What's you take on the ~life~ of film

mobiledynamics · October 28, 2015

Just a enthusiast here that has had Xpel and Suntek installed in the DD and the garage queens.

Pickup up some scraps film from my shop, as I plan to install it on my new snowblower....

Line the chute and buckets.

Anyhow, recent posts suggest that film should be removed around the 5-6 year mark.

I've seen what the original 3m film can do when it goes bad ;-/

I flip my cars on the 3-4 year mark, so I don't really see how they age.

If I leave it on longer, am I guaranteed it will get hard, crack, etc and be a nightmare to remove.

Let's presume-assume that the film does get removed around 8-10 year mark.

I have commercial grade steamers I use for ~cleaning~. Will a heavy steam session make removal of ~old~ film easier or will it be a bear regardless ?

blackoutauto · October 28, 2015

My guess is it will be fine, it's not gonna get tons of exposure to sun any ways

tango2 · October 28, 2015

The latest generation of films should not do that

PPFdistributing · October 29, 2015

The latest generation of films should not do that

:yeah

The technology in the last 4-5 years has gotten much better. Seeing the film crack and harden because of age is something that you shouldn't see anymore with the newer films. What you need to look for is the discoloration or dulling of the product which is the reason more installers have continued the trend towards top coated material. The current top coats on the market are much easier to work with than the first generations of Scotchguard and Clearshield where the film was stiff. But again, I would look to pay attention on the film staying clear as most clear coats are very pores, which means it's easy to absorb the elements in the area and the environment which over time, will accumulate and cause discoloration in the film if not treated properly.

mobiledynamics · October 29, 2015

Indeed. My installer won't even install film on white cars, without some clause being signed....

IMO all film is porus. Whether CC/Topcoated or not. It's just the nature of the product.

I love it on rockers, mirrors, bumpers, etc, but about 7 years ago, I've stopped having it installed on the hood or fender panels.

I know the benefits of it, but my ~golden eyes~ just doesn't like film on these area.

Got the snowblower buckets and chute on the snowblower done last night.

The chute was a b1tch. Due to the profile of it, I ended up doing a strip down the center and not a full inside wrap. The profile of it was causing way too many fingers, if I did not make a relief cut here or there.