Project: Window Film Installation (Huper Optik Ceramic 40)
Customer: Historic Longbranch Museum and Event Center
Location: Millwood, VA, Clarke County
Located in Clark County, Northern Virginia, about one hour west of Washington DC, sits a majestic 19th century mansion that has been turned into a museum and events center. Inside the building are countless priceless antiques and fabrics, dating back through history, each telling its own story of where it came from and whose lives were affected by it. So it’s easy to understand why it’s very important to the Historic Longbranch Museum and Event Center in Millwood, VA, to protect all the precious artifacts inside.
With such important objects in the museum, this isn’t the first time that the Longbranch Museum has thought about protecting the historic items inside. In fact, back in the early 1990s they had Llumar N1050 window tinting film applied to all the windows. The problem, though, was that the film had long since stopped being effective, and the items inside were at risk of exposure to the sun and UV rays.
Fun Facts About Window Film
- Fading is caused by more than just ultra violet light, which is responsible for 40% of fading.
- Heat and visible light are also factors and are responsible for approximately 50% of the fading factor.
- The Ceramic 40 film addressed 99.9% of the UV damage and over 50% of the heat and visible light damage.
So we received a call from them to come in and replace the old film with a new longer-lasting film that would stand the test of time. With such a delicate building, we were extremely careful to remove the old film from the antique crown glass, and gingerly re-prep the surface for installation of the new film. We installed Huper Optik Ceramic 40 window film, which is one of the best films available on the market for this type of application. This film allows for 40% visible light transmission, it rejects 99.9% of ultraviolet rays, and also rejects 55% of solar energy, reducing heat and increasing comfort-ability inside. This is a non reflective film, which has about the same amount of reflectivity as natural glass, so it did not alter the look of the building externally at all. This was important to them, naturally, since they’re trying to preserve a historic monument and not alter it in any way.
In the images above and below you can see photos of the historic Longbranch Museum. As you can see, there was no aesthetic disturbance to the historical integrity of the building, and yet, there is now maximum protection for the antiques, fabrics, rugs, and other valuables inside.
For more information about the benefits of window tinting films, visit http://www.acglasstinting.com/filmbenefits.html.
Written by: A&C Glass Tinting, The Plains, VA, 540-253-5402
