Glass restoration and protection are two distinct methods used in homes, hotels and factories to maintain clean and neat glass surfaces. Restoration is the process used to make damaged or cloudy glass return to a state as good as new, while protection is applied to fresh or clean glass to prevent future damage.
What is Glass Restoration?
Glass restoration is all about fixing the little things that mar a glass pane (scratches, etching, the accumulation of dust, or those annoying mineral deposits) and to restore it to look fresh and clean. This typically means using specific chemical treatments designed to erase the damage without weakening the glass itself.
What is Glass Protection?
Glass protection works like a shield, taking all the damage from dirt and scratches that come part and parcel with the surrounding environment. The most common protectant solutions include coatings, films, and sealants that create a powerful barrier against scratches and glass degradation. Doing so ensures your glass’ lifespan and aesthetic quality. For example, ClearShield Eco-Glass is a glass protectant where its polymeric resin compound permanently bonds with the glass lattice, making it smooth, non-reactive, and resistant to glass degradation.
Key Differences Between Glass Restoration and Protection
As you can probably infer from the names, glass restoration removes the existing damage, like sanding off ~50 microns of etched glass to get rid of it. Contrastingly, glass protection involves smoothening the surface of the glass with either a coating or a substance that makes the glass non-reactive to moisture and other pollutants. One fixes past damage while the other protects the future.
In terms of the time required, restoration can take multiple hours per glass panel while protection is easy, requiring very little time per pane. Moreover, restoration will wear off soon if appropriate protection is not added to the glass.
Can You Do Both?
Now, to the big question: can you do both glass restoration and glass protection? Yes! In fact, industry experts recommend investing in both. If you are considering restoration services for your commercial glass building, we highly suggest adding protection services to give you maximum ROI.
At Roshnak Systems, we offer ClearShield® Eco-System services, which handles everything from restoration to protection and aftercare. You just need to contact our team of experts and let us take care of restoring your existing glass and protecting it for the next 10 years.
Cost Comparison – Restoration vs Protection
For problems like minor scratches, small stains, and hard water build-up, glass restoration can take as much as ₹1500 per unit depending on where you live (Tier 1, Tier 2, or Tier 3 city). Keep in mind that glass restoration is a recurring cost, which you will need to repeat if your glass remains unprotected.
Glass protection may seem pricier in the short term, but keep in mind that you only have to pay once to enjoy the benefits for a decade or even forever if maintained properly. While we can’t speak about other glass protectants, to convert any glass to ClearShield Eco-Glass, it costs about ₹60 to 100/sq ft, depending on the volume and dirt build-up of the glass.
Signs You Need Immediate Glass Restoration
Reach out for restoration as soon as possible if you spot any of these warning signs.
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Blurry or Rainbow-like Appearance: If you flash light on your glass and it looks even a bit blurry, there is a high chance your glass is etched.
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Dropper Test: Let a water droplet run down the glass pane. If it goes in a smooth track, the surface is smooth and is not much damaged. If it runs jagged, it’s time to contact the glass cops, aka us.
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Harder To Clean: If the glass takes longer to scrub clean, you need to check for tiny cracks on the surface. You can first check with a gloss measurement test to see if there is any deterioration of the glass surface.
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Cloudy Edges: If you live in a city known for its hard water, like Bengaluru or Chennai, you must look out for whitish or cloudy spots on the edges of the glass. Cleaning glass with hard water can also accelerate the damage by adding a permanent CaCO₃ crust to its surface.
Signs You Should Invest in Protection Now
Apart from long-term ROI, glass protection also makes your life far easier, whether you are a homeowner or a facility manager in a corporate space. This is because you don’t need to rub aggressively every week to get rid of dust, fingerprints, and pollutant build-up. Glass protectant services like ClearShield provide the following advantages for you.
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Much easier to wipe off fingerprints, dust buildup, bird droppings, and cement dust since glass surface is also microscopically smooth.
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Cleaning time and frequency reduced by 50%
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Protects against staining for at least 10 years.
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Tests at the UK Public Health Laboratory in Porton Down showed that bacteria adhered 32 times less to ClearShield glass compared to ordinary glass upon one wash.
Conclusion
Nothing gives you more benefits than restoring your existing glass and protecting it right after. After conversion to ClearShield Eco-Glass™, you too can have clear and sparkling glass for a long time like our client, the Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok, who was protected nearly 20 years ago but still boasts an appearance akin to new, due to their timely and minimal maintenance.
