Glass Splashbacks

If you are looking for a kitchen splashback, glass may not be the first wall covering that springs to mind but it is probably the most practical. It can come in ANY colour, in any shape or size or you can even buy digitally printed glass splashbacks with any design you like. What are glass splashbacks exactly though? How can they come in any colour? Can you use a glass splashback behind a gas hob? As they are such a new concept, you can be forgiven for having so many questions, so we'll answer them for you.

What is Splashback Glass?

There is nothing special about the material used to make a splashback out of glass, it is simply toughened safety glass. As a hob splashback needs to be very resistant to heat (or it will break), is you want a splashback made from glass it must be toughened. The toughening process involves rapidly heating and cooling the glass using extreme temperatures. This toughening process changes the physical composition of the glass giving it six times more strength on it's surface by greatly increasing it's surface tension.

A good example of what is going on is if you shake a bottle of fizzy lemonade, the gas inside is released making the bottle rock hard and if you hit it or squeeze it the bottle will not give much. This is what happens with toughened glass, the glass is literally pushing to get out the whole time so resists impact by pushing against it. It is not unbreakable of course, if you break this surface tension that restrains this force the glass will shatter into thousands of tiny little cubes that are not at all sharp (as opposed to dangerous shards)- hence the term safety glass.

How is Splashback Glass coloured?

There is a common misconception that the glass itself is coloured, like ornamental glass, bottles etc. This is not the case, colour glass splashbacks are made from one of two types of CLEAR glass. Opti white or low iron glass or float glass.

Glass splashbacks made from float glass are often slightly darker or a white splashback made from float glass can look blue, frosted or even green. This is because of the iron content in the glass reflecting against the wall or painted surface.

Opti white glass splashbacks can be more expensive although a lot of splashback glass suppliers sell opti white glass as standard. Opti white glass is also known as low iron glass, this name tells you why it is more popular. As the iron content is much less you see as true a colour as possible- in fact the human eye cannot see the iron content at all so white splashbacks are white as intended.

Ok, so how are they coloured again? Well the "secret" is that they are simply back painted! Yes, the side that is fitted against the wall is just painted with a special paint- this is why you can get them in ANY colour.

Where do I buy Splashback Glass

There are many good suppliers across the country but if you want an instant price for glass splashbacks try the online quoting tool (DIY or full measure and fit available) at DIY Splashbacks.