What does TSER measure?
All of the sunlight energy a filmed pane turns away, whatever its wavelength. 3M’s Color Stable brochure defines it as the percentage of total solar energy rejected by filmed glass, adding that “the higher this value, the less solar heat is transmitted.”
Because visible light is part of that total, a darker shade of one film scores higher even when its infrared blocking hasn’t changed. LLumar’s performance data sheet shows it clearly:
| LLumar film | Light let through (VLT) | TSER | Infrared energy rejected (IRER) |
|---|---|---|---|
| ATC 50 (dyed) | 60% | 28% | 22% |
| ATC 05 (dyed) | 5% | 44% | 22% |
| IRX 50 (nano-ceramic) | 54% | 50% | 60% |
| IRX 05 (nano-ceramic) | 6% | 62% | 60% |
| AIR 80 (clear) | 77% | 43% | 60% |
Darkening ATC from 60% to 5% light adds 16 points of TSER while its infrared figure stays at 22%. IRX starts higher because its nano-ceramic blocks infrared at every shade; the infrared side is explained under IR rejection.
How do you compare TSER from two brands?
Only when both were measured on the same glass. LLumar and SunTek, both published by Eastman Performance Films, test film on one clear 6 mm pane under NFRC guidelines, which lets their numbers sit side by side: on SunTek’s sheet, Carbon 18 rejects 44% at 18% light, close to ATC 15’s 40%.
3M’s figures describe something else. Its brochure bases the estimates on 6 mm green automotive glass that only lets 73% of light through on its own, so the base glass is already absorbing energy before the film adds anything. Ask what glass a quoted TSER was measured on before you weigh it against another, as covered in LLumar vs 3M window tint.
Why TSER matters on a car in BC
It’s the broadest single number for how much sun a film keeps off the people behind it. In BC, film of any shade goes on the glass behind the driver, which on a full-size SUV is seven panes in the shop’s rear package, so the TSER you choose shapes how much of a July afternoon’s sun reaches the back rows and cargo area.
Lab numbers are a starting point. LLumar notes that real performance varies with glass type, and factory privacy glass already absorbs some energy before film goes on. Whether the gain is worth paying for is weighed in does ceramic tint really block heat.
Where TSER shows up at Brookswood Tint
On the shop’s film pages and in its heat rejection comparison tool. Dyed ATC, at 28 to 44%, is the film in the starting prices; IRX ceramic, at 50 to 62%, is the upgrade quoted per package. The shade with the top figure on the sheet is named in which tint rejects the most heat.