Arlington Mirror Replacement Services

No — that is desilvering, and it is permanent. The reflective silver backing behind the glass is corroding, almost always from moisture getting behind the mirror over years. It cannot be polished, resealed or repaired; the mirror has to be replaced. Worth diagnosing the cause before you replace, though. In Arlington bathrooms it is usually inadequate ventilation, and if that is not addressed the new mirror will go the same way. Sometimes the real fix is an exhaust fan.

Usually, though it takes patience. Builder mirrors are typically held with corner clips plus construction adhesive, and the adhesive is the problem — pulled carelessly it takes the drywall paper with it. We cut the mirror free in sections and work the adhesive off the wall rather than levering the panel. Some minor wall repair is occasionally unavoidable, and we tell you that upfront rather than after. If the new mirror covers the same footprint it becomes irrelevant anyway.

Seamed means the sharpness has been ground off but the edge is not finished for display — correct and cheapest where the edge sits behind a frame. Polished is a smooth, flat, clear finished edge, and it is the standard for a frameless mirror on a wall. Beveled adds an angled border cut around the perimeter, usually half an inch to an inch wide, which catches light and reads more traditional and formal. For replacing a builder mirror, polished is the usual choice; beveled if the bathroom is more classical.

Yes, and this is worth insisting on. Gym, studio and fitness room mirrors should be safety-backed — a film laminated to the back that holds fragments together if a panel is struck. Standard mirror breaks into long heavy shards that fall, which in a room where people are moving weights or dancing is a serious hazard. The cost difference is modest. The risk difference is not.

Larger than most people expect, but weight becomes the limiting factor rather than the glass. A 1/4″ mirror weighs roughly three and a half pounds per square foot, so a big panel gets heavy fast — heavy enough to need a crew and proper mechanical support rather than adhesive alone. For full walls we normally plan multiple panels with seams positioned where they read least, which is safer to install, easier to replace if one is damaged, and often looks better than one enormous sheet.

Yes, but the measurements have to be exact and they have to be right the first time. All cutting and drilling happens at fabrication — mirror cannot be modified on site without breaking it. We measure fixture and outlet positions precisely during the measure visit. If you are planning to move a light or add an outlet, do it before we measure rather than after the mirror is cut.

Typically a week to ten days from measure to installation for standard rectangular work. Custom shapes, beveled edges and safety backing add time at the fabricator. The installation itself is usually an hour or two for a vanity mirror, and a half-day or more for a full wall. If your existing mirror is broken we can remove it and make the space safe on the measure visit rather than leaving it.

It scales with square footage, edge finish, backing and access. A standard vanity mirror with polished edges is at the low end. A beveled custom shape is more. A safety-backed full gym wall is a considerably larger project, mostly because of the area and the handling. Because sizes vary so much we measure first and quote in writing, itemized — no charge for the estimate.