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Man Finds Windows Melt His House

Company Says Problem Is Rare

POSTED: 3:23 pm EDT May 30, 2005
UPDATED: 9:52 am EDT May 31, 2005

With the recent weather, it may be hard envisioning the sun, but consumer reporter Susan Wornick has proof it's there and causing damage that might surprise you.

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The sun has been known to shine through windows and fade furniture, but how about the sun reflecting off windows and damaging a nearby house? That's what's happened in Malden, Mass. Aldo Raucci noticed recently that his house appeared to be melting.

"One morning, I come out of the house and I noticed my shingles were kind of deformed," Raucci said.

It started two years ago. Raucci couldn't figure it out until he followed the rays of the sun.

"I saw the light hitting the shingles, and that's when I realized the cause of this," he said.

The sun was reflecting off his neighbor's new windows, melting Raucci's vinyl siding -- even in the dead of winter.

"They're just double-paned standard windows. No, nothing special," his neighbor Margaret Drees said.

Drees bought her windows at Home Depot twice, because after first noticing the problem, she got new ones. But then it happened again.

"I think it's bizarre," she said.

The manufacturer, SilverLine of New Jersey, called it very rare. In its statement , Silverline told NewsCenter 5 that their conclave glass is energy efficient and highly reflective of the sun, and this can happen depending on the sun's position and the proximity of a nearby house. We checked around and experts assured us that while you see it in movies such as the recent "Lemony Snicket" windows -- no matter how they're made -- generally do not cause damage.

Raucci just wants the whole problem fixed.

"I'd like to fix my house, but if the problem's not solved, there's no sense doing it," he said.

Silverline assured us they're figuring out how to fix the reflection problem, and they'll fix Raucci's house to make sure this doesn't happen again.

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