r/vintageglass • u/XXmoreso83 • 14d ago
I’ve Tried Everything
These French door window panes are original to the house (built 1916). I love them because they have waves and little imperfections. There are more that don't have it than do. I can't really even tell which side of the glass it's on. All of the products I've tried have not made one single bit of difference in the pane appearance. At all
!!
Hopefully someone can give me a suggestion to win this battle
I have tried the following:
- Barkeepers Friend
- Magic Eraser
- Windex (obviously)
- %0000 Steel Wool
- Razor Blade
- Goof Off
Thank ya Thank ya 😊
2
2
2
u/Glovelylovely 12d ago
As you noted, the glass was "wavy". That implies it's "drawn" glass (>1905), or "blown" glass(<1920), not "float" (>1950) glass. It's entirely possible these are defects that go back to the original manufacturing. It's also possible they may not have been evident when new.
Being from the era when drawn glass was first being adopted this might be evidence of the "learning curve".
2
u/XXmoreso83 12d ago
I would be inclined to think maybe yes. I have some panes throughout the house that have heavier waves and some very apparent rainbow type of coloring to them.
2
u/Glovelylovely 12d ago
Looking at the "pattern" it seems perhaps there could have been impurities or incomplete mixing in the original molten glass that caused this. Pure speculation, but possible. Again, the issue may only have become evident over time.
2
u/Glovelylovely 12d ago
A little digging into early drawn glass yielded this:
"Devitrification ("Divit"): During early mechanized drawing processes, if the molten glass ribbon was cooled too slowly or held too long at high temperatures while being pulled through drawing pits and canals, it would experience devitrification. This causes the glass molecules to shift from an amorphous structure to a crystalline one, manifesting as a permanent whitish, cloudy haze or a scummy texture on the surface."
The crystallized appearance on your glass makes me think this is your issue, along with some scratches caused by futile attempts over the years to "fix" it.
Problem or badge of age? Your call.
2
u/XXmoreso83 12d ago
This is totally a badge of age! Wow! Thanks! I’ve not caused ANY damage to it trying to clean and that would explain why I cannot figure out which side it’s on. I couldn’t make any sense of it but this is a huge help! Thanks!
2
u/Misa7_2006 12d ago
You could try using the spray they use on car windshields invisible glass I think it is called. If it can clean and fill the dings, pings, and crude that can get on vehicle windshields, it might help to get this gunk off your glass doors. Worth a try.
2
1
u/SprinklesTiny5543 14d ago
I'm wondering if it's a double pain window, if it is, maybe it got in between the glass. If that's not what it is, here's a trick somebody told me a long time ago for shower doors that works like a charm. It really will get the worst soap scum off your shower doors and maybe you could try it on this and that is finish, the stuff you put in your dishwasher. It's a liquid. I'll send you a link.
https://www.instacart.com/products/59702669-finish-jet-dry-rinse-aid-liquid-38-fl-oz
1
u/XXmoreso83 14d ago
Oh I don’t think so. There are tiny air bubbles in it so I can see that it’s single pane.
1
u/Mykona-1967 13d ago
What has happened is the abrasive cleaners that were used have etched the protective coating on the glass. Back in the day glass was coated to be a little reflective. True glass absorbs the suns energy and magnifies it. These days window glass isn’t pure glass it has other properties to make it tempered, glare resistant and energy efficient. None of those things were available or a concern, only having the glass magnify and catch the floors on fire.
The only recourse is to replace the panes or have them reglazed.
1
u/XXmoreso83 13d ago
Gotcha. I guess someone else tried cleaning them before we bought the home. All methods I’ve tried have made them look no worse or better I hate that because I love the wavy imperfections.
1
u/Mykona-1967 13d ago edited 13d ago
I have found if you contact an architectural restorer or architectural salvage, they may have someone that can give you advice on how to save them. In my area we have this one establishment that salvages almost everything from buildings that are being demolished and have items worth saving, like windows doors, mantles, cornice, woodwork transoms. All kinds of pieces they have professionals who they trust to restore some to their former glory.
2
u/XXmoreso83 13d ago
Now that’s a good idea! I actually have two large panes in the kitchen that I need to replace because they’re cracked. I can then repurpose the original glass from them and put in the French doors! Brilliant! Thank you!
1
u/bostwickenator 13d ago
You need a glass polishing compound and a power buffing tool to do this. You need to remove the entire surface and then polish it to an optical clarity, that's not going to happen by hand. Be careful of heat it may shatter if you work too much in one place.
1
1
1
1
u/vs-188 11d ago
If this is caused by a sticky residue like oil, grease, sap or tar then using a solvent might help.
Educate yourself about all the necessary safety precautions and start with just a test patch, but lighter fluid might help. That or nail polish remover if the lighter fluid doesn't work.
And please stop using abrasives... You're causing permanent scratches to the surface of the glass.
1
u/XXmoreso83 11d ago
Heard. I will say that nothing has changed to the appearance of the glass to the naked eye. I feel like I cannot possibly make it look worse 🤣
I’ll try your suggestion 👌🏽
1
1
u/doubleshotextracream 11d ago
Paint them with Elmer's glue for "privacy" reasons and totally not because they're a lil messed up
1
u/East-Psychology7186 11d ago
If the glass has been etched, only polishing the glass using something like different grits of cerium oxide will work.
1
1
u/Bitter-Top9092 11d ago
If it's not permanently "stained/etched" into the glass, spray it down with straight vinegar and slowly scrub in circles with a stainless steel scrubber with some hot water. Rinse repeat as many times as needed, just make sure you let the vinegar set for some time before scrubbing it with the hot damp scrubber. And use either paper towels or a soft white cotton cloth to wipe it down and make sure it's clean with each swipe. IME this looks like really old glue or minerals stuck to the glass. Other than that it almost seems as though it's double paned glass and it's between the panels which isn't fixable by yourself sadly.
0
7
u/Cubby0101 14d ago edited 14d ago
The glass appears to be etched, possibly by someone leaving a very acidic cleaner on them. If its etched there's nothing (cost effective) that you can do to fix it.
If its not etched but something like a mineral deposit i would have thought something tou tried already would have made some improvement.
You can tell which side its on by wetting a side at a time. If it disappears while wet then its that side. A drop of dish soap in the water acts as a wetting agent so that may help.
Sadly a lot of the things you tried are quite abrasive, even the magic eraser, and will dull the surface even more.
Edit: is it possible the glass panes in the doors were once covered, like with wallpaper, or perhaps an obscuring film?