Just don’t! Call a professional window film company to do it for you!
Removing Window Film can be Tough!
There could be various reasons for removing window film. Most commonly it’s to get rid of an outdated bronze, or silver reflective film and replace it with something more modern. Decorative Film also gets removed frequently as styles and spaces change.
While window film at times can be simple to remove, most of the time it’s a pretty strenuous task. This is due to the adhesive bonding the film to the glass. There are two types of these adhesives, there is a chemical dry adhesive, and a pressure sensitive adhesive. Both adhesives work well at keeping your film in place on the glass for years to come, however the chemical dry adhesive is going to be way tougher to remove than the pressure sensitive one. This is something important to keep in mind if you are installing film in a high traffic area where it might need to be replaced periodically, or if you think you might change your mind about the film install a few years down the road.
Now for the removal…It requires some blades, and a lot of elbow grease. Sometimes the windows will need to be scraped two to three time to ensure all the film and glue are removed. On top of that there are factors that could make it a pretty delicate situation, like scratchy glass. If the glass is prone to scratching, a steamer will need to be used to sweat the film off the glass, then you’ll need to use your hands for removal which takes much longer than scraping a blade across the glass.
This quick BLOG is in no way a “how to” on removing window film, and more of an informative bulletin on how hard it can be, and why it can sometimes be just as labor intensive as applying the film, or even more.
If you want to play it safe, and not mess up your glass or injure your wrist, consider hiring a professional window film company to do your removal. It will save you some time and your sanity.