Decorative privacy glass can provide homeowners with stunning patterns and designs that complement the home’s design and architectural style. It also has a distinct look, with many familiar hazy or foggy patterns. These styles may seem simple, but there are four distinct ways of achieving patterned decorative looks, each with different benefits and payoffs. While there are many different ways to treat glass to get patterns and designs without using caming, ODL uses four main glass treatments to create our signature styles and deliver specialty decorative privacy glass to our customers. Let’s look at those different types of decorative glass treatments and see different examples of the treatments on doorglass.
1. Silkscreen
Silkscreen glass treatments apply inks to glass through a screen printing process. The ink can cover the entire surface of the glass like in the Blanca design, or be applied in distinct patterns and layers like Ditto or Circuit. Silkscreens allow for crisp, clean edges in patterns like Timber, where long lines need to be kept straight throughout the design.
Silkscreen glass treatments are popular glass treatments because they are cost effective to set up and produce designs with relatively low cost. Multiple layers and colors of ink can be applied which creates even more beautiful patterns and options for glass designs. Silkscreen glass treatment can also produce a range of different translucencies, which allows for varying levels of privacy.
While silkscreens are inexpensive and popular, some silkscreened glass can fog over time as the moisture in the ink breaks down and gets trapped between the glass and the metal spacer in the insulated glass unit (IGU). That’s why at ODL we work to apply our silkscreens accurately and avoid any fogging issues.
Bottom Line:
+ Cost effective+ Variable translucencies
+ High control over design
+ Available in multiple colors
– Improper application can cause fogging
2. Acid-Etched
Acid-etched glass is chemically treated with hydrofluoric acid over a screen to create a surface finish that reduces glare and creates interesting frosted appearances, like our Swirl and Linen doorglass patterns. During the treatment process, the glass has a film put on in the selected pattern and is submerged into an acid pool before being cleaned and packaged.
Acid-etched glass creates a smooth, consistent finish that, like silkscreens, can come in varying levels of opacity. It can be used in many different entryway arrangements, including as field glass in camed designs. It also can be made in different levels of opacity and often has a satin-like appearance.
There are a few downsides to acid-etched glass, namely the use of acid as a material component, which requires special care for handling and disposal. Acid-etched glass can also show fingerprints and smudges more clearly than other glass treatments and can’t have any color added into the patterns. However, the glass designs like Scribble, which is used as field glass in our contemporary design, Dorian, are smooth, beautiful, and make a clear statement.
Bottom Line:
+ Reduces glare
+ Variable translucencies
+ Clean and consistent designs
– Hydrofluoric acid requires specialty handling and disposal
3. Sandblasted
As the name might suggest, sandblasted glass is created when a machine is used to blast sand at the glass and etch in patterns. The hard sand particles create a frosted appearance like our Spotlights® Collection Frosted pattern. Sandblasted glass allows for precise control on complex and detailed designs.
However, like acid-etched glass, sandblasted glass can show fingerprints easily and can’t have any color added to the design. It is also more expensive than acid-etch and silkscreens, meaning that it isn’t utilized as often as the other two treatments.
Bottom Line:
+ Can create detailed designs
– Higher price to manufacture
4. Ceramic Frit
The ceramic frit glass treatment is created by baking ceramic fuses onto the glass. The pigmented enamel is fired in extreme temperatures making it permanently fuse to the glass so it doesn’t peel or chip away over time. The pattern can be applied like a silkscreen before baking, allowing detailed patterns and colors to be part of the designs like the drip and speckle effect in Mistify White and Black.
Ceramic frit glass treatments are extremely durable, and don’t show smudges and fingerprints like acid-etched and sandblasted glass does. Similar to silkscreens, ceramic frit comes in different opacities and levels of privacy. However, it’s the most expensive of all the glass treatment processes, making it more of a luxury treatment with more selective utility.
Bottom Line:
+ Designs don't peel or chip
+ Available in multiple colors
+ Variable translucencies
+ High control over design
– Higher price to manufacture
Finding the Perfect Glass at ODL
The different styles of glass treatment each create a unique and interesting look that can be adapted and applied to different sized pieces of glass for doors and entryways. The glass designs and patterns in ODL’s different decorative privacy glass work to complement the architecture and style of a home and bring about great benefits for homeowners.
Lightscapes Doorglass is inspired by the beauty of natural light combined with decorative glass patterns. Lightscapes allows your entryway to light up while maintaining your privacy. To learn more about Lightscapes, click the link below to visit our page.
