One of the things I learned in my almost 40 years of experience is that I need to be mindful of natural daylight, and not to store anything too close near the windows. Ideally, anything that you want to preserve, keep, or collect for long periods of time should be stored AWAY from any windows as much as possible. Back in the early 1990’s (long before we “Googled” everything), some of my LEGO Town pieces started to fade/discolor that were on one particular side of the basement. After some discussion with my parents about this, we figured out it was the natural daylight of the sun going up and down causing the pieces to fade. So, as the years went by, I learned to block the basement windows with something dark as much as possible. Or in some cases, I completely turned the LEGO layout in a different direction to keep the sun from reflecting on a particular portion of the basement. Regardless if you are a LEGO Collector or just have something you want to store for many years, the best advice is to keep those items away from your windows as much as possible. Also, keep those items stored in a dark location so even the natural daylight reduces fading (not just the sun).
Now that we are in the process of rebuilding our massive LEGO collection, we reached out to a professional window tinting company that does car and home tinting. While discussing why we wanted the windows tinted, it was recommended we go with a 5% tint, which is the darkest tint available.
FYI: In most states, it is illegal to have a 5% tint on the driver side of your vehicle. However, on homes/real estate, this can actually increase the value of the home.
Here are several reasons that benefit tinting the windows in your home:
- UV protection: Blocks most harmful UV rays from entering your home, protecting furniture and flooring from fading.
- Heat reduction: Reduces the amount of sunlight entering your home, helping to keep rooms cooler in summer.
- Energy savings: By regulating temperature, tinted windows can lower your energy bills.
- Aesthetic appeal: Can improve the appearance of your home by adding a sleek, polished look. (A 5% tint will give it a “mirrored look”).
- Privacy enhancement: Makes it harder for people to see inside your home, providing additional privacy.
