Removing Old Window Tint...

02 LTZ

New member
Hey Guys,

I have a customer who is wanting his old window tint removed on his 1997 Chevy Silverado regular cab. It has tint on the side windows, back window, and a strip on the front windshield.

How much should I charge for removing the old window tint.
 
I wanted to have my old tinit removed and new tint applied. The local shop said 50.00 per hour. He also said it could take an hour or all day. Just depends on the brand and the adhesive they used. Needless to say I still have the old tint on until I feel like taking it off myself.
 
At my shop (NJ) I charge $20 for each door window, and 75 for the back window, if it has a defroster. A 1 piece back window on a truck (no defroster) I charge 40. As for the strip, $ 10.
 
We charge $30.00 per side window and $70.00 for the back window. I would first tell the customer that there is no warranty on the defroster still working after you are done because no matter how careful you are, it probably will not work completely. When you retint (if you do) tell them that there will be little imperfections in the new tint. A retint it really tough.
 
I removed the tint on the truck...it took me 2 hours...i charged $50...

Do you guys think that was a fair price...that is like $25 per hour.
 
back windows take time, inever damage the defrosters, no scraping. I use the throw away part of the film (the clear protective piece that you peel away) and i cut it to the shape of the window, soak the glass with soapy water and apply the clear film lightly, park it in the sun, or heat it however neccessary and the glue breaks down, then scrub with a mesh sponge, or a yellow foam/coarse sponge. I also use Xenit citrus to breal down the glue, works like a charm
 
i took the tint off my side windows (2 layers of 5% was too dark for me) in about 4 minutes.

All I did was used a razor blade at the top corner to lift up enough to hold onto, then i slowly peeled it down...you guys CHARGE for this?
 
Hey there 2drtahoez71...

If it just took me about 5 minutes to remove the tint then I would charge accordingly...maybe $5
But seeing how it took me 2 hours to remove the tint...I think I was fairly reasonable with the customer.
 
well when i took my tint off there was no glue...i took my time and went slow

I had a shop remove my tint one time because it started to peel, and the retard working there just ripped it off and had to spend 20 minutes scrapping my windows with a razor blade to get all the glue off.
 
i have taken tint off a few cars and have found a process that works great.

Tools you will need for flaw less removal.

1. Heat gun
2. Razor blade
3. Goo gone
4. windex (or your choice of window cleaners)

I start in the top corner of the window and heat it up slowly (I found that it helps get the glue soft. and it takes more of the glue off.)

As your pealing heat up the tint as your pulling it off (becuase the older it is the more brittle it gets)

After the tint is removed ... take a razor blade and go over the window to remove excess glue. Next i go over the window with goo gone incase i missed anything (making sure to go under the weather stipping

Finnaly going over the window with windext or other window cleaner ... and done...

depending on how long the tint has been on the window really plays a lot in how easy it is to pull off.

I have found that on an average I spend 20 min per window. Its usually a little less on regular side windows but on back windows with rear defrosters you can spend a lot more time.

Using this method 9 times out of 10 I can peal the back window without destroying the defroster.
 
I had to have the tint taken off my front side windows this last fall to pass inspection. It cost $60 bucks total to have both sides removed and new tint put on that would pass. That was just a shop that was nearest to my house too. I didn't get any special hook up or sale or anything. I just walked in and asked them to do it.

you guys CHARGE for this?

Hell yes they charge for it. We charge for washing the car too and what could be easier? If people will pay then others will charge. Somewhere out there I am sure that there is a dude making cola and laughing "People pay for this??? BWHAHAAHAHAHAH!!!" Supply and demand.... Its the American dream in action.
 
I removed some 5-6 year old tint on my car. It was not easy. Once you peel the tint off, you will have lots of glue residue left on the windows. I used a combination of glass cleaner and diluted all purpose cleaner to soften the glue enought to use a razor. This worked well but took a few hours. I still have not removed the tint on the hatch because of the defrost elements.

Brad
 
here is a way to remove window tint from a back window that should take most of the glue off with the film. This method is referred to as "sweating..."
  1. on the outside of the glass, cut a piece of plastic film (a black trash bag will work) to fit the window
  2. saturate the window on the inside liberally with some ammonia based window cleaner
  3. remove the plastic you cut on the outside of the window and stick it to the soaking wet film on the inside, then saturate the plastic bag
  4. park the vehicle with the window facing into the sun
  5. turn on the defroster and the vehicles heater and let the car idle for 10-15 minutes with all the windows closed or untill all the window cleaner has evaporated
  6. saturate the plastic once more using the same window cleaner
  7. let it sit for another 10-15 minutes, or once again, untill all the window cleaner has evaporated
  8. starting in a corner, and working fast, peal off the film (if the film is not coming off with the glue, repeat step #6)
  9. any remaining glue can now be removed with the same window cleaner using some #0000 steel wool or one of the white scoth-brite pads
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    This method will rarely damage any of the defroster lines, and as I said, should remove most of the glue
 
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