Mirrors - How are they made?

[cfel2000]

I have always wondered. How do you make a mirror? I guess it's glass and a reflective surface but can someone please provide more information. Also, how do they make the mirrors that are one way. ie. one person sees a mirror but from the other side it is a window. Thank you Chris Felstead

[Gef]

Originally the reflective coating was silver but I think they use aluminium now.

[sft42]

Gef's right...the original method was to wet coat cut glass with a solution which when it dryed left a thin coating of silver....but nowadays it's nothing more really than a sheet of tinfoil with a protective backing.

[incitatus]

one way mirrors are made by depositing a very thin sheet of silver or aluminium on the back of the glass. Although transparent from behind the flatter glass/metal interface makes them reflective from the front. A piece of extra trivia-the origin of seven years bad luck is that seven years was the time making a full size mirror was supposed to take off the life of a mirror maker....the chemicals being very toxic. Total fable, but fun.

[Gef]

My original answer (before Answerbank edited it) suggested a search on Google. Why did they cut this out?

[AB Editor]

cfel2000 - please excuse the intrusion on your thread!

Gef, as you ask: the reason the second part of your answer was removed (it went something like, 'Do a search on Google to find how mirrors are made') was because it didn't answer the question. It was the first answer posted and as such might have put off other people adding constructive posts which gave cfel2000 the information s/he had asked.

[cfel2000]

He and it didn't put me off so don't worry. Thanks for all the answers. It wasn't quite as descriptive as I had hoped but it has given me the information I needed. Many Thanks Chris

[Gef]

To AB editor - point taken.