Almost every South Florida condo association approves smart film, because it is applied to the interior face of your glass and changes nothing on the building exterior, the impact rating or the common elements. What boards ask for is paperwork, not permission to alter the building: a certificate of insurance from the installer, a one-page scope of work, and sometimes a freight-elevator booking. We supply all three, and most approvals come back within a week.

Why smart film is not an "exterior alteration"

Condo declarations restrict changes to the exterior appearance and to structural or common elements. Smart film is a self-adhesive interior application on the room side of your window, slider or shower glass. From the outside the glass looks the same when clear and reads as a light frosted pane when private — no different from a shade. The impact laminate is untouched, so the window's product approval and the building's insurance position do not change. That is the sentence to put in your request to the board.

What your association will ask for

1. Certificate of insurance naming the association as certificate holder — we issue it the same day.
2. A written scope: which panes, film type, where the transformer goes, and that no penetrations are made in exterior walls or common elements.
3. Contractor registration with the front desk or management office, and photo ID for the crew.
4. Freight-elevator or loading-dock booking and working hours (most buildings allow 9 to 5 on weekdays).
5. Occasionally, a note that the low-voltage transformer plugs into an existing outlet inside the unit and requires no electrical permit.

How the wiring stays inside your unit

The film's busbar runs along one edge of the pane. The lead wire exits at a corner and is routed inside the window frame or along the mullion, then behind trim or baseboard to the transformer, which sits in a closet, vanity or media cabinet and plugs into a standard 110V outlet. Nothing is drilled through the slab or exterior wall. Control is a wall switch by the door, a remote, an app or a voice assistant. If you later sell the unit, the film stays and the next owner gets the same control.

Buildings we work in most

Brickell and Edgewater towers, where bedroom and bathroom glass faces the next building thirty feet away. Aventura and Sunny Isles high-rises along the Intracoastal. South of Fifth through North Beach in Miami Beach. Las Olas and Fort Lauderdale beach condos. Each has its own management style; we have the approval routine down for the large managers and will handle the submission for you.

Timeline

Day 1: free measurement and photos. Day 2: quote, scope and insurance certificate sent to you and, if you like, straight to management. Days 3 to 7: board or manager approval. Install day: one visit for most units, two to four hours per bathroom. Two-year warranty on film, transformer and labor.

Copy-and-paste request letter to your association

Most boards approve smart film on the first pass when the request answers their three questions — exterior appearance, electrical, and who is responsible. Paste this into your architectural-modification request.

Subject: Architectural modification request — interior switchable privacy film

To the Board / Architectural Review Committee,

I am requesting approval to install PDLC switchable privacy film on the interior face of the glass at [unit number / address]. The film is applied to the existing glass; no glass, frame or exterior element is replaced or altered, and nothing is mounted on the exterior of the building.

Appearance: from outside, the glass reads as clear when the film is on and as neutral frosted (similar to etched glass) when it is off. The film is white/neutral, non-reflective and non-mirrored, and complies with the association's uniform-exterior requirements.

Electrical: the film runs on low voltage (48-65 V AC) from a plug-in transformer connected to an existing interior outlet inside the unit. No building wiring is modified; the installer will provide the transformer data sheet on request.

Installer and responsibility: installation by Deluxe Smart Film (Opa-locka, FL; (305) 833-7887; licensed and insured; 2-year warranty on film, transformer and workmanship). Certificate of insurance available on request. The film is removable without damage to the glass.

Schedule: [date]; work is inside the unit only and takes [one day].

Please let me know if the committee needs any further documentation.

[Name, unit, phone, email]

Replace the bracketed items; if your building wants the certificate of insurance or the transformer data sheet, ask us and we will send both the same day.

Get a free condo quote → request one here. Aventura → smart film in Aventura. Brickell → smart film in Brickell. Miami Beach → smart film in Miami Beach.

Keep reading

Ready for a quote?

12 questions to ask an installer

See every smart film guide in one place →

Share this article