Reflectix warning

[BendOrLarry]

Over the years I have noticed many rv's going down the road with a foil looking stuff in their over the cab window. It turns out the product used is called refectix. It's a bubble wrap with a reflective foil on both sides. It works great at reflecting heat from windows., and keeping the RV a little cooler.

Here's the warning. This year went took a trip in our motorhome to southern Utah and Arizona. We knew it would be hot so I thought I would give the Reflectix a try. When we got home, I was detailing the rig and I noticed that the sealant in the window over the cab was oozing out. In some places the sealant, which is called black Butal, had melted and oozed out about an inch or so. I decided to remove the window and then test it for leaks. It leaked a lot! You could actually see gaps in the butal where it had oozed out. I did some research and found many statements by other RV owners who had problems with this product. It seems that the temps get excessive when the Reflectix is on the inside of the window, hot enough to even break a window. Just to be clear, black Butal is the sealant between the glass and the window frame. Grey Butal is used to make a seal between the frame and the fiberglass wall. I have replaced the sealant and now have a water tight window. I won't be using that product any more.

[tpi]

For me the Reflectex lasts about two years in southern CA when used outside the glass. Mostly use it in storage but have used it on RV when it's very hot and I'm camping. The strips of Velcro last 6 months to a year. I always have supply on hand to refresh the bad strips. Upkeep on it is no big deal. This keeps the window glass much cooler than without, and much cooler than the reflectex inside.

My suction cups exposed to the weather is what did them in. Once wind knocked off one of the panels, they'd fall to the ground and get damaged. One was always pulling away from the glass.

All in all in hot climate firmly believe reflectex should be on the outside. For cold, inside may be better (and simpler).

[gbopp]

I considered using Velcro and mounting the insulation on the outside, I just never tried it.
I didn't use the suction cups on the outside because a little wind would tear it off.

I have dual pane Windows. The suction cups came from a craft store.
I've never had a problem with the Windows or the suction cups.

Maybe I'll try the insulation on the outside, it may work better?

[tpi]

This is one of the thoughts behind me putting my reflectex on the outside of the window. To keep the window seals cooler..and to increase the effectiveness of the reflectex in keeping RV cool. I use heavy duty Velcro on mine with a few patches on each window. Maybe less attractive, but black is pretty subtle on the tinted glass..and I think the most effective. If someone else tries this, use the big patches of HD Velcro, cut to size, and prepare for occasional replacement of the Velcro and the Reflectex.

Prior to the Velcro I used suction cups to hold the Reflectex up. This was more maintenance intensive as the (HD) cups were always failing, and needed a constant stream of new ones from Amazon to keep it going. Velcro has been the better solution.

[Bumpyroad]

I have read about not putting reflective film on dual pane windows also.
bumpy

[BendOrLarry]

gbopp wrote:

BendOrLarry wrote:
It was on the inside with some masking tape in a few locations.

I hang mine on suction cups with hooks. I did try stick on Velcro but, the heat melted the glue and they slid down the window.
No problems with the suction cups.
I'll do some research, thanks. I wonder if the slight air gap using the suction cups makes a difference?

I doubt it, as my application had many spots that were not tight to the window.

[gbopp]

BendOrLarry wrote:
It was on the inside with some masking tape in a few locations.

I hang mine on suction cups with hooks. I did try stick on Velcro but, the heat melted the glue and they slid down the window.
No problems with the suction cups.
I'll do some research, thanks. I wonder if the slight air gap using the suction cups makes a difference?

[BendOrLarry]

It was on the inside with some masking tape in a few locations. The curtains mostly kept it in place. If you do some google searches on this subject you will learn what I did, and that I'm not the only person to see the result of the excessive heat that can be generated.

[gbopp]

That's interesting. I've used Reflectix on our Southwind for years with no problems.
How are you attaching it to the windows?