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Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Hand Lettering topics: Sign Making, Design, Fabrication, Letterheads, Sign Books.

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Lorenzo Petersson
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:11 pm

Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lorenzo Petersson »

Distinguished salutes dear Masters -

i have a conundrum of sorts:
A customer for a window sign asked me if i could cover his whole window up with white after having lettered his sign.
The reason apparently is because it lets in the wrong kind of light (the sharp straight into your eyes variety) and they've considered boarding it up from the inside before they thought of hiring me. Its not too big, 120 cm times 150 more or less.

My spontaneous reaction is that it shouldnt be a problem provided i coat it well and perhaps even recoat it in black to lightproof it furhter, also to avoid getting an ugly shinethrough where all the brushstrokes and uneven layers show up, it'd look real ugly.

Being pretty much a noob only a few jobs into the trade i feel the need to ask - is this a reasonable plan or am i steering myself right into a trap?
Have any of you had a similar request and did it work out? Am i just worrying over nothing?
Roderick Treece
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Roderick Treece »

Hi Lorenzo,
In the past I have done the same thing with success. I would concider finding some industrial enamel paint that will be compatible with one shot because it may be less expensive.
Good luck
Lorenzo Petersson
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:11 pm

Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lorenzo Petersson »

Roderick Treece wrote:Hi Lorenzo,
In the past I have done the same thing with success. I would concider finding some industrial enamel paint that will be compatible with one shot because it may be less expensive.
Good luck
Thanks Roderick, feels good to know that it's been done and successfully!
Off the bat i'm thinking rusto enamel as an alternative, seen it sold in different colours so black and white should be available.
Get myself a wide fitch and presto!
Roderick Treece
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Roderick Treece »

Lorenzo,
If you have Frazee paint available they make a line called AeroPlate enamel. Just make sure you add a hot thinner to it to add in drying. I would also use a roller and tape off the window around the outside as a stopping point so you don't have to go right up to the edges.
Lorenzo Petersson
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:11 pm

Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lorenzo Petersson »

Roderick Treece wrote:Lorenzo,
If you have Frazee paint available they make a line called AeroPlate enamel. Just make sure you add a hot thinner to it to add in drying. I would also use a roller and tape off the window around the outside as a stopping point so you don't have to go right up to the edges.
I'll look into the Frazee AeroPlate, thanks!
Hot thinner, would a can of high temp reducer from 1Shot do the trick?

Roller and tape, yes and yes thank you, pressure to brush it on is officially out of the equation.
Man i love a well taped edge, the satisfaction of removing it, instant gratification and all that!
Kent Smith
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Kent Smith »

Even with white, it is a good idea to leave that 3/4" to 1" edge all around the glass which reduces the risk of craking the glass due to the expansion variant.
Lee Littlewood
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lee Littlewood »

Amen to that, Kent.
You can be surprised at how much heat will accumulate in a piece of glass with a big area of any color. I had 5 big picture windows break (they said it sounded like gunshots) one after another when I did a bottom panel of light grey. Even with light grey they got so hot from the sun that on a nice day it was barely possible to hold my hand on the inside of the panel. So the windows expanded, and the building had settled, the glass eventually ran out of room to move in the glazing and POW!

My insurance company decided that it was not my fault, rather a building defect, so I'm not sure who paid for the replacements. I had left a clear edge around the panel with 1/2" tape.
Last edited by Lee Littlewood on Sun Sep 08, 2013 7:06 pm, edited 1 time in total.
where am i? Now, when i need me...
Dan Seese
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Dan Seese »

Important points brought up by Lee & Kent.
Years ago I did some window gilding & there were a couple of windows that the owner wanted the lower portion of the glass to be obscured with a deep blue panel. I painted the windows, backed them up with aluminum bronzing powder for opacity & left a 1/2 inch gap on either side to allow for expansion & contraction from the heat. Even so, one of the panels broke on a hot day. It was a real shame because the building was about 100 years old & the large glass windows had really beautiful character in the glass. (Possibly there were flaws in that old glass which were exacerbated by the heat build-up on painted area.) The building owner's insurance paid for it & I redid the panel. It was in another town & now that I think of it I never heard whether or not it remained intact.
I'm pretty reticent to do this again.
Attachments
Note the 1/2" gap on the left side.
Note the 1/2" gap on the left side.
Riflemaker window4.jpg (203.12 KiB) Viewed 8226 times
Dan
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Doug Bernhardt
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Doug Bernhardt »

Absolutely stay away from coating the window with a dark colour especially. It'll break. It just attracts so much heat the glass can't cope with he temperature differences.
Lorenzo Petersson
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:11 pm

Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lorenzo Petersson »

Thanks to everybody for the info and the warnings!

A quick scouting revelaed that the window in question is double (maybe even triple) hardened glass that is designed to keep the temperature loss at a minimum, wich i guess only increases the possibility of it trapping potentially dangerous amounts of heat inside it right?

Allright, new plan:

Am i understanding you guys correctly in that as long as the glass itself can let through most of the radiation and heat it wont run the risk of breaking because of it?

Since the client mostly figured this glass-obscuration-by-paint thing would be hitting two birds with one stone i'm thinking of doing a little carpentry: what if i letter the glass with the design and then make a white wood panel to attach to the windowframe and thereby solving the issue of light?
To further guard against heat getting trapped between the wood and the glass maybe i should put a few metal spacing rings between the panel and the frame and thereby letting only diffused light in, wich has to be an improvement for the lighting situation.

The damage done to the windowframe would be minimal, four or six screws holding it in place. Any future signs of the screwage can be covered with glue/spackling paste, a little sanding and a coat of paint, say if the tattoo studio were to move.

Luckily the window is constructed so that the frame can be easily opened to access each glass sheet individually.
That also opens up the possibility of doing a scroll or frame design on the inner glass and thereby achieving a lot of depth, litterally putting around half an inch between the main elements of the sign. If enough negative space is put between the lettering and around the lettering and the curlicue my bet is it'll look pretty cool when walking by and seeing the elements shift just a little.

How's that for thinking on my feet? :)
Kent Smith
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Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Kent Smith »

This sounds like a viable option especially if air flow is allowed between the panel and the glass. I also like the idea of the extra depth for the scroll. Thinking on your feet or just plain planning ahead results in a more profitable project.
Lorenzo Petersson
Posts: 34
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 12:11 pm

Re: Covering a whole window with 1Shot

Post by Lorenzo Petersson »

Kent Smith wrote:This sounds like a viable option especially if air flow is allowed between the panel and the glass. I also like the idea of the extra depth for the scroll. Thinking on your feet or just plain planning ahead results in a more profitable project.
Thanks for your input and corroboration Kent!
Hopefully i'll be able to achieve the effect i'm seeing in my minds eye with the layers of glass. I have some experimenting ahead of me, best part of the job almost.

Planning ahead is my number one thing on the list at every job!
It all becomes a lot easier if the next steps are known and if there is method to these steps. Prevents me from making stupid choices because seeing the whole picture makes it easier to relate a change to the following steps and imagine their impact on the plan as a whole, and it leaves room to improve the plan while working and seeing a problem ahead...
well well, i'ma run this wood panel idea by my client before i cry victory though :mrgreen:
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