Removing Mirror Silver

[igatenby]

Does anyone know a chemical means of removing the silver (mirror) finish from glass. Wet and dry is taking hours of effort.

Regards
Ian

[Shane Watson]

Wet & dry? on glass?

[ubeaut]

Like Shane said Wet & dry? on glass? http://ubb.ubeaut.com.au/ubb/eek.gif

I have a feeling that it can be removed with the aid of a heat gun but I'm not 100% sure. If you decide to try it, be careful not to crack the glass. Heat the whole piece gently first, before applying full concentrated heat the silver, strip it off with a paint scraper.

[Shane Watson]

I doubt the chemicals that resilver's use would be readily available. Its a hit and miss affair anyway. Sometimes the results are great, sometimes not so great. Dependant on the mirror shape in maybe cheaper to replace. Or an alternative is to place a new 3mm mirror behind the old one. I havn't seen the results of doing that though.

[igatenby]

Yes - I'm told that the bit of silver already removed was done with wet and dry (very fine)- I'll check the grade. My cousin is trying to convert the mirror back to plain glass - he's converting a wardrobe into a bookcase.

[RETIRED]

Gooday.
It would be safer, quicker, cheaper and easier to buy new glass.

------------------
Ian () Robertson
"We do good turns every day"

[Tristan Croll]

If you can get your hands on some nitric acid, it should do the trick quite easily. Just remember to wear gloves, keep it weak and keep it away from... well, just about everything, really.

[Pete]

Ian,
I would steer away from nitric acid, it is very dangerous, the fumes are nasty and when used to dissolve silver will form silver nitrate which will blacken you skin if it come into contact with it.

I agree with , it is safer to buy new glass.
However, if you use acid remember gloves, a good safety shield (the stuff will destroy you eyes VERY quickly if you get a splash), some sort of respiratory protection (ie a chemical respirator NOT just a dust mask)and protective clothing. Also, it will be very difficult to find dilute acid so you will need to dilute it yourself. Remember high school chemistry Always add acid to water. If you do it the other way around you could end up with a nasty accident.

But to be honest, I deal with these sort of chemicals on a daily basis and I wouldn't try to strip a mirror with Nitric at home. Hope this helps and be safe
Peter