Reeded Glass for Cabinet Doors: What to Know Before You Order

Reeded glass has moved from a period detail to one of the most requested finishes in contemporary kitchens and joinery. It is a good-looking product, and there are three decisions worth getting right before you order.

Which way the reeds run

The fluting runs one direction only, and we cut to suit — so we need to know which way you want it before the sheet is cut.

For cabinet doors, vertical is almost always what you want. Vertical reeds make a door read taller and more elegant, and they align with how the eye reads a cabinet front. Horizontal reeding on a tall narrow door looks unsettled.

The exception is a wide, short panel — an overhead cabinet or a long low unit — where vertical reeds on a squat door can look cramped and horizontal may suit better.

Across a run of doors, keep the direction consistent. Mixed directions in one kitchen look like a mistake even when deliberate.

Low iron is worth more here than anywhere

This is the strongest case for low iron in our whole range, and it is worth understanding why.

Reeded glass is thicker at every ridge than in the valleys between them. Ordinary float glass carries a green cast that gets stronger with thickness. So the green concentrates in exactly the ridges — and on a large panel in strong light, that reads as faint green striping across the door.

On a small cabinet door in a dim corner, nobody will notice. On a run of tall pantry doors with light behind them, it is visible. Since reeded glass is almost always used somewhere on show, this is a real consideration rather than a theoretical one.

See whether low iron is worth the premium for the general case.

Narrowline vs traditional wide flute

Our reeded range is Narrowline — a fine, closely spaced reed rather than the wide traditional flute you see in older shopfronts.

The tighter spacing does three things: it gives more privacy, it reads as more contemporary, and it works far better on small panels. A wide flute on a 400mm cabinet door only fits two or three ridges, which looks accidental. Narrowline fits many, which looks intentional.

Available in 6mm and 10mm — see reeded glass.

Which face goes out

For cabinet doors, the reeded face usually goes outward, into the room, because the texture is the point and it catches light.

The trade-off is cleaning. Ridges hold fingerprints and, near a cooktop, cooking film. If the doors are in a working kitchen rather than a display cabinet, that is worth thinking about. See which side faces out.

Practical checks before ordering

• Measure the rebate, not the door. Cabinet doors hold glass in a rebated frame. You need the glass size, which is smaller than the door.
• Allow clearance — 2–3mm off each dimension so the glass seats without binding.
• Check the rebate depth takes 6mm, or 10mm if you are going heavier.
• Edges — if all four sit inside the frame, unpolished is fine. Any exposed edge needs polishing.
• Order a spare if you are doing a run of identical doors. Sheets vary slightly between production batches, and matching one door in two years is harder than adding one now.

Where else it works

Beyond kitchens: internal partitions, wardrobe fronts, shower screens, room dividers, shopfronts. In a shower it gives privacy while keeping the space light — but there, fit the smooth face toward the water and check whether the position requires toughening.

Email us at info@affordableglassonline.com.au if you want a view on direction or thickness for your job.