. Let us count the ways.

Premature Skin Aging

While the sun has positive benefits, UVA rays penetrate the atmosphere and can cause your beautiful skin to age prematurely. Excess radiation can cause damage at the DNA level and can lead to wrinkles, sun spots, and skin cancer. UV light can penetrate ordinary glass and cause it to multiply its negative effects. Fortunately, window film blocks the UVA light that enters your windows. This film blocks up to 99.9 percent of UV radiation and lets in up to 80 percent of visible light. For more information about UVA and UVB, see this excellent article from Skin Cancer.org.

Keep Your Family's Eyes Safe with Window Film — Keep Your Family’s Eyes Safe with Window Film

Eye Damage

The sun can cause damage to the eyes which accumulates in later life. Conditions such as macular degeneration and cataracts can be caused by too much solar radiation. At the beach, sunscreen and sunglasses, as well as a large hat, should be used. The American Optometric Association has guidelines for caring for your eyes. Luckily, window film will protect your family’s eyes in your own home by keeping UV radiation from entering your windows.

The sun can severely damage your furniture

Damage to Furniture

Fading, discoloration and fabric breakdown are three problems that can be easily preventable with window film. Even if your area is foggy, UV radiation can cause damage to your rugs and beautiful furniture, as outlined in this article from Houzz on how to prevent sun damage indoors. And by the way, if you have big windows, applying window film is not a DIY project–we recommend that you call in an expert. We are located in the San Francisco Bay Area if you need us.

Skin Cancer

Exposure to UV radiation puts you and your family at risk for skin cancer. The time of day, time of year, cloud cover, and altitude all change the strength of the UV rays. Outdoors, clothing and skin protection can help alleviate some risk. Indoors, much of this risk can be avoided by applying window film.

Children Are More Vulnerable

Severe sunburns as a child severely increase an individual’s risk for developing skin cancer. Children need to wear hats, sunscreen, and avoid the sun when it’s at its most harsh, between 10 am and 4 pm. Indoors, you can use window film to protect the little ones.

What's More Important Than Your Family's Health? — What’s More Important Than Your Family’s Health?

Protect Your Family

We’d love to talk to you about different types of window film for your home. We’re near the San Jose Airport, and travel up and down the San Francisco peninsula all the way up to San Francisco.

Commercial Window Film: Little-Known Facts

July 22, 2015 by Window Works 3 Comments

In our last blog post, we addressed the frequently asked questions people have about automotive window film. This is the second in the series, on how commercial window film can protect your business. Window film can protect your belongings, as well as provide you with comfort and security. Here are some little-known facts about commercial window film.

Let’s Cut to the Chase

According to FBI statistics, “Of all burglaries, 60.5 percent involved forcible entry.” Anything you can do to prevent that burglar from entering your business gives you the upper hand. You may have considered better lighting or closed circuit television to prevent break-ins, but what about commercial window film?

Safety Film

Safety film mitigates ‘Spontaneous Glass Breakage’ — modern structures are now made of so much glass (called Curtain Wall structures) — that some form of protection is necessary. You can protect passers-by and inhabitants from glass breakage using 3M Safety & Security Films. Prevent glass from becoming shrapnel.

According to this Construction Specifier article on Spontaneous Glass Breakage, poor edge quality and “Expansion and contraction of glass framing members may also lead to frame-related breakage.” Additionally, thermal stress can occur when the center of a piece of glass is hotter than its edges.

Preserve Your Investment with Surface Protection

Anti-Graffiti Film Protects

For commercial spaces, anti-graffiti film protects your investment “against scratches, acid-etching and gouges in retail, public facilities and any street-level glass applications.” Instead of constantly paying to repair, paint over, or scrub down walls in public places, why not try some anti-graffiti film instead? More information is available on the 3M website.

Eliminate Your Vulnerability with 3M Window Film

Security Film Creates a Barrier to Entry

3M security films used with 3M Impact Protection Adhesive will greatly slow or possibly prevent ‘smash & grab’ scenarios by creating a barrier to entry. Burglars are always trying to get in and steal your valuables as quickly as possible. So by making entry more difficult, that burglar will usually go someplace that’s easier to break into.

Protect Against Crimes of Opportunity

People can quickly and easily create thousands of dollars worth of damage in the blink of an eye. Civil unrest can occur in big cities when large groups gather, ruining your precious business almost instantly. Glass is expensive to replace and the sight of a boarded-up storefront does not give the appearance of a healthy business.

Still Not Convinced?

Watch this video on 3M Security film. And when your commercial building needs window film, give WindowWorksCA a call. We are in Santa Clara and service the San Francisco Bay Area.

Automotive Window Film: 5 Frequently Asked Questions

July 8, 2015 by Window Works 1 Comment

Our clients ask us a lot of questions about window film. You might have heard that there are no stupid questions. And to that we’d add that there are some questions that almost everyone has! Here are a few of the ones we hear all the time!

Does the Film Go on the Outside or the Inside?

The film goes on the inside, although we use the outside of the glass to measure the film. If you look very carefully at already-applied film, you’ll be able to see the edge right up at the tippy-top of the glass.

Window Film Goes on the Inside of the Glass

Will My Window Film Turn Purple?

The short answer is that all window film fades eventually. The slightly longer answer is that the better the quality of window film, the less fading you will have. All window films have red, blue and yellow colors in them. but the yellow fades the fastest, leaving blue and red. Blue and red mixed together make purple, so you end up with purple. For a longer answer, take a look at this article from City Scoop: Why Do Window Films Turn Purple?

Is There Any Interference with my Cell Phone Signal?

We use 3M’s window film. To quote from the 3M website, “Because these films are non-metallized, you can be assured of zero interference with GPS or cell phone signals.” So talk away! Your cell phone signal is safe with our window film.

How Long Does Window Film Take to Apply?

Unless your vehicle is very large with many windows, the job will usually be done within a few hours. We usually recommend that you leave your car with us. By the way, we are now conveniently located in Santa Clara, very close to the San Jose Airport.

3M Window Film Doesn't Interfere with Your Cell Signal — 3M Window Film Doesn’t Interfere with Your Cell Signal

How Do I Care for My Windows?

Use a soft, clean cloth to clean the windows and a squeegee to help dry the windows, along with any normal glass cleaner. The scratch-resistant coating helps protect your windows and ensures that you don’t need to take extra care to protect them.

Have More Questions?

Give us a call, or contact us through our social media channels. We are @WindowWorksCa or @MotorWorksCA on Twitter, on Facebook: WindowWorksCA or MotorWorksCA.

How Window Film Protects Your Skin

June 24, 2015 by Window Works 4 Comments

You might think that window film is only aesthetic: it makes your car or building look snazzy and reduces glare while you’re driving or seated near a window. But did you know that window film also protects your skin? Here are a few ways it can protect your epidermis.

Ultra Violet Radiation

Ultra violet (“UV”) radiation travels through both your home and car windows, and can damage your skin. Some people think that glass protects them from UV rays, but only car windshields block UVA and UVB rays. On the side and rear car windows, most UVA is not blocked, as explained in this article from the Melanoma Education Foundation. Window film blocks this dangerous radiation, protecting your skin.

Ultraviolet-A Rays Penetrating the Atmosphere

Left-Side Cancer

Drivers with left-hand drive develop more skin damage and cancer. Even with the windows up, UV radiation gets in and hits your skin, causing more damage to the left side than to the right. “Long-time drivers are found to have rougher, more pigmented skin with greater solar damage on their driver’s side,” noted Albert Kligman, MD, PhD, emeritus professor of dermatology, University of Pennsylvania Medical School, Philadelphia, according to a post from the Skin Cancer Foundation’s website. In countries where drivers sit on the right side, there is more right-side cancer.

Long-Wave UVA Rays

Most car windows offer little to no protection from the long-wave UVA rays that can cause serious damage to your skin. Sometimes the front windshield can offer a little, as mentioned above, but nowhere near what you would get with window film. But window film blocks up to 99.9 percent of UV radiation.

Exposure to UV Radiation is Cumulative

Those UV rays are sneaky and the damage is cumulative. Even if you can’t see the damage with your eyes, the damage is occurring. Wrinkles, sun (or “liver”) spots, and cancer are three of the ways that your skin can be damaged. And it’s not always easy to remember to apply sunscreen or wear a hat, so window film protects you even when you’re not thinking about protecting your own skin.

Window Film Can Help Prevent Skin Damage

In addition to wearing sunscreen, avoiding the sun between 10:00 and 2:00 (according to the Mayo Clinic) and wearing a wide-brimmed hat, window film is one of the best investments you can make to prevent skin damage. The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends window tint as part of a comprehensive skin care program.

Need Help Deciding Which Window Film Is Best?

Give Window Works a call to see which window film would be best for either your car or your building. We are located in Santa Clara, near the San Jose Airport, and our crew travels throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.

3M Daylight Redirecting Film: Five Ways it Can Change Your Life

June 10, 2015 by Window Works 1 Comment

Chances are you’ve never heard of daylight redirecting film, or known that it could change your life. But it can! We’ve written about window film and its benefits before, but daylight redirecting film is completely different. In case you didn’t know anything about this wondrous film, here is an introduction.

Daylight Redirecting Film Can Decrease Absenteeism

People react positively to natural daylight. And many builders create larger windows to allow more light into buildings. However, you can use 3M’s Daylight Redirecting Film rather than installing larger windows. And having more light makes a better work environment, which decreases absenteeism. See the video below to find out how.

Daylight Redirecting Film Works At All Times of Day

Even if the sun is low in the sky or there’s not that much light, 3M redirecting film can redirect sunlight and brighten up your office or home. The film can be modeled using software to redirect light according to your building’s orientation, weather, and time of year.

The video below shows a timelapse of 3M Daylight Redirecting Film in a building:

3M Daylight Redirecting Film Throws Light Deep into Buildings

We couldn’t say it any better than this 3M website: “New to the world 3M Daylight Redirecting Film, utilizes micro-replication to redirect light that would have originally hit the floor a few feet from the window, up onto the ceiling, helping to light the room as deep as 40 feet from the window.”

3M Daylight Redirecting Film Reduces Glare

Without window film, people often use shades or black-out curtains to block all light, which keeps the interior of a room dark. Without glare, people feel comfortable without the addition of curtains or shades, increasing their comfort.

Daylight Redirecting Film Increases Comfort

3M Redirecting Window Film is Cool

And by cool, we mean literally cool. And in the summertime, having a cooler home or office means less cooling costs.

Questions?

If you’re wondering about window film, give us a call! We recently moved to Santa Clara, in the San Francisco Bay Area.