Tint film
A tint film is predominantly a PET film used in the automotive sector, which is used to darken the car windows from the B-pillar. Tint films are available in different degrees of light transmittance ( visual light transmittance ) and shades of color. Regardless of the degree of tinting of a film, high-quality glass films protect against the infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV) component of solar radiation and offer protection against splintering.
construction
A tint film consists of one or more layers of PET film. There is an adhesive layer on the film, which is usually made of acrylic resin. This adhesive is covered by an additional protective film. Single-layer foils fade relatively quickly due to the sun's rays and get a purple tinge or even fade completely after several years. Multi-layer films, on the other hand, are very tough and scratch-resistant. They are hardly subject to this fading process. The manufacturers sometimes give long guarantees on the quality of these films.
processing
The tint film is glued to the inside of the car window after it has been adjusted and cut. Since the films are made of PET, they cannot be easily pulled or stretched. With today's more or less curved car windows, laying without creases or bubbles is difficult. This particularly applies to the often strongly curved rear windows. The foils must be "shrunk" to the shape of the pane with a hot air blower at approx. 240 degrees. This takes a lot of practice and experience, as these PET foils "burn" at around 250 degrees and are then unusable.
purpose
The film gives the car a different look and, if it is impermeable, provides good privacy. In addition, it reduces the heating of the interior of a vehicle and is also used as sun protection. Almost all tint films absorb the aggressive UV-A and UV-B radiation at approx. 360 nm to approx. 99%. These rays essentially contribute to the fading of interior materials and damage the occupants' skin. Depending on the type and tint of the films, they reject the heat radiation from the sun by up to 60% and reduce the heating of the vehicle interior.
Thanks to their splinter protection effect, tint films provide additional protection against glass splinters in the event of an accident. Apart from the windshield made of laminated safety glass , the vast majority of car windows are still made of conventional single-pane safety glass . Its splinters can cause injuries in an accident. Tint films can bind glass fragments and thus reduce the risk of injury.
Legal
In Germany, only approved foils that have a general type approval (ABG) can be installed in vehicles. This emerges from §22a Paragraph 1, No. 3 StVZO . The ABG number must be visible on all laid films. The certificate must be carried with you and presented on request. Registration by the TÜV is not necessary. The tint films may only be installed on the windows that are not relevant for the driver's view, i.e. the rear side windows from the B-pillar and the rear window. If the rear window is tinted with foil, a second exterior mirror on the vehicle is mandatory.
On the windshield and the side windows, an area of only 0.1 m² may be covered by (tinting) film. This regulation was introduced to make it possible to attach vignettes and badges. Often these 0.1 m² are used to attach a so-called sun visor strip to the upper edge of the windshield. Basically, "a sufficient field of vision must be guaranteed under all operating and weather conditions." For example, with a 1 m wide pane, the glare wedge may not be more than 10 cm high. If a badge already covers an area of 0.01 m², the masking strip may be a maximum of 9 cm high with a width of 1 m. The calculation also includes foils or stickers made of foils that are attached to the side windows.
The large-area gluing of foils on the front and side windows is only permitted if the use of the foil on these windows is expressly provided for in the ABG. In order to ensure compliance with all necessary conditions, a change acceptance according to Section 19 (3) StVZO is due after gluing.
