See More. Collide Less.

Acrylic, stainless or glass

The mirror surface decides both the quality of the image and how long the mirror survives, and the three materials are genuinely different products.

Acrylic is light, economical and shatter resistant. The general purpose choice for internal use and for sheltered external positions. It scratches, and it can distort over time in strong sun.

Stainless steel is effectively unbreakable and cannot be shattered, which makes it the specification for public areas, schools, custodial settings and anywhere vandalism is likely. The image is slightly softer than glass.

Safety-backed glass gives the sharpest and most accurate image, which matters at distance and in poor light. Modern traffic versions use laminated automotive glass so a break is contained rather than producing loose fragments.

The heated and ice-free versions

An outdoor mirror that is frozen, misted or covered in condensation is worse than no mirror, because people have learned to rely on it and it is showing them nothing.

That happens on exactly the mornings when visibility is already poor, which is when a blind junction is most dangerous.

Ice-free mirrors use a construction that resists frost and condensation without any power supply. Heated mirrors carry an element, from around 15W on smaller sizes up to 45W on the largest, and keep the face clear in any conditions. For a yard entrance or a junction used before dawn in winter, one of the two is worth specifying from the start.

Sizing and position

Bigger is not automatically better. A mirror's size should match the distance it is viewed from: too small and the image is unusable at range, too large and it gathers a wide view in which the thing that matters is tiny.

Rectangular mirrors suit a long aisle or a straight approach. Circular mirrors give a wide field for a corner. Panoramic 360 degree mirrors cover a crossing of routes or a four-way junction from a single fitting.

Mount high enough to see over parked vehicles and stacked goods, angle it to the eye position of the person who needs it, and check it after any layout change. A mirror aimed at last year's arrangement is trusted and wrong.

Security and observation mirrors

Internal convex mirrors cover blind aisles in retail, so a shop floor is visible from the counter.

Anti-vandal and anti-theft versions use stainless or toughened construction and tamper resistant mounting. Magnetic and bracket-mounted versions install without drilling, which suits a leased unit where the fabric cannot be altered.

Posts, brackets and inspection mirrors

Where there is no wall, galvanised posts from 3m to 3.9m and fork tops carry the mirror at the right height. Wall brackets and extended J-brackets bring a mirror out from a face so it sees along it rather than into it.

Telescopic inspection mirrors are a different tool entirely: hand held or on castors, for checking under vehicles and into spaces the eye cannot reach, with a clip-on LED for dark areas.

For internal safety layout, see warehouse and workplace.