Home window tinting in Mosman
Mosman sits between Middle Harbour and Sydney Harbour, and most of its homes are lived in by the people who own them. Film on the inside of the glass cuts the glare off the water and leaves the front of the house looking as it does now.
Harbour houses and village apartments
A little over half the homes in Mosman are flats or apartments, and about a third are separate houses. The glass is different in each, and so is the job.
In a harbour house
Houses on the slopes at Balmoral, Beauty Point, Clifton Gardens and around Mosman Bay are built to look at the water, so their biggest glass faces it. That glass takes the glare, and it is also where the view matters most. We lean toward clear or low-reflective film on it, and keep the stronger films for the rooms that need them, such as a hot bedroom or a skylight.
Many of these houses sit below the road, down a long run of stairs. We note the access on the measure, and the quote allows for it. Film for sliding doors and pavilions
In a village apartment
Apartment blocks line the Military Road ridge and gather around Spit Junction and the village. The usual jobs are living-room windows and balcony doors in the afternoon sun, and a window that looks straight across at the block next door.
Strata by-laws often cover how windows look from outside, so we choose a film that sits with the rest of the building and name it on the schedule. Heat and glare in a unit
| Flats and apartments | 52.0% |
|---|---|
| Separate houses | 34.9% |
| Homes owned or being paid off | 64.1% |
| Homes rented | 33.1% |
| Workers who worked from home | 58.8% |
Source: ABS Census 2021 QuickStats for Mosman, the suburb.
Glare off the water
On the harbour side, the glare comes from below as often as from above. Sun off the water arrives at a low angle, under the eave or awning that was built to shade the high summer sun.
Your Home, the Australian Government's guide to comfortable homes, sizes eaves to block high-angle summer sun, and notes that low-angle sun is much harder to keep out with fixed shading. Light bouncing off the harbour is low-angle light, so the eave does little about it. Film on the pane does.
Which hours are worst depends on which way the glass faces the water and how high the house sits above it. Tell us on the enquiry when the glare is at its worst, and we start the measure at that side of the house.
Close to six in ten Mosman workers worked from home at the 2021 Census, so a desk or dining table facing the harbour is a common glare job here. Glare in the home study
What film does about it
- Cuts the glare on the screen, the television and the table, so you can leave the blinds up.
- Takes some of the heat out of a harbour-facing room on a hot afternoon.
- Slows the fading of floors, rugs and furniture in the light.
What it will not do
Take the glare away completely. A film dark enough for that would also dull the view on an overcast day, so we set the film pane by pane instead: stronger where the room needs it, lighter where the view comes first.
Film for Mosman glass
Every film here is from 3M. The choice is made for each pane, on the measure.
| Where the glass is | What we usually suggest | What we check on the measure |
|---|---|---|
| Living-room glass and doors facing the harbour | Clear or low-reflective heat-control film | The hour the glare is worst, and how much of the view you want kept bright |
| The street front of a Federation or inter-war house | Low-reflective film, or none on panes that are fine as they are | Which panes are original or leadlit, and whether you have asked council about the house |
| Balcony doors and windows in a village block | A film that matches the look of the rest of the building | What your by-laws say about the outside of the building, and the lift booking |
| Side windows close to the house next door | Frosted or privacy film | How much daylight you want kept, and how the room shows at night with the lights on |
| A skylight or highlight window | Often a stronger film than the doors below it | The glass type, and how we reach it |
| Leadlight or textured glass | Nothing promised | We look at each of these panes in person |
Heritage, strata and the look from the street
Mosman Council lists around 500 heritage items and archaeological sites and 13 heritage conservation areas in Mosman. Council's advice is that a planning certificate is the way to confirm whether a property is listed.
Film sits on the inside of the glass, replaces nothing and can be taken off. Low-reflective film is our default on a street front, because from the footpath it still reads as ordinary glass. Whether a change needs approval is council's decision, never ours. If your house is listed, or you are not sure, ask council first.
In a strata building the owners corporation has a say in how the outside looks, and many by-laws cover window film. We write the film for every pane on the schedule, so you have something specific to take to the committee. Film in apartments
Worth having before the measure
- Whether the house is a heritage item or in a conservation area, if you know
- Your strata by-laws, for an apartment
- The rooms where the glare or heat is worst, and roughly when
- Anything you know about the glass: double glazing, replaced panes, original leadlight
Glare fixes that go wrong by the harbour
A shine on the harbour side
Mirror film across the water side of a house shows from the harbour and the foreshore paths as a bright sheet of glass. Most owners are trying to avoid exactly that look.
The view turned grey
The darkest film on every harbour pane to beat the glare. At dusk and on a cloudy day the water looks dull through it.
Darker than every other balcony
One set of balcony doors darker or shinier than the rest of the block, fitted before anyone read the by-laws.
The front changed first
A street front filmed before anyone asked council whether the house is a heritage item.
A Mosman house on the schedule
A harbour house usually splits in two on the schedule. The water side is filmed for glare and heat. The street side is about keeping the look. Each pane has its own line and its own reason.
Mark your own panes on the drawing and the lines come with you to the booking.
Example schedule
- W1Harbour side, living room, stacker door 1: Glare, Heat
- W2Harbour side, living room, stacker door 2: Glare, Heat
- W3Harbour side, study window: Glare
- W4Street side, bay, centre sash: Keep the look
Low-reflective film, so the front looks as it does now.
- W5Street side, fanlight over the front door: Glare
Leadlight. We look at this pane in person, and film is not promised.
- W6Side, bathroom, obscure glass: Privacy
Obscure glass: checked in person on the measure.
Mosman questions
Do you come to Balmoral, Beauty Point and Clifton Gardens?
Yes. Balmoral, Beauty Point, Clifton Gardens, Mosman Bay and Spit Junction are all Mosman to us. If you are next door in Cremorne, Neutral Bay or Cammeray, put your suburb on the enquiry.
Will film get rid of the glare off the water?
It cuts the glare down but does not remove it. A film dark enough to remove it would dull the view as well, so we choose the film for each pane and keep the harbour-facing glass as clear as the room allows.
Will the house look different from the harbour?
With clear or low-reflective film, very little. Reflective films are the ones that show from outside, and we tell you how each option will look from the water before you decide.
Our house is heritage-listed. Can we still have film?
Ask Mosman Council first. Film goes on the inside and can come off, but whether it needs approval on a listed house is for council to say. We can measure and write the schedule either way, so you have the detail to show them.
The house is down a long flight of stairs. Does that matter?
Plenty of Mosman houses are. We note the access on the measure, and the quote allows for carrying everything down and for any high glass over a drop.
We rent. Can we have film fitted?
Ask your landlord in writing first, because film is a change to their glass. It can come off at the end of the lease, and some owners will want that.
Near Mosman
References
- ABS Census 2021 QuickStats: Mosman, the suburb summary, for the figures above.
- Mosman Council: Heritage listings. The count of heritage items and conservation areas, and how to confirm whether a property is listed.
- Your Home: Shading, the Australian Government's guide. Explains how eaves shade high summer sun and why low-angle sun is harder to shade.