It can be a nightmare. You put time and money into having window graphics designed and installed only to see the messages in them get muddied because of harsh weather conditions, strong UV rays, or the hands of vandals. If you can’t clean the graphics off, you’ll have to incur the cost of replacing them because leaving up degraded outdoor window film can give people passing by, a negative impression of your business.
The best way to avoid being in that situation is to prepare for it by using exterior window film that can withstand the harsh conditions, both natural and human-delivered, that external displays need to endure.
The Big Two
The biggest hazards your outdoor window film will face can be grouped into two categories:
- Weather
- Vandalism
Your graphics could be susceptible to wear-and-tear from unexpected weather events like storms or high winds that can blow materials into the graphic, chipping and tearing it. It also could be damaged by unchanging aspects of the weather like UV rays. Exposure to high levels of consistent UV light can cause the graphics and colors on unprotected exterior window film to fade and degrade over time.
The potential for human damage can be even harder to predict than the weather. You could have people who want to tear at a graphic simply because it’s there while others will see it as a blank canvas on which they want to present their graffiti art.
If you have ground-level glass surfaces on a retail establishment or see them at bus stops, train station, medical center, and other similar buildings you’ve likely seen window graphics suffer.
Protection Solutions
The best way to protect your digital window graphics involves placement and material selection.
Placement is key
Digital window film should be installed on the interior side of window glass. This will protect it from the elements although it still could experience the effects of UV exposure. To lessen this your installer could use UV resistant adhesives to provide protection from heavy sun.
Utilizing overlaminates
If you are using exterior window film on the outside of a glass surface, overlaminates can be added to the film during the production process. This film material is particularly helpful when you are looking at long-term window graphic installations like the ones that you find at a museum, downtown building, or even college facilities like the rec center.
Staying tag-free
Any building manager knows that when window graphics are on the ground floor they can fall prey to a bored vandal with a can of spray paint. But their “tag” doesn’t mean the end of your graphic story. Protective window film from LINTEC of America has anti-graffetti (AG) like properties so if your graphics do get a fresh coat of paint you can simply, and easily, scrape it off.
Watch it workAs they say “seeing is believing” which is why we put our anti-graffitti like properties to the test. See for yourself how well the protection works. (While there is lots of great information in this video, you can jump to the seven-minute mark to get to the good stuff.)
|
Protection without a tradeoff
There may be some concerns that in order to provide your outdoor window film with a high-level of protection you will need to sacrifice the clarity and readability of the graphics. In fact, with LINTEC of America’s Protect Satin line you can have the best of both worlds. This non-glossy, satin finish overlaminate not only has scratch-resistance and anti-graffiti properties, it also provides a virtually seamless visual experience. When it’s laid over a black graphic, the coloring stays true, you aren’t suddenly straddled with a gray graphic which is common with other laminate types.
Best Weather-Resistant Window Graphics Providers
Digital window graphics can be powerful, action-oriented messaging tools. But when they become faded and damaged by the weather and human interference, the message they present is very different from what you intended it to be. For example, when you use the right window film materials, like polyurethane films, in the right locations, the outdoors, you can improve your graphic’s durability without sacrificing optical clarity. It enables you to preserve both the window film and the story that it is telling.
To learn more about the benefits that exterior window film can have for your business, schedule a meeting with the experts at LINTEC of America.
