I’m not going to put anyone on blast, but this is a true story that happened last month.
We got a call to our office looking for residential window film, and trying to compare cost between buying the film at Home Depot vs ordering and getting a professional install from us. Unfortunately, they thought the price was a bit too high, so they resorted to purchasing the window film and attempting to install it on their own.
Key word: attempting.
We got a call a week later, looking for an immediate installation date since they weren’t happy with their installation, bubbles and wrinkles everywhere.
I don’t mean to discourage anyone with this blog, but more just guide you towards what decision works best for you: Should you install your own window film, or should you hire us – Solar Solutions in Vero Beach?
DIY Installation
I won’t be giving y’all a full guide, but if you are interested, don’t hesitate to let us know! This article will primarily be focused on the pros and cons.
Like all things in life, everything can be done affordably. Hop over to your local Home Depot, Lowes, or mom and pop owned houseware store, and you’ll be able to find rolls of window film ready to be purchased starting out at $50 a roll, which depending on the project, should contain enough, even accounting for some errors.
If you’re anything like me, you probably thrive on learning new skills. It might take you a full day to do the installation, it might take you multiple attempts to do one pane of glass, but when you’re done, you’re going to be proud of your accomplishment. Heck, it might even be the ice breaker for the next 3 months when you invite guests over.
Now we have a business to run, so let’s go over the cons of running a DIY operation.
This is only going to pertain to some of you and that is a lack of skill. It’s not that we don’t believe you can install, however, Solar Solutions has 30+ years of experience, so right off the bat we could point out some of the beginner mistakes people make, such as mixing too much soap, attempting to remove all the bubbles causing a tear in the film (these normally evaporate themselves if it’s minimal), or removing window film because it looks foggy (heads up, this is normal for the first few days). I’m a firm believer that anything can be learned through Youtube, however, this is a task that requires a lot of trial and error to build on.
If you don’t have too much free time, that’s also going to hold you back. As mentioned previously, you can buy enough material to account for errors, and you can give it all you got to perfect it, however, it’s going to consume a large amount of time that you could be putting elsewhere. Depending on who you are and what you do, it’s a matter of answering one question: What’s your time worth to you?
Last thing I’m going to bring up is the lack of quality and warranty. This one is a bit more obscure, so take all this with a grain of salt. It really depends on what you’re looking to accomplish. Some materials won’t have the same lifespan as the products we offer, or maybe they are just a harder product to install. If you have any issues in the future, odds are you won’t be able to claim a warranty since it’s an off the shelf product that’s past its return date, installed by a DIYer. You’re really going to have to dive into the information that’s provided by the film company to learn about what warranty they offer and check reviews to see what others have said about the installation process and the lifespan.
Why Hire A Pro?
Most of this is going to be a regurgitation of what I mentioned previously, so I’ll do my best to keep it short.
Solar Solutions can be in and out of your project usually within a couple of hours depending on the size of the project. Our professional installers have years of experience installing window film, and with the average crew size of 2, we’re able to work at an efficient speed to get your project completed and get us out of your hair. Solar Solutions has 30+ years of experience, so we’ll ensure that there are no bubbles, no wrinkles, just a nice clean tint that can provide you with all the benefits you’re looking for.
There’s also access to different materials through pros including a custom design if you’re looking for custom film. That’s the beauty of working with a pro. With their connections that they have with industry leaders, they’re able to get access to window film most houseware stores won’t have in stock, and you’re unable to get access to unless it’s through a reseller or facebook marketplace. These products also tend to come with a lifetime warranty since they are high quality products installed professionally.
While DIY installation might seem cost-effective at first, the advantages of professional installation, including access to exclusive films and a lifetime warranty, often outweigh the initial savings. And depending on your success rate and installation time with your DIY installation, they may be neck and neck on pricing. When it comes to solar window film in Vero Beach, trusting Solar Solutions to do the installation ensures a great product for your home and a perfect installation for optimal performance and longevity.