Internal Glazed Door - sandblasted or film?

[Mike_Romeo]

Hi All,

We have two internal oak doors with clear glazing but ideally we want them with satin/obscure/sandblasted glass. Removing the glass is a bit tricky as it's likely to split the slips around the glazing, and no one seems to be able to sandblast the glass while it's in situ due to the thickness of the door and their sandblasting machine.

Has anyone used any of the adhesive films available to turn clear glazing into sandblasted? If so, any feedback on how well it looks or if its long lasting? The alternative is we order two bespoke doors with sandblasted glass in them but lead time is 6 months +.

Thanks
M.R.

 

[StephenStephen]

I've used that film in a couple of windows. As long as it's put on carefully, in my experience it gives a good finish and lasts for years.

 

[Mike_Romeo]

Thanks Stephen,
I'll have a look around to try and obtain a few sample films to try first.

 

[SFK]

The film I used looked good and gave the desired effect.
But after two years it had crept away from the edges if the frame into the middle of the glass with some 'ridges' in the sheet.

I think that for me, the glass (or the film itself) got hot and cold as the sunlight hit it, making their differential sizes bigger and smaller resulting in the film creeping inwards.

It was only by a few mm, but in the end I did not like the effect and so peeled it off and had to clean the glass of the glue.

So good but not perfect for me due to it being in a location with direct (and so hot) sunlight.

Sfk

 

[Mike_Romeo]

Interesting, thanks SFK.
Was this internal or external doors? The two locations are for ensuite doors that shouldn't receive any intense sunlight, but useful to know. I could live with changing it every 2 years if required and seems to be easier than waiting 6 + months for bespoke doors.

The alternative is two glazed doors of similar design but from a different supplier, and not sure how close they would be to matching.

 

[SFK]

I should have said that it was a window, 60cm wide by 50cm tall. South facing and in direct heating sunlight. So this might have made the effect much worse that will be the case for smaller door panels.

I would certainly try using it first. It's not that expensive. It did work well to obscure the view. And It was not that difficult to remove (I CAREFULLY used lighter fluid to remove the glue from the glass).

Sfk

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I did two side windows with clear film around six years ago, both still fine. Rather than satin/sandblasted, they are clear, but with an obscuring pattern. Bought on Ebay.

Cut carefully, with a scalpel, it's indistinguishable from a pattern in the glass.

 

[RandomGrinch]

I've fitted some to an external (albeit west facing) bathroom window, about eight years ago.
I've had no issues with the film.
I used:

all window film

Brume offers the contemporary solution for any window where you need extra privacy and security but don't want to sacrifice natural light. Frosted window film is particularly suitable for bathrooms, kitchens and glass doors. Achieve lots of decorative glass effects with our range of window films...

www.brume.co.uk

It's probably a bit more expensive than eBay, but it was a good product and they have plenty of interesting designs

...and in my experience, to do a decent job - you need a spotlessly clean window, plenty of soapy water, a scalpel and an extra pair of hands!

 

[robinbanks]

You can get spray paint that gives a frosted effect. I've used it on my glazed bathroom doors to good results, though the kids do like to try scratching it off sometimes (and they succeed, perhaps because I actually sprayed it into the protective plastic film that was applied to the glass, in case I didn't like it and wanted to peel it off. It was one of those "erk, mother in law is coming and all the bathroom doors are still clear glazed, let's do a quick hash up with that frosting paint we bought, but make it so we can change it if it's terrible.." - and that was 8 years ago)

Take a look at the attached: the blue arrow points to a place where the film was flat so indicative of the end result, the red arrows point to where my hasty masking of the film meant the edge wasn't sprayed so you can see the difference between frosted and not

Maybe cling film/sello tape the glass, spray the film, see if you like it so you can peel it off if you don't

You could also sandblast it yourself; I bought a compressor and air accessory kit for about 80 quid from Aldi years ago and it came with a sand blaster gun and sand. I've since used it to great results for sandblasting designs into glassware (tumblers etc).

If you want to put a design into the glass seek out a signwriting place and get them to do the design in their sticky backed vinyl cutting machine, stick the design to the glass then sandblast over it - the plastic will protect the glass it is stuck to and the frosting is applied to bare glass between the plastic, then peel and discard the plastic

Even a relatively hobby compressor like this https://www.screwfix.com/p/refurb-t...0v/657ry#product_additional_details_container will run this: https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/sealey-sg10e-air-recirculating-economy-sandblasting-kit-SEASG10E?

 

[Tigercubrider]

There used to be stuff that actually acid etched the glass.
you masked the area with a special stuff that was resistant to the etching stuff.

presumably better if you laid the doors horizontal

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

There used to be stuff that actually acid etched the glass.
you masked the area with a special stuff that was resistant to the etching stuff.

presumably better if you laid the doors horizontal

Acid-Etched Glass

Acid-Etched Glass: Acid etching is a fantastic way to make beautiful, long lasting gifts. I used it to create two sets of custom anniversary wine glasses for under $10. Armour Etch cream is available at most craft stores or on Amazon for about $20 in a standalone bott…

www.instructables.com

 

[Mike_Romeo]

Apologies everyone, I didn't get any notifications about further replies!

Thank you all for the info, I think I'm going to give the film a try first. Is it worth applying it to both sides?

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Thank you all for the info, I think I'm going to give the film a try first. Is it worth applying it to both sides?

No need, especially not if it has a pattern - it would look silly. Just decide do you want opaque, or a pattern of some type and apply to the inside. If it's patterned, it will need to be wide enough to allow you to centre the pattern. Cheap, quick, simple and semi-permanent.

 

[Mike_Romeo]

Thanks Harry,

No pattern required, just wanting it obscure/satin/sandblasted for privacy!

 

[lostinthelight]

I've had the film on North and East facing bathroom windows for 5 years and think it's brilliant when compared to the alternative. I cut it a fraction over size and trimmed it bang on with a scalpel cos it does shrink back a couple of mm....