Whether you purchase a second hand or new car, it is significant to know what your car window tint percentage is. It is specifically important in case you want to further tint your windows and to make sure the darkness of your tint is adhered to your local laws and regulations.
There are a lot of reasons why you need to tint your windows, ranging from UV protection to climate control, or even for security reasons in case of a crash. However, how can you be sure about what your window tint percentage is and whether this percentage is legal? If you are looking for window tinting Rochdale, we help you take through the process of how you can calculate or determine your car window tint percentage!
What is the Window Tint Percentage?
The window tint percentage determines the amount of visible light that passes through the window. Hence, in case your window tint is just 5%, it allows 5% of light to come through and will, hence be a darker tint. In case it is 80%, it would significantly be lighter and will hence allow 80% of light to pass through. Therefore, in a nutshell, the lower the percentage is, the darker the window is.
What Tint is Too Dark?
It differs depending on the area and country you live in. At the moment, the darkest tint allowed is 35% on the front window and 20% on the passenger window or the rear window. You may read more about different areas and the legal window tint percentage there.
Factory Versus Aftermarket Tint
There are a couple of types of tints you may consider. When your car was manufactured, it came with factory tinted windows. Aftermarket tint can then be applied which is actually another layer post-manufactured.
It also means that the factory tint can be embedded in the windows and hence can’t be removed but you can only build on it with the aftermarket tint. It is also crucial to consider both of them while calculating the percentage of the tint.
How to Calculate Window Tint Percentage?
The first thing you need to do is to know what tint percentage your windows actually are. In simple words, the factory tint it came with, like mentioned before. Then, once you identify what VLT percentage your actual windows are, you multiply the VLT you applied or may apply to the window. Hence, for instance, if your Film VLT is 7% while the factory VLT was 60%, the equation to calculate your overall tint percentage is 7×60/100 = 4.2%. That means your overall tint percentage is 4.2%.
Know Your Factory Tint Percentage
In case you can’t find what the factory tint percentage is, you can find a meter to identify the percentage. You can simply roll down your window and then calculate the tint using the meter. It is also a method used by the law enforcement to check the car window tint percentage.