There are several ways to protect your home from penetration through windows. The most popular of them are the installation of window grilles and gluing a protective film (armor film) to the surface of the window glass.
If we compare the efficiency of grilles and armor film, first of all, we need to decide what kind of efficiency we are talking about? Are you going to protect your home from thieves? Or are you afraid of a long-term assault? Perhaps by the term "effectiveness" you mean the ability of the installed protection to maintain the integrity of the window glass? Depending on the answers to these questions, the solution for securing windows can be different.
Protective film
Typical armor films are made of thick plastic and protect the glass from shattering upon impact. There are also thin protective films made of materials based on lavsan and polyester. Such films increase the strength of window glass, prevent intruders from entering the dwelling and prevent the glass from breaking under a strong impact (including an explosive wave). Armored film manufacturers have even tried to create a multilayer film that can withstand a bullet fired from a pistol. However, so far, no significant success has been achieved in this area of application of armored films.
Typically, screen protectors are 400 micrometers thick, which is 8 times the thickness of conventional glass tint films. A film with a thickness of more than 100 micrometers is able to prevent glass from breaking into fragments during explosions.
The use of armored films has its advantages. They are quickly installed. With their help, you can tint windows, make them mirrored, which makes it difficult to observe what is happening in the room from the street side.
In addition to fulfilling their main function, window films can protect the room from overheating and vice versa, prevent heat loss from the room when cold weather sets in.
If necessary, the armor film can be easily removed.
Screen protectors are very effective in keeping thieves out of your home. Of course, if you wish, you can destroy even windows with the thickest armor film. But most robbers, when faced with a hindrance, would rather abandon their plans than decide to spend a couple of hours breaking through a window protected by an armored film.
Lattice
The grilles installed on the windows allow you to reliably protect your home from the visit of uninvited guests.
Like any protection system, grilles have their pros and cons. The disadvantages include the high cost of manufacturing and installation, the complexity of dismantling the gratings. They can protect the window from penetration, but they cannot protect the window glass from breaking.
In the event of a fire, the gratings can become an insurmountable obstacle to evacuation, especially in the case of lower floors.
The advantages of window grilles include high reliability and the ability to perform decorative functions. However, it will look like a decor only from the street - hardly anyone will like watching the world around through a barred window.
