FINDING A REPUTABLE WINDOW TINT SHOP NEAR YOU

For many folks, window tinting is the first, and sometimes the only after-market item they will install on their vehicle. Whether it’s your first or 10th car, it’s never too late to learn about the incredible benefits of ceramic window tint and where to get it installed.

Most towns have that one “mega” tint shop that you hear ads for on the radio and perhaps a great road-side location. Or maybe the small mom and pop shop that doesn’t charge an arm and a leg to tint your vehicle. While we do see the benefits of both business models, and I don’t think either are “wrong”. Having a high-volume shop or the opposite, a small operation with 1-2 employees can ultimately mean your vehicle isn’t getting the full attention it needs during the tint installation.

We feel as if our operation and the attention to detail we put into every job is great neutral ground for what you should be expecting in your local tint shop. By not being a high-volume shop prevents us from having to rush your vehicle or have 2-3 different sets of hands on your vehicle. On the flip side, by not trying to be the most affordable shop in town, means we can offer our clients a range of higher quality ceramic films that you can expect amazing results from. Everyone must start somewhere, we sure had to! If anyone has been following A-Plus from the beginning, you would remember the 600-sqft bay I worked out of by myself from 2012-2014 (until I got into a larger space). This small shop bay taught me a lot about business and fed my hunger to want to keep growing into what we are today – A high quality, low volume shop that can focus on the customer.

By having dedicated installers on your vehicle, we can focus on you, the client. We can really dissect and figure out what you’re looking for in a window tint. This allows Tim, our client specialist, to comfortably discuss your options without feeling rushed because his main goal is to educate clients and answer any questions you may have. Once Tim passes the keys off to Frank, it’s now Frank’s turn to tint your windows. Having Frank exclusively focused on installing tint and Tim exclusively focused on making sure our clients are satisfied, it leaves no room for anyone to feel rushed or like the client isn’t getting our full attention. It also ensures that your window tint is going to look great and everyone’s on the same page! How can you tell if a shop has experienced installers? Unfortunately, there’s no system or legitimate schooling for this line of work. There are thousands of courses you can take in person and online that will give you a piece of paper stating “you can now install window tint” after a 2–3-day course. I personally believe these certificates mean absolutely nothing as you cannot learn any of the services we offer in 2-3 months, let alone 2-3 days. It takes YEARS to become proficient in tinting windows, anyone can wipe off a side window and stick a pre-cut piece of tint on. But it takes a lot of patience and practice to ensure that you have no dirt, no debris, no creases, no hairs, or old glue left over in the prep. Preparation is one of many stages of installation that requires more than your average “eye for detail”. There are also many precautions we take with certain brand vehicles that an inexperienced window tint installer may not be aware of. There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes steps in the process that we take to make sure you leave with a tint job you and we are proud of.

Sometimes the best way to see what a tint shop is capable of, is literally showing up to their location and requesting to see their work, whether its an employee’s vehicle, or a vehicle they’re working on, just check out the operation, check the cleanliness, ask how long the installer has been installing film. These all seem like simple/direct questions and ques to check for, but it’s usually the most forward way of finding out what to expect from them. Google reviews are also a huge factor when finding the right tint shop, most google reviews are honest, real people who want to express their experience with potential future clients. If your local tint shop has a lot of good google reviews, that’s a great indication that the community trusts them, and you can too. Cheapest is not the best, especially when it comes to window tint. Materials alone usually dictate the overall price of your tint job. We have local shops who tint full sedans for $130 and look great, but they used extremely cheap tint resulting in fading and bubbling down the road. There’s also shops that charge $500 for the same car but have inexperienced installers who may cut up your window gaskets or trim. Again, we feel our operation is the perfect blend of great high-quality installs paired with an amazing brand like XPEL, it’s a no-brainer to go with a shop that has an experienced team and great materials, it’ll pay off in 5 years when your tint still looks just as great as the day we installed it!

Ask about their warranty! Warranties are huge when it comes to window tint because without a warranty, you have no ground to stand on if your tint starts bubbling or fading. ALL our window tint comes with a free lifetime warranty which covers the tint itself from failing or prematurely fading. We also warranty our installation for a lifetime for free, so if any corners start peeling or if there’s simply something you’re not too keen about, we will replace it and make sure there’s no issues moving forward. Aside from that, we do offer a “no fault” warranty, which we sell as a separate option for those clients that may have kids, or pets that are more prone to scratching or damaging the tint by themselves. This no-fault warranty will cover the replacement of any window in the future for any reason no questions asked. Most folks don’t need the no fault warranty but it’s a nice option to have if you want to make sure you’re protected against literally anything. At the end of the day, there’s always going to be shops popping up here and there that offer window tinting, but if you’re looking for a great window tint shop in Harford County that has tons of experience, you found us! If you’re not local to us, I would recommend looking at XPEL’s installer locater to find the closest XPEL dealer near you. We would love to help you out regardless of where you’re located. Shoot us an email or give us a call to find out more!

-Nick Kraft