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Two-Way Mirrors: Doing it Yourself

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Two-way mirrors can be an expensive investment, so many people are curious whether they can build the mirror themselves. The quick and dirty way to make a two-way mirror is simply to buy some window tinting, just as you would for your car, and put it over the glass. If you choose this approach, make sure that you purchase reflective window tinting and not absorptive; otherwise, you can see through, but it won’t reflect anything and becomes a no-way mirror.

Making a true two-way mirror, however, is more work than the average do-it-yourself man or woman can do. All you need to do is make the semi-transparent film to spread over the glass, but the film requires many chemicals in specific amounts. After cleaning the glass, you will need silver nitrate, aqua ammonia, potassium hydroxide, glucose, and distilled water. In other words, get clear, step-by-step instructions before you try this at home.

You can, however, clean your two-way mirror yourself. Use LCD cleaning wipes or eyeglass cleaner and non-streak wipes, and always use a soft cloth so that the glass doesn’t scratch. If your mirror does scratch, use a plastic cleanser and a flannel cloth or, if it is a deep scratch, sandpaper. Never use dry chemicals, solvents, or lacquer thinners, on your two-way mirror.

Place your two-way mirror into a wall or a door; obviously, if it has a solid backing, you can’t see through it and it becomes a regular mirror. The mirror will work either way (it’s the light that makes one side the mirror and the other the window), but in general, you should put the coated side in the darkened, observing room. If you want to use a video camera from that room, place it very close to the glass without touching the glass, and test the camera to make sure that it focuses through the glass and not on it.

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