Ceramic Window Tinting in Wisconsin

In Kepler's range they describe the same film. The ceramic layer is what blocks the infrared, so a shop saying IR film and a shop saying ceramic film are usually pointing at the same product. What matters is the number behind the name: Kepler publishes 81% infrared heat blocking for IR and 98% for IR+, plus a separate total solar energy rejection figure for each shade. Ask which range and which shade is being quoted, not which word is on the brochure.

Most of the infrared - the part you actually feel. Kepler IR blocks 81% of it; IR+ reaches 98% from Nebula through Stratum, and 93% on the near-clear Photon. There's a second figure too, total solar energy rejected, which covers the whole of the sun's output and so reads lower: 72% down to 51% across the IR+ range. Neither is a promise about cabin temperature - the glass, the colour of the car and how long it's been standing all count.

Kepler Standard is dyed film. It gives you the look, a non-reflective finish and up to 99% ultraviolet reduction, but on heat it is rated only up to 18% infrared reduction. The ceramic ranges add a layer built for exactly that job: 81% on IR, 98% on IR+. Ceramic is metal-free too, so it won't interfere with your phone, your keyless entry or the radio.

Price depends on the range, the shade, the number of windows and the size and shape of the glass; a coupe with two side windows is not the same job as a three-row SUV. For an indicative figure before you speak to anyone, use our pricing guides page. Ask a local tinter whether they carry Kepler film or can get it.

Your installer will tell you how long to leave the windows up while the film cures. A little haze or a few water pockets in that first stretch are normal - Kepler's warranty terms treat them as curing effects, not defects. After that, a soft cloth and an ammonia-free cleaner on the inside of the glass is all it needs; the warranty covers manufacturing defects, not damage from harsher cleaning. To check what's legal on your glass, see our window tint laws page. Looked after, the film should hold its colour and its clarity; if it bubbles, peels or fades because of the product itself, that is what the warranty is for, and the claim goes through the business that installed it.

There is more detail on cleaning here: window film care.

Not in any way you can compare with a specification. A heat lamp and a thermometer will show you a difference, but manufacturers measure film on defined glass under defined conditions, and a driveway test controls none of that. If you want to know what your film does, ask your dealer for the product specification for the exact shade fitted. Having the finished glass metered is also the only way to know where you stand against the Wisconsin limits, which are set out on our window tint laws page.

Wisconsin measures the finished window, glass and film together, rather than the film on its own. Vent and front side windows have to pass at least 50% of the light hitting them, and the rear side and rear windows at least 35%. No window may carry reflective film. If the rear window is below 60%, the car needs an outside mirror on both sides, and film on the windshield is allowed only above the AS-1 line, with none at all if your windshield was never marked. Officers allow a 3% tolerance when they measure. The full detail is on our Wisconsin window tint laws page.

There is one exemption. On the written recommendation of a treating physician or Christian Science practitioner, your front side windows may go to 35%. The statement names you, the condition and whether it is temporary, along with the car's make, model, year and VIN, and it has to stay in the vehicle.

Against dyed film, ceramic is the difference between a look and a heat measurement: Kepler Standard publishes up to 18% infrared heat reduction, IR 81% and IR+ 98%. Against metalised film, the ceramic ranges are metal-free, so they avoid the mirrored exterior and the signal interference that metal layers can cause, and they sit correctly against the Wisconsin rule that tinting film may not be reflective. What ceramic does not do is buy you a darker shade than the law allows.

Because of what's in it. A Kepler ceramic film is six layers in 1.5 mil: Ultra Bond adhesive, a UV absorber, the tinted film, a laminating adhesive, the nano-ceramic infrared layer and a Scratch Guard+ top coat. The ceramic layer is the expensive part, and it's the reason infrared blocking goes from up to 18% on dyed film to 98% on IR+. The rest holds it flat, clear and on the glass, and the film is covered against manufacturing defects for as long as the original customer owns the vehicle.

Use the dealer search on this site, or send your details through the quote form and the enquiry goes to an independent local tinter. They are independent businesses: they set their own prices and schedules, they arrange the fitting with you, and they handle any warranty claim on the film afterwards. Nothing on this page confirms that a dealer holds premises in a particular Wisconsin town.