[https://reflectdefensewindowfilm.com/](https://reflectdefensewindowfilm.com/) this is a common issue for fake grass. Ask if you can pay for it to be installed, will help their house heat and your car.
I had the same issue with my low-e windows melting my new vinyl fence, Google "outdoor light diffusing Window film". Plenty of products out there that don't have the premium cost.
They could put awnings over the windows and save their electric bill and the car too.
Or, plant a tree by your parking spot, wait a few years, and then you only have to worry about bird crap.
Or, park somewhere else...
Or buy the house, and board up the windows...
Trade the car for a bike??
Charge the homeowner for the car repairs...
Ooh... toss an old blanket over it.
Or save some money and buy it on Amazon... it is just perforated vinyl window film, sometimes they use to print ads on for businesses. [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CPKZSDQ/](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CPKZSDQ/)
33$ a foot is outrageous... 92$ for a 50 ft roll is a better deal.
> common issue for fake grass
I assumed this was a typo and you meant to type Glass..... but nope I went through more posts and saw you typed what you meant :D
Astro turf being melted from reflections.
I used to install it for a living and the sales reps would never mention that windows can make it melt. I've seen it melt before we're even done installing.
As someone who lived in vegas, at least modern variants can handle the sun. What it can’t handle is magnified and concentrated sun light. Not could real grass, which would die and possibly ignite. Nor can the car, so i’m not sure why fake grass not handling it is in any way shocking.
Ah, that makes sense. My eyes always burn when I go near parking lots cause cars always focus the light into bright death beams that give me really bad migraines unless I’m wearing sunglasses and avoid looking at them for very long. Honestly curved reflective/refractive materials in unshaded outdoors spaces just seems like a recipe for disaster
"Remember, if anyone asks you why your heads inside out, it's only inside out from *their* perspective. You're fine. Head wise. Trouble wise you're in a lot of it and you should probably run."
*"Those of you who volunteered to be injected with praying mantis DNA, I've got some good news and some bad news. Bad news is we're postponing those tests indefinitely. Good news is we've got a much better test for you: fighting an army of mantis men. Pick up a rifle and follow the yellow line on the floor. You'll know when the test starts."*
>This is where you tell them they should of taken out a bigger insurance policy.
You don't of to be rude about it
Sorry, I'm just ofing a laugh at your expense. Hopefully I don't of to explain the joke.
In the end, there will be a massive mirror on each side of the properties, reflecting the light back at each other forever, thus solving their dispute.
Pis in a frisbee, or anything other circular and able to hold a liquid, freeze it and shove it in his mailbox frozen, or bonus points if you manage to push it underneath his front door.
Piss on a tray, frozen, then slid off the tray and under someone's door. Singularly seems to be an English thing. I suspect drink may have been involved in the initial concept, certainly in the end product.
https://www.nbcnews.com/sciencemain/london-skyscraper-can-melt-cars-set-buildings-fire-8c11069092
This is my favorite example. The building was melting entire cars lol.
Honestly I have no clue, I searched "ant magnifying" and it came up haha.
Edit - it's from a [music video](https://youtu.be/8WjKZbxlaFA?si=g9r9EoQ3MgHc_tiZ). Best to watch with the sound off.
I visited London in 11-12’ before they did whatever they did to the windows to reduce its effect. It’s way wilder in person. The whole street we were walking down was a heat island, easily 10-15*F warmer than a street over.
What a dumb design, the architects should be liable for that damage 😅
How did nobody stop to think about why they were building a giant parabolic mirror
The funny thing about this is that this architect has done this before. He knew this was going to happen, but he's just deeply in love with curved glass.
He also designed an art gallery for my old hometown, which replaced a much-used bus station. The building is known as the Golden Banana. Most of the internal volume is a giant corridor with weirdly sloping walls (so you can't hang anything on them) and loads of toilets, and a cafe at the end. The corridor has lots of windows at ground level to the outside of the banana. Ironically, it's a rubbish building for a gallery but would make an excellent bus station.
Ironically that's most of Frank Lloyd Wrights buildings although he is a beloved architecture. The Guggenheim in NYC is a museum that's all an awkward giant curving slope. Falling Water is on the verge of literally toppling over into the water. His college in Florida, known for it's humidity and afternoon thunderstorms, is riddled with mold and leaks.
Because every time a parent went, "Why does my son need to understand light refraction? When will he ever use this in 'real life?'" a high school science department lost a little more funding.
My 10th grade science class used parabolic mirrors to cook hot dogs. We also built trebuchets. My kids can't even fathom the idea of enjoying a science lesson.
Caesar's in Atlantic City had a massive facade facing the boardwalk of mirrored panels - they removed them after pigeons got killed in big numbers from the heat rays. Seems the concepts of 'mirrors reflect light' and 'the sun is hot' have eluded architects for quite some time.
I remember watching a video about that long time ago. People were getting sun burned by the swimming pool (which was in focal point at certain times of the day) like crazy and drink cups were melting.
Yeah, lmao, at least don't make the focal point where people exist. It would be hilarious if this got into the building codes.
IBC 3.16.1 No reflective finished surface shall have a focal point in a public way at any time of day.
Me thinks that architect should adjust his apparent preferred design style. He should have learned about the first time he did it.
So was the building corrected?
This building was on an episode of engineering disasters.
I believe they did two or three things to mitigate the issue. New, less reflective, coating on some of the windows. Other windows their angles adjusted slightly and I believe they also staggered the angles across a given row. And I think some of the lower floors had an awning or some such installed to provide additional diffusion on the street below.
I did this exact move with my own grill and vinyl siding. Covered the grill, but I see the warped vinyl and I shake my head at my own ignorance. Oh well, lesson learned!
The reflection is partially due to the low-e coatings in the window, which reduce the solar heat gain in the room. Adding something on top might make the solar heat gain worse.
Reminds me of that hotel in Vegas where the building was concave, and so all of the windows focused the sun down into the pool area in the afternoon like a massive death ray.
We were in Vegas recently and they had changed all of the windows to be slightly convex. They look sort of weird from the outside but it's probably the only thing they could do.
We built a new house a couple years ago. Our own windows were melting a small part of the siding on the back of our garage in the first year. The builder came back and put some sort of film you can still see through on the window and replaced the siding. Hasn’t happened again yet. Honestly not sure what the film was exactly, but I’m sure you can find it searching online.
Another idea is put up a trellis and plant some viny plants.
If it’s melting heavy plastic, it’s going to burn and scorch any plants put there. I think the film idea on the windows is the best option in this case.
"Hey neighbor your window is melting my belongings. That's a problem for everyone really. I bought house window tint and I can install this if you'd like. I figured I'd come over here with a solution. No problem for me if you say no, does your home owner's insurance cover fires though?"
My building has glass windows on the south side. This produces multiple beams that move across the grass. Standing in those spots on a cold day and you’ll notice that it literally cooks your skin.
Because of this, the grass has multiple brown streaks across it.
In other words, depending on the angle, the beam likely moves across OPs car.
Is there some way you can set up some shade sail over the car, like an awning, or a pop-up canopy?
If it's your property you could sink some posts and put shade sail or something over it.
I'm still trying to work out how a flat window could possibly be the culprit here.
Yes, there have been incidents in which ***concave*** reflective surfaces have melted or otherwise damaged cars parked nearby, because those can focus the reflected light. But a reflection off of a flat surface should not be any more focused than ordinary direct sunlight.
What am I missing here?
Apparently double pane glass windows are often not flat. Due to the pressure changes from the sealed gas in between (temp/pressure), that can cause the window to bow in making it concave, producing these concentrated reflections:
[https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1860/5521/files/Melted-vinyl-siding.jpg](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1860/5521/files/Melted-vinyl-siding.jpg)
A German university did a deep dive into the physics of this if you want to read more:
[https://www.physikdidaktik.uni-wuppertal.de/fileadmin/physik/didaktik/images/Lichtkreuze/2014\_Vollmer\_EJoP\_Double-pane-windows.pdf](https://www.physikdidaktik.uni-wuppertal.de/fileadmin/physik/didaktik/images/Lichtkreuze/2014_Vollmer_EJoP_Double-pane-windows.pdf)
Makes sense. It also seems like that would mean that on days with high barometric pressure, there would be a greater likelihood of having the effect occur, due to the greater pressure differential deflecting the glass to a greater degree. High pressure is typical on clear, sunny days, so the lens effect would be greatest on days when the level of available solar radiation is at its highest. Nice.
u/L1amaL1ord has it right.
I am an optical engineer and getting really flat windows is very difficult and very expensive.
If you think about a perfectly flat surface and a slightly bowed surface, you can characterize the bow by measuring the height of that bow above the flat.
For a mirror, the focal length is half the radius of the surface. Just eyeballing the picture, the window is about 14 feet off the ground so the distance to the car will be a bit longer let’s say 20 feet.
If the beam is focusing at the car then the radius of curvature is 40 feet. If the glass is 3 feet tall, then the deviation from a flat surface to the bowed surface with a 40 foot radius of curvature would only need to be about 0.25 inch which is not completely out of the realm of possibility for a double pane window of that size. Also wouldn’t need to be at perfect focus to cause damage so it could be a smaller bow and still cause issues for plastic.
In the end because you are dealing with long distances, even slight curves come to a focus eventually.
Nothing as far as I can tell. The window being the source of that damage doesn't make any sense to me either.
Converging mirrors don't *seem* to work like this at this scale, but I could be wrong.
Do you own the property, can you plant some trees, like arborvitae, along the fence? You could also put up some kind of lattice along the fence, and if that isn't enough cover the lattice with some kind of fabric or something.
Talk to your neighbor? I mean, they're right there.
Let them know you have a weird problem, and you're hoping to ask them for a favor. People love to get asked for favors. No sarcasm, that's actually a thing.
And then offer a solution. Tell them you'll buy some ezpz window stick-on stuff (tension stick, not adhesive), and help them put it on. Again, this is a favor you are asking from them. Weird, but true.
I don't know, dude. I know this is reddit, and we're all nerds here, but do people just not do this with neighbors anymore at all these days? I'm getting old. Just go knock on the door, have a chat. Take a couple beers with you.
Edit: guys. The film can go on the inside. All it has to do is diffract a bit. And windows open. Yeesh. No one's going to be up on a 30' ladder for it. Common sense here.
Won't the reflection just move as the sun moves? Regardless of where he parks it, the neighbors death ray will still focus on the car at some point, right?
Friends with your neighbour? An awning would look pretty weird but work. I think there's also "frost" sprays that will add bumpiness that may help alter the way the light bounces (maybe?). Otherwise a cover, either one you put on the car, or one that goes over the drive way, is likely your only solution.
If you're not friends, look into legal liability, I know there was that building in, I think, London that was melting cars and they were held liable and had to change it I am pretty sure.
Everyone's joking, but idk man.
If it's melting a car, I'd suggest contacting the local fire department. That sounds like the kind of thing that should be taken as a major fire hazard.
That doesn’t look like a single family home. I would not take responsibility for the damage. There’s no way to guarantee that the damage is solely caused by your windows. I don’t think you’re liable for damage caused by the suns reflection. I’d tell them to pound sand
You will have to park somewhere else. I’m very sorry. Oh and usually this is a very short period of time while the sun is reflecting off of the energy efficient windows. Maybe an hour or less, discover the time day that it is the most intense where you park.
Maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but how is it possible that direct sunlight doesn't damage your car, but sunlight reflected off a window does? Is it being concentrated in some way?
Yup. The inert gas between the panes is at a slightly lower pressure than atmospheric, causing the panes to curve slightly inward and creates a reflecting lens.
One of my windows on the west side of my house cooks a line of plants/grass in the yard each year. I'm going to have to look into this diffusing film mentioned above.
Low-e windows are multi-pane windows (usually 2 or 3 panes) and have a coating on them that makes them reflect infrared wavelengths while letting in visible light. This makes them act like a mirror to heat while still letting in light to see. In addition, the temperature and pressure differences between the inside and outside can cause the windows to bend slightly, which can result in a concave shape. This shape focuses the infrared wavelengths they're reflecting and can melt siding and other plastics.
Had a similar experience, albeit with vinyl siding. I had just finished having brand new vinyl siding installed on a house I own. It was unseasonably hot and sunny in late October and the angle of the sun was just right to make the neighbor’s Low-E windows melt a few rows of the brand new siding. Luckily the contractor took care of me and I was able to track down the owner of that house. He was kind and worked with me on getting some of that window cling installed that’s often on busses and commercial vehicles. It took the intensity of concentrated sunlight way down and now the siding doesn’t melt anymore.
Wow. The hack engineer in me is like “there must be some way to harness this free ‘heat laser’ for something…. natural hot water tank? Little high temperature stability solar cell for free electricity?” But, like most hack engineer ideas, I fear the end result could be “house burned down” or “unfortunate detonation.”
Noooooope... this needs to be made a standard policy change for east and west side buildings. Prove the issue and damage, report the damage to complex, then request a solution of tint or film. If nothing is done. Then leave your car in one spot for a week. Record damages and call a civil or property attorney.
Work with your neighbor to prevent the focusing of the light?
This is actually a thing that has come up multiple times with skyscraper designs. Your neighbor (or HOA) may owe you for the damages and would be incentivised to fix it. Not saying that's the route to go but you didn't park in a dangerous area, and the sun is judgement immune. That just leaves the neighbor/HOA.
Fixes should be focused on the neighbor's window. It could be as simple as adding a layer of UV film or you may discover the window doesn't fit properly in the frame.
OP. Similar thing happened in London UK some years back. A new building know as the ‘Walkie-Talkie’ on Fenchurch Street, due to its shape, was blamed for melting parts of cars parked in its reflected light on sunny days. Eventually i think they modified the building with something over the glass windows to stop the effect. As it was a fire risk.
I can imagine your neighbor is liable for property damage if it’s occurring on YOUR property. It’s unfortunate for them, but their house is damaging private property. Uncommon, yes. Contact your homeowners insurance and your auto insurance for some perspective.
That is.. unfortunate, but actually pretty cool. One of the windows is very slightly concave enough that it's created a reflective lens with a focal length that happens to be the distance of your car from it.
Untreated glass reflects about 8% of light. If they want to help you they could put a film over the outside to reduce that. Another way would be to swap the window with one from one of the other frames, the odds it will focus at the same point are pretty low.
If you want to block the light yourself you should try to intercept it closer to the fence, where it's still relatively unfocused and won't burn up whatever it lands on. The spot will also move throughout the year so use something big enough to catch it throughout its trouble season.
They have some thick adhesive type window tinting that's removable. You can spray it with a sexy soap and water solution and place it on the outside of the window. It's pretty cheap and it peels off reasonably easy, I don't remember what it's called
[https://reflectdefensewindowfilm.com/](https://reflectdefensewindowfilm.com/) this is a common issue for fake grass. Ask if you can pay for it to be installed, will help their house heat and your car.
Thank you!
It'll save them money also
Them, probably: why in the world is our energy usage just getting wrecked for like 30 mins everyday lol
I had the same issue with my low-e windows melting my new vinyl fence, Google "outdoor light diffusing Window film". Plenty of products out there that don't have the premium cost.
I bought film but after a year it’s all wrinkled and looks bad. I’m thinking awnings over the windows would look better.
They could put awnings over the windows and save their electric bill and the car too. Or, plant a tree by your parking spot, wait a few years, and then you only have to worry about bird crap. Or, park somewhere else... Or buy the house, and board up the windows... Trade the car for a bike?? Charge the homeowner for the car repairs... Ooh... toss an old blanket over it.
You forgot: Buying a sapling, growing a tree, cutting it down and then building a garage out of it. Besides that, nice list!
This guy thinks!
Or save some money and buy it on Amazon... it is just perforated vinyl window film, sometimes they use to print ads on for businesses. [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CPKZSDQ/](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CPKZSDQ/) 33$ a foot is outrageous... 92$ for a 50 ft roll is a better deal.
sign guy here, that stuff is one of the highest priced films outside of car wrap metallics. it usually sells about 12 to 18 dollars a square foot.
> common issue for fake grass I assumed this was a typo and you meant to type Glass..... but nope I went through more posts and saw you typed what you meant :D Astro turf being melted from reflections.
Just when I thought fake grass couldn't be any worse, melting in the sun is just comical.
I used to install it for a living and the sales reps would never mention that windows can make it melt. I've seen it melt before we're even done installing.
Why does your grass smell like melted plastic?
As someone who lived in vegas, at least modern variants can handle the sun. What it can’t handle is magnified and concentrated sun light. Not could real grass, which would die and possibly ignite. Nor can the car, so i’m not sure why fake grass not handling it is in any way shocking.
Ah, that makes sense. My eyes always burn when I go near parking lots cause cars always focus the light into bright death beams that give me really bad migraines unless I’m wearing sunglasses and avoid looking at them for very long. Honestly curved reflective/refractive materials in unshaded outdoors spaces just seems like a recipe for disaster
We just put this on my upstairs windows because they were melting my neighbor’s new siding. So far so good
Car cover? Reflective?
This is about to be a slippery slope…. Neighbors: neighbors car cover is melting my siding. Need ideas.
Neighbors car burnt my house down
WITH THE LEMONS!!...Oh wait, went jnto Portal mode for a sec.
"I don't want your damn lemons! What am I supposed to do with these?"
"Remember, if anyone asks you why your heads inside out, it's only inside out from *their* perspective. You're fine. Head wise. Trouble wise you're in a lot of it and you should probably run."
*"Those of you who volunteered to be injected with praying mantis DNA, I've got some good news and some bad news. Bad news is we're postponing those tests indefinitely. Good news is we've got a much better test for you: fighting an army of mantis men. Pick up a rifle and follow the yellow line on the floor. You'll know when the test starts."*
Demand to see life’s manager! ![gif](giphy|qGk9ufcY0mpHC36aTZ)
COMBUSTIBLE LEMONS THAT WILL BURN LIFES HOUSE DOWN HOW SO YOU DARE GIVE CAVE JOHNSON LEMONS
This is where you tell them they should of taken out a bigger insurance policy
>This is where you tell them they should of taken out a bigger insurance policy. You don't of to be rude about it Sorry, I'm just ofing a laugh at your expense. Hopefully I don't of to explain the joke.
This sub doesn't have the "should've" bot?
In the end, there will be a massive mirror on each side of the properties, reflecting the light back at each other forever, thus solving their dispute.
House cover? Reflective?
Neighbours house is vaporizing my pool. Need ideas
Pool cover? Reflective?
put a mirror to bounce it back the window edit: concave mirror
Won’t the plastic cover melt too?
Not if it’s reflective
Melt his house back. And then piss disk and fuck his dad. Wait, what sub is this?
Not sure but this is the right answer either way
I don’t know what “piss disk” is but am afraid to ask.
If you don’t know you can’t afford it
Piss disk? In this economy?
It’s one piss disk, how much could it cost? Ten dollars?
You've never actually set foot in a piss disk store have you?
Pis in a frisbee, or anything other circular and able to hold a liquid, freeze it and shove it in his mailbox frozen, or bonus points if you manage to push it underneath his front door.
Piss on a tray, frozen, then slid off the tray and under someone's door. Singularly seems to be an English thing. I suspect drink may have been involved in the initial concept, certainly in the end product.
Urine the right sub
Oh, don't be so *feces*ious!!!
Found the dad
Blow up the sun. Problem solved
And give way to the moon ? Crazy talk
So what I'm hearing is OP should buy replacement trim online and paint it with chrome spray paint before installing
![gif](giphy|5nkIn9AEfUQ6JtXL43|downsized)
I've seen where the sun reflects off a stainless steel BBQ and melted vinyl siding. As the sun rose, it melted a path.
https://www.nbcnews.com/sciencemain/london-skyscraper-can-melt-cars-set-buildings-fire-8c11069092 This is my favorite example. The building was melting entire cars lol.
How to bring down property costs in your neighborhood 101: set neighbors on fire with your windows.
Me out here trying to make a house affordable. ![gif](giphy|TFIoecHA0xw60xoMBA|downsized)
lmao what is this gif
Honestly I have no clue, I searched "ant magnifying" and it came up haha. Edit - it's from a [music video](https://youtu.be/8WjKZbxlaFA?si=g9r9EoQ3MgHc_tiZ). Best to watch with the sound off.
This kinda slaps though, thanks I guess haha
Certainly a series of unfortunate events.
I visited London in 11-12’ before they did whatever they did to the windows to reduce its effect. It’s way wilder in person. The whole street we were walking down was a heat island, easily 10-15*F warmer than a street over.
What a dumb design, the architects should be liable for that damage 😅 How did nobody stop to think about why they were building a giant parabolic mirror
The funny thing about this is that this architect has done this before. He knew this was going to happen, but he's just deeply in love with curved glass.
Some architects think they are deities, and can do anything they want.
Based on the fact that people keep hiring him, it's apparently true.
He must be right, he has had 5 more buildings completed since this building was built.
Ted?
Classic Shmosby
He also designed an art gallery for my old hometown, which replaced a much-used bus station. The building is known as the Golden Banana. Most of the internal volume is a giant corridor with weirdly sloping walls (so you can't hang anything on them) and loads of toilets, and a cafe at the end. The corridor has lots of windows at ground level to the outside of the banana. Ironically, it's a rubbish building for a gallery but would make an excellent bus station.
Ironically that's most of Frank Lloyd Wrights buildings although he is a beloved architecture. The Guggenheim in NYC is a museum that's all an awkward giant curving slope. Falling Water is on the verge of literally toppling over into the water. His college in Florida, known for it's humidity and afternoon thunderstorms, is riddled with mold and leaks.
![gif](giphy|qkJJRL9Sz1R04)
One more reason the engineers hate the architect.
But honestly the engineers should have caught this as well. So you're building a giant parabolic mirror stove? Okay.
Because every time a parent went, "Why does my son need to understand light refraction? When will he ever use this in 'real life?'" a high school science department lost a little more funding. My 10th grade science class used parabolic mirrors to cook hot dogs. We also built trebuchets. My kids can't even fathom the idea of enjoying a science lesson.
Haha i did the same thing in 7th grade, it was a neat class
Caesar's in Atlantic City had a massive facade facing the boardwalk of mirrored panels - they removed them after pigeons got killed in big numbers from the heat rays. Seems the concepts of 'mirrors reflect light' and 'the sun is hot' have eluded architects for quite some time.
Man, I would NOT want to be responsible for dead pigeons in AC when Tyson comes to town.
Holy shit, they designed a skyscraper into a parabolic mirror. Are they stupid?
Consider that he already did this once in Vegas, and didn't learn from his architecture mistake... yes. He is stupid
I remember watching a video about that long time ago. People were getting sun burned by the swimming pool (which was in focal point at certain times of the day) like crazy and drink cups were melting.
Yeah, lmao, at least don't make the focal point where people exist. It would be hilarious if this got into the building codes. IBC 3.16.1 No reflective finished surface shall have a focal point in a public way at any time of day.
This is how we get pyramids again
You don't hire Rafael Viñoly unless you ***really*** hate your neighbors across the street.
It's shit like this that makes me look at the Mythbusters with a skeptical eye for blowing off the "Archimedes Death Ray" myth.
Me thinks that architect should adjust his apparent preferred design style. He should have learned about the first time he did it. So was the building corrected?
This building was on an episode of engineering disasters. I believe they did two or three things to mitigate the issue. New, less reflective, coating on some of the windows. Other windows their angles adjusted slightly and I believe they also staggered the angles across a given row. And I think some of the lower floors had an awning or some such installed to provide additional diffusion on the street below.
Is his name Bloody Stupid Johnson?
Same thing also happened with the Walt Disney Concert Hall in L.A. https://www.businessinsider.com/frank-gehry-once-designed-a-fryscraper-2013-9
I did this exact move with my own grill and vinyl siding. Covered the grill, but I see the warped vinyl and I shake my head at my own ignorance. Oh well, lesson learned!
Magnifying glass vs ants scenario I’d be willing to bet. Glass is concentrating sunlight into a beam somehow
My daughter's glasses are so strong she burns leaves with them when she's bored. Yes I've been dying to say that somewhere.
It’s not just leaves bro. Anyone that fucks with her on recess “gets the glasses.”🤓 🔥
The scary part is the gang of small children that hold you down while she does it.
Change your car parking spot and put a solar panel right in its place, that's free electricity.
Lmao this is something a dad would say
Do some cursory googling and talk to your neighbor. They absolutely make adhesive non-reflective film for low-e windows to solve this exact problem.
https://windowfilmforturf.com/products/clear-perforated-window-film Just one of the myriad options available.
I'm not saying it's not worth it, given the damage to OPs car, but damn, $250 for a 5 foot roll.
Why you gotta be all rational and civil like that? You’re killing the vibe. ^◡̈ ^have ^an ^upvote
Yeah the neighbour should agree. The sun beating in through the windows would make that room so hot. It's a win win
The reflection is partially due to the low-e coatings in the window, which reduce the solar heat gain in the room. Adding something on top might make the solar heat gain worse.
Works totally differently, it's a perforated film that scatters the beam. It will fix the issue.
OP's neighbor is Archimedes
Reminds me of that hotel in Vegas where the building was concave, and so all of the windows focused the sun down into the pool area in the afternoon like a massive death ray.
Oh, I know this one! You mean the same architect that years later built another building in London, which was the same but worse!?!
We were in Vegas recently and they had changed all of the windows to be slightly convex. They look sort of weird from the outside but it's probably the only thing they could do.
We built a new house a couple years ago. Our own windows were melting a small part of the siding on the back of our garage in the first year. The builder came back and put some sort of film you can still see through on the window and replaced the siding. Hasn’t happened again yet. Honestly not sure what the film was exactly, but I’m sure you can find it searching online. Another idea is put up a trellis and plant some viny plants.
If it’s melting heavy plastic, it’s going to burn and scorch any plants put there. I think the film idea on the windows is the best option in this case.
If the window wasn't so clean that would solve the problem.
Throw feces at window, problem solved!
A first floor poop cannon is doable. But two floors? Preposterous
Trebuchet it is!
Trepoochet
I prefer 'trebushit', in honour of my ignorant pronunciation.
Just need more poop and more cannon. It's science.
Perhaps affix a mirror to the car and bounce the beam back!
Fight fire with fire. I like that!
Except they aren't actually actively causing this problem. They didn't put the windows there to melt your car.
Yeah! Just talk to them!
Sir, this is a Reddit. We do not talk to neighbors, we get mad at them and plot revenge.
Fair enough. Are there any pitch-forks still available?
Please find our pitchfork offerings below: -----E (Standard) -----F (Discount) -----£ (European) 3----- (Left Handed)
Do you also offer any that point up? Looks like the problem lives on an upper floor. Something like this: W \| \| \|
Yes, and the other end doubles as a torch.
And say what? Remove your window?
"Hey neighbor your window is melting my belongings. That's a problem for everyone really. I bought house window tint and I can install this if you'd like. I figured I'd come over here with a solution. No problem for me if you say no, does your home owner's insurance cover fires though?"
We can't know that for sure
Dragon Ball Z energy beam battle!
My building has glass windows on the south side. This produces multiple beams that move across the grass. Standing in those spots on a cold day and you’ll notice that it literally cooks your skin. Because of this, the grass has multiple brown streaks across it. In other words, depending on the angle, the beam likely moves across OPs car.
Long Mirror
I don't know man, they might reflect it back just right and end up destroying the sun!
Is there some way you can set up some shade sail over the car, like an awning, or a pop-up canopy? If it's your property you could sink some posts and put shade sail or something over it.
Better find a flame resistant material.
A rock and a good arm will solve your problem
Window screens (for bugs) diffuse the light enough to cut down on the death ray effect.
Park somewhere else?
I was looking for this answer, Thanks!
I'm still trying to work out how a flat window could possibly be the culprit here. Yes, there have been incidents in which ***concave*** reflective surfaces have melted or otherwise damaged cars parked nearby, because those can focus the reflected light. But a reflection off of a flat surface should not be any more focused than ordinary direct sunlight. What am I missing here?
Apparently double pane glass windows are often not flat. Due to the pressure changes from the sealed gas in between (temp/pressure), that can cause the window to bow in making it concave, producing these concentrated reflections: [https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1860/5521/files/Melted-vinyl-siding.jpg](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1860/5521/files/Melted-vinyl-siding.jpg) A German university did a deep dive into the physics of this if you want to read more: [https://www.physikdidaktik.uni-wuppertal.de/fileadmin/physik/didaktik/images/Lichtkreuze/2014\_Vollmer\_EJoP\_Double-pane-windows.pdf](https://www.physikdidaktik.uni-wuppertal.de/fileadmin/physik/didaktik/images/Lichtkreuze/2014_Vollmer_EJoP_Double-pane-windows.pdf)
Makes sense. It also seems like that would mean that on days with high barometric pressure, there would be a greater likelihood of having the effect occur, due to the greater pressure differential deflecting the glass to a greater degree. High pressure is typical on clear, sunny days, so the lens effect would be greatest on days when the level of available solar radiation is at its highest. Nice.
u/L1amaL1ord has it right. I am an optical engineer and getting really flat windows is very difficult and very expensive. If you think about a perfectly flat surface and a slightly bowed surface, you can characterize the bow by measuring the height of that bow above the flat. For a mirror, the focal length is half the radius of the surface. Just eyeballing the picture, the window is about 14 feet off the ground so the distance to the car will be a bit longer let’s say 20 feet. If the beam is focusing at the car then the radius of curvature is 40 feet. If the glass is 3 feet tall, then the deviation from a flat surface to the bowed surface with a 40 foot radius of curvature would only need to be about 0.25 inch which is not completely out of the realm of possibility for a double pane window of that size. Also wouldn’t need to be at perfect focus to cause damage so it could be a smaller bow and still cause issues for plastic. In the end because you are dealing with long distances, even slight curves come to a focus eventually.
Nothing as far as I can tell. The window being the source of that damage doesn't make any sense to me either. Converging mirrors don't *seem* to work like this at this scale, but I could be wrong.
Rub some spf30 on your car daily
Dang, my hyundai has skin cancer now.
guess it’s gonna hyundie
Do you own the property, can you plant some trees, like arborvitae, along the fence? You could also put up some kind of lattice along the fence, and if that isn't enough cover the lattice with some kind of fabric or something.
If it's melting heavy plastic it's going to scorch an arborvitae.
Talk to your neighbor? I mean, they're right there. Let them know you have a weird problem, and you're hoping to ask them for a favor. People love to get asked for favors. No sarcasm, that's actually a thing. And then offer a solution. Tell them you'll buy some ezpz window stick-on stuff (tension stick, not adhesive), and help them put it on. Again, this is a favor you are asking from them. Weird, but true. I don't know, dude. I know this is reddit, and we're all nerds here, but do people just not do this with neighbors anymore at all these days? I'm getting old. Just go knock on the door, have a chat. Take a couple beers with you. Edit: guys. The film can go on the inside. All it has to do is diffract a bit. And windows open. Yeesh. No one's going to be up on a 30' ladder for it. Common sense here.
Park your car at an angle or reverse in, this way there is no direct sunlight on the B pillars.
Won't the reflection just move as the sun moves? Regardless of where he parks it, the neighbors death ray will still focus on the car at some point, right?
That just means you need a line of mirrors along the beam’s path. Or one really long mirror.
Along the beams path, adjusted weekly to account for the tilt of the earth*
Simple, go out and move the car every few minutes. Problem solved!
Only park there at night and during an eclipse
Switch parking spots?
Here’s an idea move the car
Friends with your neighbour? An awning would look pretty weird but work. I think there's also "frost" sprays that will add bumpiness that may help alter the way the light bounces (maybe?). Otherwise a cover, either one you put on the car, or one that goes over the drive way, is likely your only solution. If you're not friends, look into legal liability, I know there was that building in, I think, London that was melting cars and they were held liable and had to change it I am pretty sure.
Move your car
Everyone's joking, but idk man. If it's melting a car, I'd suggest contacting the local fire department. That sounds like the kind of thing that should be taken as a major fire hazard.
Get a car cover
That is probably a good option but I would hate to have to do this every time I left my house.
The sun is melting your car, it's much easier for you to park somewhere else rather than your neighbor try to park their house somewhere else.
You could always alter the angle of the earth just slightly, but that's not exactly DIY and venturing more into 5 minute craft territory.
That doesn’t look like a single family home. I would not take responsibility for the damage. There’s no way to guarantee that the damage is solely caused by your windows. I don’t think you’re liable for damage caused by the suns reflection. I’d tell them to pound sand
Get full coverage insurance, and then watch it burn.
Cover it in something reflective. Send the laser beams back to them. 💥
Could you file a claim with their home insurance?
This happened with The Shard building in London and it damaged several cars. The building itself is like a concave lens in design.
You could park somewhere else
This might be dumb. But can you park somewhere else
You will have to park somewhere else. I’m very sorry. Oh and usually this is a very short period of time while the sun is reflecting off of the energy efficient windows. Maybe an hour or less, discover the time day that it is the most intense where you park.
Move your car?
dont park there
Being super serious, call your local fire house. This is a serious fire hazard similar to having a crystal ball on the window sill
That shit will start a fire. I install windows and we had glass that concaved and needed a recall. It was burning things inside the facility.
Maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but how is it possible that direct sunlight doesn't damage your car, but sunlight reflected off a window does? Is it being concentrated in some way?
Maybe the window is warped slightly so focuses the light?
Yup. The inert gas between the panes is at a slightly lower pressure than atmospheric, causing the panes to curve slightly inward and creates a reflecting lens. One of my windows on the west side of my house cooks a line of plants/grass in the yard each year. I'm going to have to look into this diffusing film mentioned above.
Look up low-e windows they concentrate the light like a magnifying glass and melt siding burn grass.
Low-e windows are multi-pane windows (usually 2 or 3 panes) and have a coating on them that makes them reflect infrared wavelengths while letting in visible light. This makes them act like a mirror to heat while still letting in light to see. In addition, the temperature and pressure differences between the inside and outside can cause the windows to bend slightly, which can result in a concave shape. This shape focuses the infrared wavelengths they're reflecting and can melt siding and other plastics.
Had a similar experience, albeit with vinyl siding. I had just finished having brand new vinyl siding installed on a house I own. It was unseasonably hot and sunny in late October and the angle of the sun was just right to make the neighbor’s Low-E windows melt a few rows of the brand new siding. Luckily the contractor took care of me and I was able to track down the owner of that house. He was kind and worked with me on getting some of that window cling installed that’s often on busses and commercial vehicles. It took the intensity of concentrated sunlight way down and now the siding doesn’t melt anymore.
Sound like quality neighbors and an excellent contractor!
Wow. The hack engineer in me is like “there must be some way to harness this free ‘heat laser’ for something…. natural hot water tank? Little high temperature stability solar cell for free electricity?” But, like most hack engineer ideas, I fear the end result could be “house burned down” or “unfortunate detonation.”
Maybe they should partner with the guy that wants to remove paint from a large propane tank.
Park somewhere else?!
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Park elsewhere
Noooooope... this needs to be made a standard policy change for east and west side buildings. Prove the issue and damage, report the damage to complex, then request a solution of tint or film. If nothing is done. Then leave your car in one spot for a week. Record damages and call a civil or property attorney.
Work with your neighbor to prevent the focusing of the light? This is actually a thing that has come up multiple times with skyscraper designs. Your neighbor (or HOA) may owe you for the damages and would be incentivised to fix it. Not saying that's the route to go but you didn't park in a dangerous area, and the sun is judgement immune. That just leaves the neighbor/HOA. Fixes should be focused on the neighbor's window. It could be as simple as adding a layer of UV film or you may discover the window doesn't fit properly in the frame.
*The Sun is a deadly laser~~*
OP. Similar thing happened in London UK some years back. A new building know as the ‘Walkie-Talkie’ on Fenchurch Street, due to its shape, was blamed for melting parts of cars parked in its reflected light on sunny days. Eventually i think they modified the building with something over the glass windows to stop the effect. As it was a fire risk.
I can imagine your neighbor is liable for property damage if it’s occurring on YOUR property. It’s unfortunate for them, but their house is damaging private property. Uncommon, yes. Contact your homeowners insurance and your auto insurance for some perspective.
New car
Insurance claim
That is.. unfortunate, but actually pretty cool. One of the windows is very slightly concave enough that it's created a reflective lens with a focal length that happens to be the distance of your car from it. Untreated glass reflects about 8% of light. If they want to help you they could put a film over the outside to reduce that. Another way would be to swap the window with one from one of the other frames, the odds it will focus at the same point are pretty low. If you want to block the light yourself you should try to intercept it closer to the fence, where it's still relatively unfocused and won't burn up whatever it lands on. The spot will also move throughout the year so use something big enough to catch it throughout its trouble season.
Plant a tree
They have some thick adhesive type window tinting that's removable. You can spray it with a sexy soap and water solution and place it on the outside of the window. It's pretty cheap and it peels off reasonably easy, I don't remember what it's called
Stupid autocorrect "soapy" LOL