Plexiglass or genuine glass: What are the differences?
At Cre8, we understand how difficult it is to choose the right media for your artwork. Especially from behind a computer screen, this is hard to figure out. We are happy to help you make the right decision though. Which one should you decide for?
If you are torn between choosing Plexiglass and genuine glass, we would always recommend the best: genuine glass! It comes with a luxurious appearance, the edges are polished and photos on glass remain beautiful for years. Plexiglass does not have issues with deteriorating quickly either, but real glass ensures that your picture remain in highest quality for much longer. An additional advantage is that it wall decoration made of glass can be placed anywhere since it is resistant to splashes that might occur in the kitchen or bathroom. This becomes more of an issue with Plexiglass, which is more difficult to clean without leaving small scratches. In addition, Plexiglass is more sensitive to changes in temperature. A long panorama picture of 200x50cm, for instance, will always distort slightly. You can prevent this from happening by choosing an aluminum profile as your mounting system. This ensures that your wall decoration remains straight at all times, even if made of Plexiglass.
The differences between Plexiglass and genuine glass
When comparing an image printed on a 100x150cm Plexiglass plate and the exact same image on genuine glass, you will notice the following differences:
- If you look into the reflecting light, you will notice glass is tight, whereas with Plexiglass there is a slight undulation in the material. This can be compensated by choosing a Plexiglass picture in “Fine Art”- quality, where an Aluminum-Dibond panel is used to stabilize the image and prevent the bulge.
- The edges of genuine glass pictures are slightly rounded and polished. This makes it look luxurious. Plexiglass is neatly finished, but glass is simply on a different level.
- Colors on glass appear deeper than on Plexiglass. This is because of the use of diamond glass with diamond-like shaped glass crystals.
- Glass is 2.5 times heavier than Plexiglass. So please keep in mind that it needs a strong wall to hang on to.
- Glass is more durable than Plexiglass, due to the use of safety glass. It remains naturally fragile to a certain degree though, which is why we have our glass panels tempered to meet the highest safety standards. All of the used glass is CE certified. However, we do not put the seal on it in order to not ruin the pictures.
- All glass is wrapped in designated art packaging and, starting at 100x70cm, transported by a special courier, so it arrives safely and in one piece.
- For all glass panels, we have pre-assembled a mounting system already. When placing an order, you can choose from either a blind aluminum mounting system or a floating aluminum profile.
That is it with all the differences between the two materials. Plexiglass is great, but we think the advantages of genuine glass prevail.