Mirror
What are two-way mirrors?
The easy answer, two-way mirrors are a piece of glass or acrylic, that when looked at from one size appears to be a mirror, yet, whilst looking from the other side it appears to be, albeit a little darker, a piece of clear glass or clear acrylic.
In reality, this isn't quite so simple, there are many varieties of a two-way mirror, each slightly different in material, gauge, and properties and all have their own best uses.
Where are they used?
Two-way mirrors are found all around us, banks, supermarkets, airports for security purposes, offices and medical facilities, for observation, art galleries as art installations and homes as TV mirrors, to name just a few.
How does a two-way mirror work?
From a simple perspective, two-way mirrors have a very thin coating of semi-transparent aluminium put on or in a sheet of clear glass or acrylic. This aluminium has very good reflective qualities at the same time as allowing some light to pass through. This is called the reflection and transmittance.
The thickness of the aluminium coating, and how it's applied to the glass or acrylic, determine the best use of that type of two-way mirror.
Recommended Uses?
3mm and 6mm Acrylic Two-way mirror are especially good for an art installation or when intricate shapes may be required, as these can be cut using our state of the art lasering facilities.
Our Ultra range of two-way has been specifically designed for use with Televisions and monitors, allowing the maximum amount of light to pass, yet with excellent mirror properties.
Laminated two-way mirrors are predominately used as observation windows, where the health and safety is a major priority.
Standard two-way mirror, is a good all-rounder, with properties favourable for all users but some limitations too. Which should be considered before going straight for this option.
A full technical breakdown of our two-way mirrors can be found here, you may find it useful.
