Anyone who’s anyone knows that a major celestial event is just over the horizon. On April 8th, the Earth’s moon will pass in front of the Earth’s star (colloquially known as “the sun”), casting a great shadow on the surface of our planet and sweeping across the North American continent. The path of totality–the 123-mile-wide strip of land where the eclipse will cast a “totality” awesome shadow–will not reach the Ocean State, but, eh, it’ll be close enough. Millions of people will don their eclipse-vision sunglasses to sneak a peek at the dancing dyadic orbs and perhaps even catch a glimpse of coronal curlycues.
But for those who’d rather keep their fashion sense intact while protecting their vision, or just don’t like leaving the house, there’s another option, and no, it’s not a pinhole camera. Instead, veteran homebuilders Red House Design Build is rolling out a line of heavily tinted, eclipse-ready windows.
“On Apr 8, 2024, one week from today, which is April 1st, our second favorite celestial object is going to pass in front of our first favorite celestial object,” says Red House Marketing Coordinator Mork Mandurf (names have been changed for anonymity). “So, we thought, ‘instead of encouraging the use of those dinky, disposable eclipse-viewing glasses, let’s do something truly unique and made to last,’ and from there, the eclipse-vision windows were born.”
Eclipse-vision windows utilize specialized tinted glass in lieu of the much, much more popular clear glass.
“Imagine the types of safety goggles a welder wears,” says Mandurf, “that’s essentially what we’ve done here. But instead of goggles for the face, it’s goggles for the house. And windows, not goggles. Pretty smart, right?” The tinted glazing for the windows will be available in emerald green, cobalt blue, and the “pinkish-purpley color I’ve seen before,” per Mandurf.
For a limited time, homeowners will be able to schedule a rush install of the novel eclipse-vision windows just in time for the cosmic-scale upstage. Those interested in swapping out their home’s windows will have to move quickly, however, with window installations typically taking weeks or even months to coordinate. “We’ve gone ahead and ordered several shipping containers worth of the product to minimize project timelines and to ensure we keep up with the high demand that will undoubtedly follow this announcement.”
Eclipse-vision windows (patent pending) are the perfect addition for any homeowner’s abode hoping to indulge in a little “lunacy” and catch this year’s solar eclipse. And the windows are meant to last, too, at least until the next solar eclipse swings by in the contiguous United States in 2044 (one will happen in 2033 in Alaska, too, but Alaska is just outside of Red House’s service area).
“It’s never too early to start planning to upgrade your windows for eclipses. The real hope is that Rhode Island homeowners will see the benefit of swapping out traditional clear-glass windows for our exclusive eclipse-vision windows in time for the solar eclipse of 2079,” notes Mandruf. “That one will actually pass over Rhode Island. But the clock is ticking.”
If you’d like to learn more about or purchase Red House Design Build’s fantastical and unreal eclipse-vision windows, call our offices to learn more! Note that all sales are final.