And click here to read a recent scientific paper from the Florida Institute of Technology that shows how our SolaReflex panel reflector was used to boost PV panel efficiency by as much as 22%! This paper was presented at the recent ASME Congress in Seattle, Washington. The 2x4' SolaReflex reflector used was our previous generation polycarbonate substrate panel that has since been improved and updated with the more durable AA (polished anodized alumminum) panels shown on this page.

Another excellent scientific paper from two respected thermal engineers in India demonstrates how our diffused SolaReflex foil performed in their parabolic trough solar water heater design. Please click here to read their informative paper.

Make your own parabolic or flat solar heating, cooking or daylighting reflector panel for only $18 for each standard size 2' x 4' sheet with the toughest, best reflecting material available-- ClearDome SolaReflex Foil. It's the best low cost diffused reflector material available for heating, or for daylighting purposes to add more sunlight into a building or to add more daylight to shaded areas. We now have optional sturdy snap-on tear resistant grommets that make it much easier to secure the foil to rope or ties.

We can now offer the world's most solar reflective and coolest tarp made--it's about 25% more reflective than Thermal Barrier Fabric and is solid and rainproof. It is a SolaReflex 97.4% reflective foil product called SolaReflex CoolTarp (click for more details) , that comes with optional grommets for easy installation anywhere in the hot sun. It will passively cool spaces underneath the hot summer sun by reflecting large areas of sunlight away from patios, tents, over roofs, RV's and boats, carports, work spaces, animal enclosures, and garden areas that are blasted by too much sunlight.

Areas below CoolTarp will stay within about 15 degrees of the ambient air temps. Unlike typical painted or light colored tarps that get very hot underneath in summer sun, CoolTarp has the our reflective SolaReflex metallized coated surface on both sides that allows only a very small amount of heat to pass through, and no light, keeping that surface and space below it cool.

It's not just a passive summer product because you can also use CoolTarp to drastically reduce heat loss through windows or on structures in freezing winter temperatures. Hang CoolTarp on the inside of windows to reflect nearly all the expensive heat back into the room before it radiates out the glass. It nearly matches the thermal resistance of a well-insulated wall by reflecting radiant energy away from the outside.  

It is so effective, this same type of material protects the astronauts and their equipment in outer space.

Our search for the absolute best diffused solar reflecting material available for reflecting solar and radiant heat energy  has ended. You can now benefit from over 50 years of private and government research, and NASA's continuing use in the space program to protect the astronauts in space.

Their space suits and spacecraft have depended on this same type of triple-laminated, tear-resistant metallic fabric to protect their lives. Intense, unfiltered solar energy is reflected away, and their body heat is radiated back inside. This near-perfect radiant barrier works as well in outer space as it does on earth--for generating heat as a solar reflector.

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Click to order the standard size $18- 2' x 4' diffused SolaReflex Foil sheets. Up to four sheets can be shipped in the same shipping tube. The rest of the order links are for larger discounted bulk order lengths.

Click to order bulk $75 SolaReflex diffused foil- 4’x10'

Click to order bulk $150- 4' x 20' bulk SolaReflex diffused foil

Click to order $195- 4'x51' SolarReflex diffused foil

Click to order $279 full roll-4x125' SolarReflex diffused foil

In numerous heating tests using our discontinued 24" SolarReflex 600 Parabolic cooking reflector, shown below where two quarts of food was cooked in 50 minutes on a sunny 62 F degree day. Temperatures reach over 600 degrees F in less than one minute when focused on our Blackflex solar absorption foil, as shown in the photo at right. We've since replaced the 600 with the 24" SolaReflex 900, (also visible on our homepage by clicking here),which is coated with our SolaReflex reflective material and it reaches over 900 degrees F.

A piece of Blackflex has been positioned inside a clear glass and the infrared thermometer is focused on the hot spot created by our SolaReflex 600 parabolic reflector. A small piece of SolaReflex protects the top of the thermometer to prevent the plastic from melting. This 637 degree F temperature was recorded at 5 PM in the late afternoon on a 65 degree F day in spring. 
SolaReflex is an upgraded and improved reflective material formally known as SolarFlex. SolaReflex is lighter, stronger and thinner so it's easier to use with less bulk, but with the same high level of 97.4% reflection and no extra cost.

SolarReflex is a diffused, but highly reflective material rated at 97.4% reflectivity and .03 emmisivity that can be applied to any flat, parabolic or concentrator type solar reflector form. It will withstand severe weather and temperatures from -60 to 400 degrees F. At slightly over 4 mills thick, it is very difficult to tear by hand but easy to cut with scissors.

And it can also be used as a reflector outside windows to brighten dark rooms and send solar energy (light and heat) back inside. It's easy to glue it to a flat surface for more direct reflection.  Or, it will reflect nearly all solar energy away from structures when mounted on a flat surface to keep the interior much cooler-like our experimental passive solar cooling panels.  Get creative and think of the many other uses some of our customers have discovered. Such as, line the inside of a dog house or farm animal enclosure to reflect body heat back before it radiates away, keeping them much warmer. Even a sheet underneat their pad or pillow keeps them or yourself warmer.

We've been using SolaReflex Foil in a new type of upcoming solar reflective tarp called "CoolTarp", and a winter safety/survival product called the "SolaReflex Survival Cacoon", made completely out of this super sturdy and durable weatherproof foil. It's far more efficient and effective than Mylar space blankets for surviving in sub zero temperatures in the most extreme weather conditions.

When surrounded by the large burrito-shaped Survival Cacoon, we've found that body heat alone (an average of 80 watts for an adult) is nearly all reflected back towards the body and only a small amount of heat is lost to the outdoors. In recents tests on a 32 degree night our test subject dressed in only jeans and a tee shirt went from shivering outdoors to near instant warmth in only minutes. The inside cacoon air temps hovered between 65-69 degrees F in 10-15 minutes and stay there for hours, which is a 30-35 degree heat gain using only the heat of the body. Besides surviving outdoors, other uses include indoors on cold nights during power outages, sitting in the stands at winter sports games, and for search and rescue teams that need to treat hypothermia victims.

Use SolaReflex foil along with our thick and durable ClearDome BlackFlex heat absorbing aluminum foil in your own design solar heating device or for any solar heat absorption application. We've used it on our previous exterior forced air heaters because it's an excellent and long-lasting heat absorber material.

It can also be used in solar box ovens or for reading solar generated temperatures. It's permanently colored black, and not painted. It's easy to form and inexpensive and has no gass-off or toxic fumes. BlackFlex is now available to order from the PayPal link below, and costs the same as SolaReflex in 2' X 4' sheets, for only $18 plus shipping and handling. Full 2 x 25' rolls are available and the Pay Pal order link is below. Email for questions

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