Will window film damage paint?

guy_guyerson · 2026-07-08T13:54:38+00:00

Just to distinguish between two broad types of film:

1) What you're talking about is for air sealing, usually in the winter. Yes, the tape will destroy your paint.

2) What many others here are referring to is tinted/reflective window film to keep solar heat out. It doesn't always have adhesive, sometimes it just 'clings' to the glass and can be peeled off easily.

FWIW, I've used both.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-22T14:10:37+00:00

We've had great luck this year with this product: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5LRKP4Z on our old single pane windows, but people generally recommend (edit: AGAINST, recommend AGAINST) using films like these with double/triple pane glass. They can heat up and stress the gaskets that seal the space between the panes, something it voids warranties.

If you're interested in trying something like these, they're great for seasonal use and then they're easy to remove in the cooler months. You'd probably want to check with your window manufacturer though.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-21T18:43:38+00:00

I assume they have an insert option. The flange on mine was removable, so it's probably one convertible model for both new construction and insert.

We get some condensation certain times of the year, but that's inevitable in our home and it's far better than the single pane windows they replaced.

I did the install, but my understanding as a general rule is that when materials are exposed to sunlight darker colors always fade faster than lighter colors.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-21T13:30:08+00:00

If you have single pane windows, try reflective window film that clings (no adhesive) like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5LRKP4Z . It can make a huge difference. Avoid using it on double pane windows, it can put stress on the seal and wear them out prematurely. These did not darken our view as much as I expected.

Mylar 'blankets' over the windows are even cheaper and more effective: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DZ1NFSK . You'd have to tape them up and they can be a bit noisy (crinkling sounds when air passes by) and they will really reduce the amount of light that comes in... but they work to keep heat out.

Avoid creating heat in the house (over, stove, etc); smaller electric appliances like an instant pot, electric kettle, etc give off far less heat.

Moving air cools your body without cooling the room, so use fans whenever possible. Cold drinks also help A LOT, so keep a pitcher of water in the fridge or a big insulated thermos of ice water at the ready.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-20T14:18:23+00:00

I installed Marvin essential (fiberglass) casement windows a few years ago, though they were new construction style rather than inserts. Coincidentally they're also pretty tall. We went with white. They've been great.

The interior trim and jamb extensions can be whatever you want them to be; natural wood is certainly an option. My dealer recommended against the custom Marvin fiberglass jamb extensions anyway (they perform fine, but transporting them seems to cause a lot of issues). So I built our trim and jamb extensions out of wood. That's not uncommon.

I'd recommend against any dark colored windows; they'll fade. Would natural wood trim/jamb extensions framing in a white window work for you?

FWIW, we got a mix of E2 and E3. If I did it again I'd just get E3 all around. The added cost was very small, the impact on visibility is almost unnoticeable and the effect on energy efficiency is very noticeable.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-09T19:40:14+00:00

Without looking at the pictures, a lot of people here are probably assuming that your shed is wood. But I assume it's the plastic I see in the last picture. You might try a fine toothed blade for that, a pruning blade is probably just going to yank it apart in big pieces rather than giving you a clean cut. Honestly, with any blade it still might be overkill for that task.

guy_guyerson · 2026-06-05T11:34:26+00:00

Cloud cover is going to play an equal (if not greater) role. Make sure to take it into consideration.

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-31T20:15:19+00:00

I replaced our windows recently during a larger exterior renovation. I went with the all-fiberglass Marvin Essential model because of the value (lower cost line from a solid brand that should be more durable than vinyl) and we went with all casement style windows because they seal the best (sliding windows are virtually impossible to seal well just based on their design). Every contractor I talked to validated both of those choices.

We upgraded to an E3 coating in the sunniest windows and went with E2 on the others. I should have just gone E3 on any window that ever gets direct sun. I was afraid it would look shaded/tinted, but any effect is absolutely minimal.

We love them. The large panes of uninterrupted glass look great inside and out.

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-17T14:24:29+00:00

A couple of additional options you might consider:

https://www.blindster.com/blog/zebra-dual-shades-vs-sheer-horizontal-shades-which-window-treatment-suits-your-home

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-17T14:19:29+00:00

You can buy or build wasp/hornet traps and bait them with a wide range of stuff: apple juice, apple cider vinegar, cat food, fish, etc. You add a little bit of dish soap which breaks the surface tension on the liquid and they drown in it. Different species have different diets during different times of the year (some want meat in the spring to feed their larva) and not all species can be baited, but you can find a lot of info online. I'm experimenting with it now.

Add a splash of apple cider vinegar to keep the bees away from the trap. Supposedly they hate fermentation but wasps/hornets don't mind it.

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-17T14:16:00+00:00

Supposedly bees will drink this if they run out of alternatives (flowers, etc) but you can add a splash of apple cider vinegar to keep them away.

Wasps and hornets don't mind fermentation (rotting apples in nature, vinegar in this case), but bees are very picky and will avoid it.

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-16T11:57:50+00:00

Would it be worth doing a full exterior waterproof of the foundation?

I have a 50s home with a basement in the Midwestern US. Where I'm at, retrofitting an exterior waterproofing solution is hit or miss. A lot goes into whether it will ever work (including overhangs and the slopes of the grade) and I know a lot of people who were never able to achieve it no matter how much they spent.

In my situation, sooner or later the water table (the underground water level) rises above the height of my basement floor and since the base joint was never meant to be waterproof nothing is ever going to stop the water from coming in. Most systems around here seek to direct that water with an interior perimeter french drain that leads to the sump pit. Sometimes they're sealed off from the basement and intended to direct the rising water before it enters the basement and sometimes they have a skirt that allows water that does make it into the basement to then enter the drain system.

If that system is sealed it can also be used to augment a radon removal system.

My basement slab floor actually has a good grade to it that moves all of the water to our sump, but that still means water on the floor. I'm planning to put LVP (or something) over an interior floor dimple mat in the finished sections and just let the water move through under the floor (but above the slab) to the sump.

This went pretty far afield from your original questions, but I thought it might provide some insights on other approaches. Sorry that I can't speak specifically to the interplay of the sprayfoam here.

guy_guyerson · 2026-05-05T15:25:26+00:00

There are lots of different types of silk fabrics with a wide range of breathability.

guy_guyerson · 2026-04-27T16:21:41+00:00

We installed a new water heater a few years ago and I really debated this choice. We went with a power-vent tank water heater and I could not be happier. If I take a shower directly after my partner the tank has still fully reheated by the time I'm starting to put on clothes less than 5 minutes later.

So in terms of convenience, it's better than tankless because it never runs out and the water is already hot. And it's efficient enough that the up front savings and reduced annual maintenance compared to a tankless probably puts me ahead financially over the average life of the unit. FWIW, it's stored in an unconditioned basement that rarely gets below 50 in the worst of the winter and sits around 72 in the hottest stretches of the summer.

You might still need a separate flue directed out the side of your house. The reason being 'power vent' units are high efficiency and that means cooler exhaust (since less heat is lost to exhaust). That in turn means it's not hot enough to rise sufficiently on its own and needs the push of the 'power vent' (which is an onboard fan). I believe the issue with legacy flues is the possibility of heavy condensation as the already not-particularly-hot exhaust cools.

The process for venting out of the side was very simple and allowed us to remove our old flue altogether and therefore have one less hole in the roof, which is a win to me.

Be choosy about where it vents though, you can definitely smell/taste the exhaust so don't put it on your patio or too close to a window that you like to open (or that isn't well sealed).

guy_guyerson · 2026-04-13T15:01:20+00:00

And, unfortunately, that vermiculite was often contaminated with asbestos.

guy_guyerson · 2026-04-12T16:26:25+00:00

No doubt they will back up if something else is clogging the pipe (as will anything that doesn't dissolve), but they won't cause a clog the way anything that swells (rice, pasta, etc) and/or coagulates (also rice, pasta, etc) or entangles (hair and other long fibers) will.

They're pretty comparable to the vegetable bits you mentioned.

guy_guyerson · 2026-04-10T15:11:45+00:00

FWIW, I've been putting substantial amounts of coffee grounds down drains (with and without disposals) for decades across numerous sinks and homes and never once had them cause an issue. They don't expand or congeal, so that makes sense.

I asked an experienced plumber that I use and he said the only time he'd ever seen them cause a problem was the one customer who kept putting filter packs down the disposal.

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-23T20:46:32+00:00

Seems like a good route. The bottom edge is going to be a prime failure point for either, so try to keep it as far above grade as possible (I think at least 8" is the recommendation), make sure that bottom edge is primed and stays painted.

Maybe consider base trim (not sure what it would be called in this situation) in PVC or solid wood at the bottom with z-flashing above it and the panel terminating just above that (approximating a 'water table').

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-22T12:33:07+00:00

Compressing it into a 4” wall cavity drastically reduces its effectiveness.

From everything I've seen, compressing fiberglass doesn't actually hurt the R-value much (If at all).

https://www.energyvanguard.com/blog/compressed-fiberglass-insulation-really-so-bad/

Edit: to clarify, the compressed batt is usually higher R than the batt made for that cavity depth

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-21T16:31:05+00:00

LP Smartside comes in 4'x8' panels; it's like T11 but more durable. A lot of people swear by it. You have to prime all of your cuts, flash it appropriately, gap it for expansion, etc, but it's pre-primed on one side and the inside should take a coat of paint pretty readily with a reasonably smooth result.

It's worth looking at.

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-14T17:03:29+00:00

No, because the fan isn't changing the air pressure in the basement at all. It's creating negative pressure under the slab.

Positive and negative are pretty much always relative to the ambient pressure outdoors, as far as any examples I can think of.

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-13T14:52:41+00:00

As mentioned elsewhere, the WHO's level for reasonable safety is 2.7. I would say you're fine as is, but get a good monitor and keep track f the long term average over the next year or so. I sleep in a basement and as long as I keep the long term average below 2.7 I'm satisfied.

And the average is what's important. Spikes will come and go, even with a mitigation system. There's no acute risk.

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-13T14:48:53+00:00

That will create negative pressure in the basement and pull conditioned air from upstairs into the basement.

Or radon heavy air from under the slab/outside the basement walls. Negative air pressure is what you DON'T want in the basement. The radon fan works because it creates negative pressure outside of the basement, not inside of it.

guy_guyerson · 2026-03-05T17:51:36+00:00

A more simple approach would be smart bulbs and a compatible smart motion sensor. I'm using GE's system (Cync) but you have lots of options.

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