Melted vinyl siding, car parts, paint and pool covers puzzle homeowners

This is strange, even the Dept. of Energy said "...all the factors are not known, and more research is needed."



Anyone else experiencing this?

www.wcpo.com...

CLEVELAND - In neighborhoods across America, there's a strange phenomenon happening that's melting paint, siding, pool covers, and car parts. It's a problem that even caught the attention of the Department of Energy.

The vinyl siding on Lynne Loudon's home survived 20 years of hail, rain, wind and sun. So, she couldn't figure out why it suddenly started melting.

"I thought maybe it was lightning or because I bought a new microwave," Loudon said.
Over time, the melt zone got longer and wider leaving Loudon to think her house was shifting. Something else was shifting up above in the sky. "Came out one day and noticed like a spot of light, like yellow light and it was coming from the window," Loudon said.

Loudon wasn't seeing things. A neighbor saw it too. "It was just a bright circle with an X in it," Kathy Stec said. Loudon and her neighbor agreed that the bullseye of sunlight appeared to be reflecting off the new, double-hung windows added next door. They're energy efficient with a low e-glass coating. This means they reflect sunlight in the summer and keep the heat inside during the winter.

Read more: www.wcpo.com...

edit on 28-9-2011 by JibbyJedi because: (no reason given)

reply to post by JibbyJedi


Not to take a non-scientific approach, but... We ARE nearing the end of the age of materialism, according to many different cultures, this is very, very strange.

Thank you for the post my friend! S&F, I will see if I can't pull anything up from my area.

1 has to ask have these windows just came out or have they been in market. After this then 1 must ask if these windows are not new to market ect. Then why is SUN so strong effecting NOW? Thanks for update, pretty deep.

It's good info to have and crazy that double hung windows is causing it!

From your link:

The National Association of Home Builders says the curvature of the glass in the double hung windows can create a magnifying glass effect that focuses a light beam at other surfaces that can reach 200 degrees. Read more: www.wcpo.com...

Makes since though if the windows create a magnifying effect.

Thanks for posting!
OiO

reply to post by JibbyJedi


WTF? So the "X" light isn't from the sun? And they don't know where it is coming from?

Strange... very strange..

Oh this is incredibly odd! The X light is crazy

I have personally never experienced this, as neighbors are quite far away and I have cheap windows I would say the company that makes the windows is liable for the damage, hands down. You would think they would re-call something like this stat!

I stood infront of a polished silver plate that was perpendicular to the suns rays, within moments it felt like I was cooking. No doubt in my mind that this is happening all over with other reflective objects.

It is pretty clear that this is the result of the windows next door creating a magnifying glass effect on the siding and such.

The simple solution is a nice thick coat of window tint.

No conspiracy here, although by the end of the day I'm sure some kind of secret military weapon will be held responsible.

Originally posted by SalientSkivvy
reply to post by JibbyJedi

 

WTF? So the "X" light isn't from the sun? And they don't know where it is coming from?

Strange... very strange..

The X light is coming from the sun's reflection on double hung windows. If you visit the OP's link, it explains it.

OiO

Also are these effects elsewhere where these windows are not present and if not then what?

Originally posted by Gradius Maximus
I stood infront of a polished silver plate that was perpendicular to the suns rays, within moments it felt like I was cooking. No doubt in my mind that this is happening all over with other reflective objects.

I was wondering this also.

A parabolic reflector, in this case the window, concentrates a large area of sunlight to a small point.

Very clear what the problem is, the windows are acting as magnifying glass's. Nobody will do anything because its an acceptable cost... until it heats up a gas tank and the house blows up. Then everyone will throw there hands in the air and start to complain and protest and cry. After that people will stop using it, and the company will either go out of business or start fixing the actual problem.

I wonder how many daytime house fires these reflections have caused?
How many fire investigators have wrongly accused a homeowner of negligence for their burned homes?

These need to be pulled off the market and replaced asap... but the costs for that will probably keep the "definitive cause" in a legal loop for years while people's homes continue to burn down.

reply to post by JibbyJedi


Been looking for a new place to live for a while in Cleveland.

This is the first I've heard of this.

Maybe my instinct of getting out is a good one, ya think?

Yes, the article points to specific windows as concentrating the sun glare and causing the melting, but what is NOT clear is whether the windows are new OR if they've been around and they have just recently started causing this problem. As in the sun's glare has become more fierce.

Which I mention, because some days (not all) when the sun comes through my sliding glass doors of my house and touches my skin...it actually burns like I stuck it to a hot stove burner and not like the normal warmth of the sun.

Very interesting! My new place has these types of windows. They virtually block all direct heat from the sun. When I get home I will make note of the reflections, and see if I can record some temps myself.

Originally posted by onthelookout
Yes, the article points to specific windows as concentrating the sun glare and causing the melting, but what is NOT clear is whether the windows are new OR if they've been around and they have just recently started causing this problem. As in the sun's glare has become more fierce.

The article did state the that windows are new.

Loudon and her neighbor agreed that the bullseye of sunlight appeared to be reflecting off the new, double-hung windows added next door.

and later on in the article it states:

After the neighbor reported this problem, some windows were replaced and the neighbors say that concentrated beam of sunlight disappeared.

From OP's source www.wcpo.com...

OiO

reply to post by OneisOne


New model of windows, or new for that owner/house? I guess I took it as new for the owner/house.

I'm sure the circle and x went away when they put different windows in, as they were to blame. But my point being more, has this always been the case for these particular windows. If I have time I'll see if I can't find how new of model the windows are.

So I didn't see anywhere in the article where it listed the specific model of window, so the best I could do is see how long low-e glass has been in use.

Source

Most of us have heard about "low-e glass." After all, low-e technology has been used on windows since the mid-1970s, and every major window and door manufacturer offers low-e glass on their products.

So those types of windows have been around for awhile, but of course that doesn't mean that these specific window models referenced in the OP article have been around for that long.

While rereading the original article, this stuck out to me:

Industry stakeholders are working on their own study, and the Department of Energy released a scientific report on the issue. The report said, "Environmental conditions play a primary role in heat transfer at the siding surface."

The DOE report said there have even been reports of damaged garbage cans.

They're leaning more towards it being environmental, and less towards a cut & dry explanation of the windows themselves. Tis a mystery