We fit window film to the flats, loggias, offices and ground-floor retail units of the blocks of Purvciems, in the Deglava, Dzelzavas and Stirnu iela district. In system-built stock the windows are small and repetitive, so here a lighter film with higher light transmission is almost always the one that works. Measuring and quoting are free, and prices start from €25/m² - film and labour together.
“Won't the film make the room gloomy?” In Purvciems that is the first question in almost every conversation, and it is the right question. In a system-built flat the window is small to medium, the room is deep, and part of the daylight is already cut off by the loggia. On a window like that a strongly dark film certainly removes the heat, but it takes the light with it, and over the winter half of the year that costs more than it gained in summer. So here the answer is usually a lighter film with higher light transmission, which holds back the heat through its technical properties rather than its tone - and we make the choice at the actual window, according to its orientation and floor, not from a catalogue description.
The second quirk of Purvciems is repetition. In a standard design the same room, the same kitchen and the same loggia sit one above another floor after floor, so one measured flat tells you fairly precisely what awaits in the next. If two or three flats in one stairwell agree together, it comes to one visit and one run of cutting, one side of the façade stays in a single tone, and the €75 minimum order is reached without effort. Measuring and quoting cost €0; prices start from €25/m², covering both film and labour, excl. VAT.
The practical side is straightforward: we apply the film to the glass that is already there. Windows are not removed, frames are not touched, and a typical two- or three-room flat is finished in a single visit. We work with flats, loggia and balcony glazing, stairwell windows, offices and the small retail and service premises found here on the ground floors of buildings - salons, clinics, shops. Behind us are 15 years and more than 400 completed properties in Riga and within a 50 km radius. We have no office in Purvciems; we travel in from another part of the city. If there is already old film on the glass that has yellowed or cracked, we remove it as separate work - in Soviet-era buildings that is no rarity, because in many flats film first went on years ago.
Purvciems is one of the largest blocks-of-flats neighbourhoods in Riga, and most of its stock consists of Soviet-era estates. In building like that the window repeats, and that changes both the choice of film and the planning of the work.
In a standard design the window openings aren't individual. The same room, the same kitchen and the same loggia repeat floor after floor, and usually in the next stairwell too. In practice that means measuring one flat often tells us fairly precisely what awaits in the next. We make use of that: if several flats in one building come forward, we cut the film in a single run, and the work moves noticeably faster than the same area would in a detached house with windows of every size.
At the same time it doesn't mean the measuring can be skipped. In many buildings the windows have been replaced one at a time over the years - one may still be the old timber, another already PVC with a different bead depth, another with a loggia glass wall added. So we still measure every pane on site; we simply do it quickly.
This is the main difference between Purvciems and, say, a new development with a glass wall from floor to ceiling. The windows of a system-built flat are small to medium, the rooms are deep, and part of the light is already held back by the loggia. If a strongly dark film goes on a window like that, the heat problem is solved, but the room turns gloomy and on a cloudy day the lights have to be on.
So here we almost always recommend a film with higher light transmission. The heat is held back by the technical properties of the film rather than simply by darkness, and the flat stays liveable. On loggia glazing you can sometimes afford a slightly stronger film, because the light reaching the room behind it passes through two panes of glass - but we decide that on site rather than in advance.
During the survey we hold samples against the actual glass and look at them against the light. Someone who was afraid the flat would go dark usually then chooses deliberately and without hesitation.
In Soviet-era buildings the roof is flat, and in summer a top-floor flat takes heat from two directions - through the window and from the slab, which warms up during the day and gives the heat back to the rooms in the evening. Window film can do nothing about the roof, but it removes the share that comes through the glass, and in these flats the difference is felt most clearly. We normally treat the south- and west-facing windows and the loggia glazing, and leave the north side untouched - there is no point paying for a window that isn't causing the problem.
The inner courtyards of Purvciems are generous, but for that very reason they are full of footpaths, playgrounds, benches and parking spaces. A ground-floor window is often a few metres from a path, and that means the curtains stay shut all day. Here privacy is the most genuine reason film is ordered - not heat. For daytime privacy mirror film is usually the answer; for selected panes, frosted or blackout film, which works after dark as well.
This is a local quirk worth taking advantage of. If two or three flats in one stairwell agree together, it comes to one visit, one measuring session and one run of cutting - and that side of the façade looks all one tone rather than patchy. At the same time the €75 minimum order is reached without effort, even if each flat on its own would have only a few windows. In your enquiry it is enough to say how many flats are taking part and which side of the building they are on.
In Purvciems the everyday functions - retail, offices, health and service premises - are often on the ground floors and in the extensions of residential buildings. There the brief is usually twofold: the client in the chair or at the desk must not be visible from the pavement, and in summer the window must not become unbearably hot. The practical solution is a split one - frosted or blackout film on the lower part of the storefront, solar control film on the upper part. We schedule the work before opening or after closing.
The most frequent choice for south- and west-facing flat windows. In its lighter version it cuts heat and glare without taking the daylight out of the room.
For top-floor flats under a flat roof and for glazed loggias, where the main problem is temperature itself.
For first and second floors whose windows face a courtyard path, a playground or a parking area.
For bathrooms, kitchens, stairwell windows and salon storefronts. The light stays, the view through does not - after dark as well.
When the building next door or the path is simply too close and the view out isn't worth much anyway - complete opacity in both directions.
For ground-floor storefronts, glazed entrance doors and commercial premises. Holds the shards together if the glass is broken.
If it isn't clear which option suits your particular window, there is no need to decide in advance - that is exactly why the measuring is free. We hold the samples against the glass and compare how they look from inside the room rather than on a table. In a system-built block that matters especially, because the difference between two similar films is immediately noticeable in a small window. Prices for every type are set out on the prices page, and the film types can be compared in the services section.
1. Enquiry. Fill in the form with the street, the floor, the number of windows and the main problem. If several flats in one stairwell are ordering, note that straight away - it changes both the quote and the planning.
2. A call within 5 minutes. We get in touch and talk the situation through. Often that conversation alone makes it clear whether the issue is heat, glare or privacy and roughly what the figure will be.
3. Free on-site measuring. We come out, measure every pane, check the type of frame and the depth of the glazing bead, and show you samples at the window. This step usually also settles which windows need no film at all.
4. A fixed price. The quote covers film and labour together, excl. VAT. The price doesn't change afterwards as long as the scope of work doesn't.
5. Installation. A typical two- or three-room flat is finished in a day, often by lunchtime. We clean the glass, cut the film on site, cover sills and floors, and clear everything away afterwards. The film takes a few days to dry out fully - during that time you may see slight haziness on the glass, and that is normal.
Tell us the street, the floor and the main problem - heat, glare or privacy. We'll call you and talk you through the quote.
Purvciems is crossed by Deglava, Dzelzavas and Stirnu iela, and these are busy arterial roads with an extensive public transport network. Driving times in Riga depend on the hour, on roadworks and on the specific address, so we don't promise an exact minute - we agree a time window and plan with a margin on weekday mornings and evenings. The neighbourhood is within Riga, so the call-out is not charged separately.
The inner blocks here are large, and the parking spaces by the stairwell doors tend to be taken. We carry materials and tools by hand, so it helps us to know in advance where we can pull up and whether the courtyard has a barrier or coded gates. If it does, simply say so in your enquiry.
The second practical matter is the stairwell and the lift. Some buildings in Purvciems have no lift at all; in others it is narrow. Our material isn't heavy, but a roll of film is long, so the floor and the presence of a lift are worth mentioning straight away - they affect how long the setting-up takes rather than the work itself.
System-built stock offers one advantage that a single detached house cannot: the windows repeat. If several flats in one stairwell or on one side of the façade agree together, we make one visit, measure in one go and cut the film in a single run. It is quicker, and from the street the result looks tidy - one and the same tone on every window rather than five different ones.
In practice it also means the €75 minimum order is no longer an obstacle. For one flat with two windows it is sometimes the borderline; for three flats it is exceeded straight away. If the building has a manager or an owners' association wanting the stairwell or corridor windows treated as well, that can be booked as a single job.
See also the main Riga page, the list of areas we cover and the safety film section if the job concerns commercial storefronts.
The most typical jobs in the building stock of a large blocks-of-flats neighbourhood, with starting prices.
The price includes both the film and the labour. Prices are excl. VAT, with a €75 minimum order. Measuring and quoting in Purvciems are free. The full price list is on the prices page.
Purvciems lies on the right bank of the Daugava, and the building stock in the neighbourhoods around it is partly similar and partly quite different. Next door is Pļavnieki, with equally pronounced blocks-of-flats development, Teika, where system-built blocks alternate with older and lower housing, and also Mežciems and Dārzciems. We travel to these neighbourhoods just as regularly, and if there are several properties close together in a single day, we plan them as one round.
If you have two properties in different parts of Riga - a flat in Purvciems and an office elsewhere in the city, say - they can be submitted in one form and planned as a single job with two visits. The whole service area is on the service area page, and the other Riga neighbourhoods are on the Riga page.
That is precisely the main risk in a flat in a system-built block. The windows here are comparatively small, the rooms are deep, and part of the daylight is already held back by a loggia or a balcony. If a strongly dark film goes on a window like that, you will have to switch the lights on indoors on a cloudy day. So in flats in Purvciems we usually offer a film with higher light transmission and hold back the heat through the technical properties of the film rather than through darkness. During the survey we hold samples against the actual glass so that you can see the result before ordering.
A flat under a flat roof takes heat from two directions in summer - through the window and from the slab, which warms up during the day and gives that heat back to the rooms in the evening. Window film can do nothing about the roof, but it removes the share that comes through the glass, and in practice that is often what makes the difference. In flats like these we normally treat the south- and west-facing windows and the loggia glazing, and leave the north side as it is. That is the most honest way to get a result without reducing the light throughout the flat.
They can, and it is good value. In a system-built block the window sizes repeat from floor to floor, so once one flat has been measured the next ones are usually close to the same. One visit, one measuring session, one run of cutting - that saves us time and saves you money. At the same time the façade looks uniform, because everyone gets one and the same film rather than different shades in different windows. The minimum order is €75, and joint enquiries reach it without effort. Just state in your enquiry how many flats are taking part.
That is the most common brief in buildings like these. Courtyard paths, playgrounds and parking spaces are often just a few metres from a ground-floor window, and curtains only solve it at the cost of the whole day. In practice mirror film is used most often: in daylight it stops anyone looking in from outside while keeping the view from inside. One thing to know: after dark, with the lights on in the room, the effect reverses, so for a kitchen or a bathroom frosted film is sometimes the better fit, because it works regardless of the time of day.
We have no office or branch in Purvciems - we travel in from another part of Riga. In practice that changes nothing, because the neighbourhood is within Riga and our service radius is Riga and 50 km around it. The call-out, the measuring and the quote are not charged separately. Deglava, Dzelzavas and Stirnu iela are busy arterial roads, so on weekday mornings and evenings we plan arrival times with a margin and agree a specific window rather than promising an exact minute.
Yes, and it is a large part of our work in neighbourhoods like this. Hairdressers, beauty salons, dental practices, small offices and little shops on the ground floors of residential buildings usually want two things at once - that the client in the chair shouldn't be visible from the pavement, and that in summer nobody has to work in the sun in the window. Here frosted or blackout film on the lower part of the storefront and solar control film on the upper part is the right combination. The work can be scheduled before opening or after closing, so that appointments don't have to be interrupted.
Describe the situation in the form - we'll recommend a film that cuts the heat without taking the light out of the room.
We have received your enquiry and will prepare a quote. We will call you on the phone number you provided.
