B'tx

I was wondering if anyone had taken off their very old window tint and if so, how? I am more interested in learning how to remove the tint from the rear glass hatch because I do not want to damage the defroster copper circuit.

One tint installer said he uses a steamer but I do not have oe available. Any other ideas? I have a 92 camaro.

Thx!

paulo57509

Good Luck. You're probably going to damage the defroster grid no matter how careful you are. So prepare yourself for failure.

http://www.tintdude.com/remove.html

osso12

I learned this from a tint installer. I think they keep it secret.
You can do it without harming the grid.
The idea is right on. "steam"
how do you get steam you say?

Do this. On a sunny day, get you a squirt bottle, fill it with soapy water.
Squirt the inside of the glass down very very well. Get it soaking wet.
Take a black (gets hotter) plastic garbage bag or plastic trash bag
and completly cover your back glass and squeegee it on with a credit card, license ect. Get it nice and flat and work all the water out and get as many bubbles out as you can. Let it dry real good out in the sun for about 20 minutes.
Let that sun cook that trash bag and get it real hot. Roll the windows up while you are doing the baking. After about 20 minutes, find a lose corner of the bag and tear it straight across the glass in one pulling motion (sweep) without stopping of you can. The idea is to get all the tint in one motion and not have to go back and get little pieces which is very time consuming.
You will not hurt your defroster grid by doing it this way. There is nothing to harm. Good luck and post your results.

B'tx

Thanks! I will try that and post the results here. The window tint installer wants to charge $100 just to remove the tint so I would likt ot see if I can remove it and save a few bucks.

B'tx

I forgot to ask: can a blow dryer be used to speed up the steam process or could it cause harm to the glass?

RED_DRAGON_85

i would think that a blow dryer would dry it out more than heat it up

mikeiaz

I also have been told this is the way to do it, but the guy that told me said to use water and ammonia, not soapy water - the ammonia will break down the tint adhesive, that is why they never recommend using window cleaners containing ammonia on tinted windows

B'tx

Here's another idea that someone just told me and see what you all think:
use wool like the kind that you use for washing dishes and soapy water or ammonia to remove the tint.

I think that wool would not damage the glass or the copper lines while safely removing the tint. My tint just flakes off at this point due to age so this might just work.

I will try it on a section of the glass to see how this works.

ls six

The way I learned it was a blend of mikeiaz' and osso' suggestions.

Use a high amonia cleaner, spray it onto the entire window and stick a plastic bag that has been split into a flat sheet to the window. Let sit for 20-30 minutes and it should come right off.

osso12

Double 00 Steel wool wont hurt as it is real fine. BUT if the tint is in pieces and stuck on there for many years you will find the wool will just "skip" over the tint you are trying to remove. It will slide right across.

ssean92

iTrader: (10)

Raver blade, steel wool 00 like was posted, baby shampoo and water in spray bottle. Get a section started and just start pulling it off, then use the items above to get the glue off. That is what i d and it didnt take to long

osso12

Years ago I used "super green" to remove the glue. Not sure if they still make super green or not. But all the above posts are the best. Idea is not to leave any glue when you pull the tint.

ellocojorge

iTrader: (1)

think it might be called mean gree( grease remover right?)


is there any way to repair the defroster?

B'tx

Well, I haven't removed the tint yet as I have been reading all these great responses. I haven't decided yet which route to take yet but plan to decide by tomorrow cuz that's when I'm going to have time to remove the tint.

Thanks for all the suggestions and even the PM. It's very helpful to see all the different ways to safely remove the tint.

I'll take some before, during and after pics so you all can see the progress and help anyone else having the same issue.

B'tx

Yes, how to repair the defroster copper lines? I did see in a Motor Trend magazine some years back on how to fix it but don't remember much of the article anymore. Maybe I can find it again as I keep every issue since 1990.

I bought my first issue of Motor Trend in Mexico City in 1990. Boy how the future cars of then look similar to today's!

B'tx

Well, I did take off the front tints and started working on removing the hatch tint. I found my old clothes steamer to help me remove the tint after trying to scrape it off ended in failure.

The steamer really worked well as I was steaming the outside window(front glass) and slowly removing the tint with a scraper. After finishing the first glass, I then removed any glue left behind. On the second window, I used the steamer on the inside window and worked even faster. I was able to remove larger chunks of tint vs the the first way where I was only able to remove little pieces.

But, alas, though the 2nd method worked beautifully, I goofed by not covering the plastic panel from the hot steam and any drops that landed on teh plastic turned it white! Oh well, live and learn. Guess I'll have to search somewhere in this forum on how to paint the interior plastic.

I then attempted the hatch and got up to the defroster lines but stopped there as it was getting late. I did take pics of my project but forgot to transfer them from my camera to the laptop. Hopefully tonight I can get the pics transfered and tomorrow I will post the pics.

PS: If you use a steamer on the inside, please cover the plastic!!!

ssean92

iTrader: (10)

Glad to hear you got something to work for you. Your car really brings me back to when I first got my car. I have the same car, well started out that way anyways

raptor80dad

I used a heat gun .just enough to loosen the glue and not melt the tint.Then ammoniated window cleaner for any left over glue.

osso12

Correct

B'tx

Before the tint removal:


After:


Now, working on the hatch
Before:

The steamer I'm usig to help remove the back tint. Lot of work!

mechanic1992

I guess if i ever get tinting on a car ill have to use that steam method. I took the tint off my 87 with some paint remover, took some scrubbing effort but it did the job and didnt screw up my defroster.

omnipotentgoku

iTrader: (1)

Its pretty vile in function, but seriously try some carb cleaner for the glue. Its either carb cleaner or Brake parts cleaner. Expose a portion of the glass and spray it on. Literally, the glue turns into goo instantly. I used this to remove the excess glue from my last failed tint.

omnipotentgoku

iTrader: (1)

Definitely try the carb cleaner on your rear window (dont inhale to deeply)

cc 82Z-28

iTrader: (7)

I did my wifes car last summer by doing the amonia and water with the black plastic bag and it worked perfectly and it all came off with very little glue left to deal with, just get it good wet and pick a good hot sunny day. I am use the same method when the time comes for the tint to come off the camaro.

B'tx

Well, I finally had the tint installed for the front windows but haven't had time to remove the back one. I'll post the pics of the new tint later.

As for the , I was able to remove most of the white sploches with soap and water and a steel wool (though I recommend using something not so rough) and then used a plastic protectant to bring back the shine of the plastic.

Here is the before and after pics. I'm sure that if I had continued to sand it down a little more, I would have removed all the white sploches.