Would a mylar mirror work for a home gym?

December 22, 2007 8:26 PM

Would a Mylar Mirror work well for a home gym situation?

I have a home gym and would like to add a "wall mirror". Would using a mylar mirror do the trick? Just wondering if anyone has any experience with using the material and know a good place to buy a large piece.

Is the reflective quality close to a normal mirror?

Thank you,
Jseven

posted by jseven to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (7 answers total)

Mylar isn't as reflective as glass mirrors, in that it "wastes" more light and everything looks darker. It also chips and scratches much more easily than glass (of course).

But for a home gym, especially a temporary sort of installation, it's probably hard to beat. If you hate it, or if it wears out from cleaning after a year, you won't be out very much money.

If you're trying to make a show-home, breathtaking cool looking home gym, of course, forget it. Call some glass guys and have them install real floor-to-ceiling mirror.
posted by rokusan at 8:57 PM on December 22, 2007

I distort (gold/silver) rolls of Mylar for art photo projects. I purchase through my department's old stock--I'm sorry, I can't give you a current reliable distributor.

This material would be awesome for a home gym situation, if you can look at the material and the way you hung it without passing judgment on yourself.
posted by bonobo at 9:59 PM on December 22, 2007

It isn't going to be very flat, is it? Won't the reflection in it be distorted? There's no way it's going to be as clean a reflection as a glass mirror.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 10:18 PM on December 22, 2007

No matter how flat you try to make it, the distortion will drive you nuts. We tried that route on a closet door recently using special adhesive made for the application. Sucked. Looked like a circus mirror. The cheapest real mirror (home depot, etc) you can find will be much better.
posted by artdrectr at 10:49 PM on December 22, 2007

Is this a home with small children? If so, and if you're talking about the type of mirror where the mylar is stretched over a frame, then it probably won't survive very long.
posted by winston at 12:16 PM on December 23, 2007

Here is a source for rolls of Mylar: link. Other studio photography suppliers would have it, too. I forgot to mention that my school's lighting studio has a large piece of Styrofoam insulation panel with Mylar stretched over it. We use it as a mirror for self-portraits and, except for where a hole was punched into it, the distortion is minimal. I've had success with stretching mine over canvas stretchers and stapling it, too. The rolls I use have gold on one side and silver on the reverse. It's tougher than the Mylar on the studio mirror.

Also, have you considered mirror tiles? I've seen boxes of 1'x1' tiles at local home improvement stores.
posted by bonobo at 4:02 PM on December 23, 2007

It might even be cheaper to buy door mirrors and take off the frames. They're commodity consumer products so they cost nothing, and they're tall so you won't have many seams in one direction.
posted by smackfu at 8:05 PM on December 23, 2007