Acrylic plastic, also known as plexiglass, is a useful, clear material that resembles glass, but offers better transparency and weighs 50% less than glass of equal thickness. Acrylic is known as one of the clearest materials, offering a transparency rate of 93% and can be used in a wide variety of applications. Shop from our extruded and cast options below. Custom sizing available.
Acrylic sheet is an excellent substitute for traditional glass for many purposes. This versatile type of plastic has numerous applications and it’s also much cheaper than standard glass. In this blog, we’re going to take a closer look at the advantages of using acrylic compared to traditional glass.
It might sound surprising but moulded acrylic sheet is actually thirty times as strong as standard glass . This is because acrylic sheet is a form of plastic and has much greater flexibility. When moulded acrylic is being processed there is only a small risk of it breaking.
Acrylic sheet or plexiglass is twice as light as standard glass, a feature that’s very handy when you want to use it for applications such as hanging an acrylic barn door.
Acrylic sheet is also recommended to anyone who wants to save themselves some money. Acrylic is not only much cheaper than standard glass, but it’s also easier to cut it to size. At Plasticsheetshop.co.uk, we’ll cut it to size for you for free.
Regular glass is at a very high risk of breaking when being processed but there’s no problem with acrylic sheet. Plexiglass or clear acrylic offers almost limitless options for processing. You can saw, mill, drill, engrave, glue, polish and bend ( with heat) these sheets.
Tip: Why not try your hand at making a DIY Plexiglass memo board? Use a whiteboard marker to write your to-do or shopping lists. Add a picture of each member of the family above and everyone can organise their schedule.
Acrylic sheet is very durable and will not weather or discolour. As long as you maintain it regularly, it will keep its good looks for years. Plexiglass has the same levels of thermal efficiency as standard glass. It’s also UV- and moisture- resistant and this is why acrylic sheet is perfect for exterior applications.