Customer Reviews

Etched Glass Window Film 36-by-72-Inch

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is great stuff. It's very easy to apply and the application process is very forgiving. Just clean your windows, spray on a soap and water mixture, peel the backing and apply. You can re-position it to get it just right and the use a credit card to get the water out from under the film.

It looks great. Very professional. And it's easy to remove.

It is rather tough to cut though. The roll is 36 x 72 and if you are cutting long pieces it can be tricky to get straight lines. I used a carpenter's T but I still messed up a bit.

The following comment is not about the product but about Amazon's packaging. I also didn't deduct stars for this:

The packaging is extremely wasteful. The roll itself is packaged in a rectangular plastic box but Amazon put that box in a massive box that could literally have held maybe 100 rolls. The box was stuffed with paper to take up the extra room.

I live in a grad student rental on the main floor of an old house. My largest window looks out onto my neighbor's driveway and house. My neighbor is a chronic snoop, which means I felt weird having my curtains open.

So, this window film does the job. In daylight it looks very nice and professional. Though I thought I got all the bubbles out, I can see small bubbles in this stuff by lamplight. Applying this film by yourself is possible, but mine would have come out more cleanly if I'd had another set of hands so that I could start right in the middle without having to hold up a corner. Also, it's a good idea to cut this to a rough size of your window but ensure that it's a tad bigger, then cut down the edges with an xacto knife once you've got the film in place.

After I bought and used this, I learned that you can apply almost any sort of fabric to a window using a corn starch and water solution. A friend and I tried the fabric method at her place and, hate to admit it, it's easier to apply, too. If you're poor, go for corn starch and fabric.

I wanted to let some light in but get privacy- this stuff is great. I was daunted about installing it, but it was easy. Recommend a straight edged cutter rather than a scissor to cut, but I did five windows in about an hour. LOVE IT!

We bought this as a quick & dirty solution for our front entrance, which is a set of full-length French glass doors that face the street (talk about lack of privacy!). Cutting the roll to the correct size widthwise was a pain, but not difficult. I had to lay it out on the porch and use a T-Square and an Xacto. I wouldn't dream of using scissors, the edges would end up all jagged and messy. It comes with a little squeege, which was helpful, and I didn't bother with a spray bottle for the water. I just gently wrung out a wet washcloth as I wiped the length of the glass. Contrary to what the instructions warn, the film didn't easily stick to itself like cling wrap (a big fear of mine) which made installing it a breeze.

My instincts told me to put it on the inside of the door (not sure why) and when I was done I felt very proud and was so surprised at how much the doors now looked like real etched glass. Totally privatized, and not one air bubble to be seen. But when I stepped outside? Yikes.

UGH! Oh man. Awful. Just weird. The glass wasn't see-through, but the doors look blocked and dark and odd and teeny air bubbles made it even worse. From the outside it absolutely looks like you cheaped-out and stuck something to the glass.

Since replacing the doors (or even just the glass) is low on our incredibly long Home Improvement list, I'm just going to buy another roll and place it on the outside of the glass doors so create the etched effect for the view of the house form the outside. We totally didn't need the extra layer of privacy - the stuff is perfect in a single-layer- but I can't deal with how wretched it looks from the outside.

Now that it's on my windows, I love this stuff. However, I have one bone to pick with the instructions.

Fool that I am, I took them a bit too literally, and tried sizing to fit the sheets before applying them onto the recessed glass of my window. Don't do that -- overestimate by a half inch, then slather it on and just use a boxcutter to trim. That'll spare you the ridiculousness of trying to line up corners or size-adjust too soon.

This product works very well and is simple to use as long as you follow the directions. I like the privacy it gives while still letting light through. It's great too because you can take it off, move it, cut it and reuse it.

If you don't want to get into acid etching or replace the glass entirely, this is a good solution. However, no one's going to mistake it for the beauty of actual etched glass.

If you have pet or human hair (put your hair back), keep it away or clean the room prior. If it gets behind the film when you're sealing it, you've got to get it out and reattach it.

Also, if you're shorter than six feet and alone doing this, it's challenging if you don't have something to hold the film above your head while positioning it. I used a rock on the top of my shower frame to hold it.

Just go ahead and get all the paper off in the next room as there's no benefit to keeping it on (other than keeping lint and hair off).

Grabbing a friend would save significant time if you're doing a large project like mine. Alone it took about an hour and a half to do two doors.

I also wish I'd very thoroughly cleaned BOTH sides of the glass before starting as it's tough to see the imperfections in application if the other side of the glass is not very clean.

I found scissors easier than an exacto knife. It won't be perfect, but it's pretty good and if you mess up, just take it down and do it again.

BTW, the directions are hidden inside the rolls and not in the boxes.

The overall positive reviews are accurate. I got the film to cover the see-through glasses of the front door (main and two sidelights). Two suggestions to add: (a) Cut the pieces before applying it to glass. A sharp utility knife and a long edge (I used a 4 ft level) will do. Cutting it straight on glass is difficult. (b) Leave a margin of around 1/8 inches on all sides (the instruction indicates so but doesn't emphasize). It turns out that when one squeegees the air/water out, the film expands a little and having the gap is necessary to let the air/water escape while achieving a tight seal (otherwise the film will butt against the glass frame). Don't know how well the film will hold up to temperature/humidity variation but it's a good start.

This product was super easy to install with just soapy water and a razor blade and adds total privacy! I wish I would have bought this a year ago.

I had no trouble applying this whatsoever. All you need is a squirt bottle filled with soapy water, scissors, and a credit card. I wasn't going for exact precision with my cuts because I just trimmed off any excess once it was up. The credit card worked great for smoothing out the bubbles and wrinkles. And if you're worried about getting the backing wet (which it tells you not to do) just peel the whole thing off--it doesn't stick to itself like tape, so you're not going to ruin it if it folds in on itself.

All in all, a really great product that lets the light in through my living room windows while preventing my neighbours from spying on me. Privacy restored--elegantly!