Safety film and hurricanes

What safety film is

Safety film is a clear, tough polyester film, thicker than a solar film, bonded to the inside face of the glass with a strong adhesive. When the glass breaks, the pieces stay stuck to the film instead of falling or spraying into the room. Heavier security grades go further: someone trying to get through has to keep hitting and then cut or tear the film, instead of knocking the pane out with one blow. Either kind can come with a solar layer, so the same film also cuts heat and glare. The security window film page explains the grades.

On a glass door or a slider, which is usually tempered glass, the difference is easy to picture. Tempered glass breaks all at once into small pebbles. With film on it, the pebbles stay on the film as one sagging sheet instead of a pile on the floor.

What it is not

It is not a hurricane rating. Storm protection for a window or door opening comes from products made for that job: impact-rated windows and doors, and shutters or panels that cover the opening. Film stuck to existing glass doesn’t turn an ordinary window into one of those, however thick the film is.

There is also a part of the window that film never touches. In a strong wind, the load goes through the glass into the frame and from the frame into the wall. Film doesn’t strengthen the frame, the way the glass sits in it or the way the window is fastened to the house. A filmed pane that cracks can still be pushed out of the frame in one sheet, or torn by repeated hits from debris. Bonding the film to the frame helps a pane hold against a break-in, but that doesn’t make the window storm-rated either.

If someone offers film that makes a house hurricane-proof, they are offering something film doesn’t do.

Where it does help

Its everyday value is real:

• Accidents. A ball, a fall against a slider or a ladder tipping into a window: the glass breaks but stays on the film.
• Break-ins. A filmed lanai door or street-facing window takes longer and makes more noise to get through.
• Flying glass. When a pane breaks, for any reason, less of it ends up in the room and on the people in it.
• Sun. A solar version cuts heat, glare and the UV that fades floors and furniture, every day of the year.

In storm season the third point counts. If debris cracks a filmed pane, the broken glass stays on the film instead of spraying across the room. That’s useful. It isn’t the same as keeping the storm out.

How to fit it into storm preparation

The Central Pacific hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. A sensible order:

1. Decide how you’ll protect the openings. If you want storm protection for windows and doors, talk to a window, door or shutter contractor about rated products for your house. That decision is separate from film.
2. Then decide whether film makes sense for its own jobs. Sliders and glass doors in a house with children, ground-floor windows facing the street, and sunny glass that also needs heat and UV control are the usual places it earns its keep.
3. Let the two work together. Shutters and panels go up when a storm is coming. Film stays on the glass every day of the year, behind them or not.
4. Keep the rest of the plan. Film changes nothing about the county and state emergency guidance to follow when a storm is forecast.

Questions worth asking about any safety film

• In plain words, what is this film designed to do?
• Will it be attached to the frame, and what does that add to the job?
• Does it suit this glass? Dual-pane units, large panes and partly shaded windows need a check, and can window film crack glass? explains why.
• Is it clear, or does it also cut heat?
• If the seller says hurricane-proof, what exactly do they mean by it?

The same questions apply to businesses; the guide to storefront safety film covers display glass and entry doors.

Getting a quote

Safety film for homes is quoted after a measure, with no online price or checkout. Send the address, the openings you want covered (sliders, glass doors, low windows, street-facing glass) and a few photos through the quote form, or call (808) 707-7064. The home window tint page covers solar and privacy film, which can be measured on the same visit.