There is a range of purposes that glass can serve, including offering privacy in a variety of settings like your house or office — but some types of glass are better for privacy than others.
With over 30 years of experience in the glass industry, CM Glass can provide any privacy and custom glass Miami residents might need, including custom tempered glass.
Textured Glass
How Is Textured Glass Made?
As one of the most popular types of glass being used today to provide privacy, textured glass is a great option! Textured glass is created by placing a patterned mask in front of a sheet of glass — either clear or colored.
The manufacturer then blasts the glass with sand or another material at high speed. This leaves a textured imprint on the surface. The most popular type of imprint is a repeated grid or chevron pattern.
Customization Options
Textured glass is customizable — the texture can be imprinted in any design you want and comes in a variety of thicknesses. It can also be clear, tinted, or reflective.
The thickness of textured glass affects its overall strength and level of privacy. Thicker glass offers more strength and less visibility, while thinner glass allows some light to pass through and increases visibility.
Benefits of Textured Glass
Textured glass is beneficial in that it allows you to see out of it clearly while others cannot look in without your knowledge. This makes it the perfect glass to provide privacy for rooms like the living room, bedroom, or home offices.
Textured glass is also great for commercial purposes such as commercial glass doors, businesses, or conference rooms, providing a level of privacy while also allowing some light and sound to be shared.
Translucent Glass
What Is Translucent Glass?
Translucent glass is also known as frosted glass. This type of glass is formed using a clear sheet of glass that is either acid-etched or sandblasted to create an opaque effect.
When this process occurs, light is able to pass through the glass while also diffusing and shattering. This causes the images on the other side of the glass to be blurred while still allowing natural light to pass through.
Benefits of Translucent Glass
Because the light is not blocked out completely but simply diffused, it offers a more comfortable amount of natural light and visibility. It offers privacy between rooms without blocking out views thanks to the blurriness.
Translucent or frosted glass is a great glass option for homeowners to provide privacy for shower screens, bathroom walls, and as a window dressing for small spaces. From the outside looking in, translucent glass has an appealing frosted appearance enhancing its curb appeal.
Translucent Glass’s Weaknesses
There are only two weaknesses to translucent glass. The first is that it does not block out light entirely. Because of this, it is possible to encounter some visual leakage between rooms.
Second, this type of glass can get dirtier than clear windows. This is because the opaqueness of this glass makes stains and other issues more noticeable.
Colored Glass
Colored glass is a type of tinted glass that has a colored coating applied to its panels. Starting off as a piece of crystal clear glass, this colored coating changes the way light passes through it by either reflecting or absorbing colors.
Customization Options
Colored glass is typically about 20mm thick, but it comes in a variety of finishes. For maximum privacy, colored glass is made clear. However, it can also be tinted with dark or light tints depending on what level of privacy you would like.
The most popular color for tinted glass is green, due to the high level of privacy it provides by blocking out just about all natural light. It is great for when you want transparency from the interior but opaqueness from the exterior. CM Glass offers custom tinted glass for Miami and surrounding areas.
Smoked Glass
For an increase in privacy, smoked glass is another option. Creating smoked glass involves treating a thin layer of clear glass with metallic oxide. This creates an opaque effect that blocks out any images from the other side.
While you can see through to an extent, smoked glass is reminiscent of looking into fog. Smoked glass is typically thin, ranging in thickness from 20mm to 25mm. When it comes to finishes, you can choose from reflective or non-reflective.
What Are the Pros of Smoked Glass?
Because smoked glass can be reflective, it is able to be looked through while providing a mirrored effect. On top of this, it’s solid enough that those on the other side will only be able to see a shadow silhouette.
Because it provides quite a bit of privacy, it’s a great privacy glass option for bedrooms, living rooms, and bathrooms — making it a top choice of interior designers. It is also a non-porous material that does not collect water marks if not treated, and it can be cleaned the same way as regular glass.
Glass Bricks
How Are Glass Bricks Used?
Glass bricks can be used to create screens or partitions easily and quickly. In fact, these bricks are not all that different from masonry bricks.
Because they offer good visibility, you won’t lose much natural light passing through them while still gaining a bit of privacy.
They come in two forms — clear or textured.
Clear Glass Bricks
Clear glass bricks are typically utilized behind kitchen counters to create privacy by separating the cooking area from the eating area. This still allows a visual connection between both areas while serving as privacy glass.
Textured Glass Bricks
Textured glass bricks can be made two ways — either frosted with added light diffusion or etched with a pattern. These are a great option for bathrooms and laundry rooms to create privacy while still allowing a level of light to pass through into the space. They also add visual interest through their texture!
Switchable Privacy Glass
Switchable privacy glass is a type of smart glass that can switch between being clear and opaque.
It is a great option for partitions or sliding doors as it maintains natural light while also providing a private environment when needed. This is a perfect option for meeting rooms where you may want some privacy.
How Does Switchable Privacy Glass Work?
A type of smart glass, switchable glass has an electrical current applied to it, which activates its smart properties.
Smart glass can be controlled via a remote control system or a wall switch depending on a user’s needs such as what room or location it is in.
Benefits of Smart Glass
Utilizing smart glass is an innovative form of modern technology that will allow you to change glass from transparent to opaque in less than .01 seconds.
Smart glass is a great choice for those who may need different levels of privacy for different times of the day or situations.
Popular with interior designers, smart glass as switchable privacy glass is also a stylish alternative to blinds or curtains — it offers similar benefits like controlling natural light levels but adds an additional layer of privacy.