When I shopped for windows I looked at the glue chip for the bathroom and it looked like it wasn't privacy glass and this was even from a very small sample. I think you are out of luck since you signed the contract and actually saw the design.

I see this is a very old post but I would like to know from jennifer_darcy if there was any success with the claim? Same thing happened to us today, but worse.... After we saw glass sliding doors dividing the room and bathroom in a newly built hospital and liked the look and friendliness it brought to the room, we ended up in a store specialized in sliding doors. We explained what we are planning in our newly built home for two bedrooms with private bathrooms and we were recommended and shown sliding doors with a glass that would provide privacy and easy maintenance. In their showroom we had the feeling that with this particular door none could be seen through and we placed an order for almost USD 6000. We had to fully pay the amount before installation which was done today. During the day it looked fine but now in the evening with the lights in the bathroom we realize that you can see the body outlines sharp enough to say that there is no privacy at all. We are shocked after spending all the money. I am crushed down as this was a big investment for us and we definitely can't use the bathrooms with these doors. We feel betrayed.

What oberon said. You may even consider a white laminated glass if you have it replaced as that will be more opaque yet.

Perhaps if there is a "smooth" side (often obscure glass has both sides rough or bumpy), a film can be applied. That would be your most economical fix.

Hope you find a solution. Where we used to live, we had some neighbors behind us that thought their privacy glass was more effective than it really was. We privately called them the naked neighbors. Oh the things you can't unsee...
we planted some quickly growing bushes and trees strategically so our kids wouldn't get such a full view as they grew older.

Here are the photos. This particular glass is called "Linen" by the seller. You can't see it well on the pics, but as oberon476 said, it has one smooth side (facing the bedroom) and one lightly pebbled side (facing the bathroom). The installer is still working today on the second room and we told him about our night/light-experience. He was very understanding but said that other customers used the glass for the same purpose and he never heard back that they were not satisfied. He will forward the information back to the salesperson we worked with. He also talked about a film he might be able to apply and I discussed that already with my husband last night. I am not too excited about a film on top of the glass regarding scratches, durability, looks and cleaning aspects. I think our final solution will be to install a curtain from the bathroom side over the top of the doors as an additional privacy screen. Our neighbors are safe though (lol) because they have no views into that area. The curtain is not what I intended to have but anybody staying in that room should have the option to get as much privacy as they want. At daylight there is no problem and I like how the bathroom is flooded with light coming from the room. That was the case in the showroom. However, I now believe too that no glass door is really private when it comes to different lighting situations. Thank you all for commenting and giving me your thoughts.

I'll just reinforce oberon's comments on the lighting, and add that proximity to the glass is a factor as well. Closer you stand, more you see. This can be particularly troublesome in situations like the OP, where the window is right in the shower and you have no choice to be very close... There maybe some high privacy specialty stuff on the market, but for the most part, window and door manufacturers deal in the standard offerings such as the pebbled, glue chip, and rain glass. They do the job for most folks, so that is likely why there aren't more widely available options.

What if you put a light in the ceiling above the window, shining on the window? That might illuminate the frosting in such a away that it glows and hides inside shadows on the glass.

Try showering in the dark?

Just curious, what was stipulated in the actual contract?

Good morning Rafaela,

"Linen" isn't an uncommon term to use for obscure glass products, but generally (in my experience) the term would be used for something that actually has a woven material, often fabricated inside a laminated glass sandwich

https://bendheim.com/product/white-linen-laminated-architectural-glass/

or possibly an obscure soft-white laminated glass, but I don't recall ever seeing a pattern glass referred to as linen.

From your pictures I do wonder if you might have a white laminated glass with one lite of the laminate textured?

In any case, a film applied to the smooth side of the glass might be your best possible "non-curtain" option. But like you said there are concerns about long term performance.

As Mike Lamb suggested, having a light source outside of the door would probably eliminate a good bit of the visibility thru the glass, but hard to say if it would be sufficient for what you really want.

So does the glass section the bathroom from the bedroom? Would someone have to be in the bedroom to see the person in the bathroom thru the glass doors? This really might not be an issue. If two people are sharing a bedroom, they have probably already seen everything there is to see. If just one person is using the bedroom, who is going to see them?

Hello again,

Thanks for your suggestions with the lights. That might or might not work. @ Mike Lamb: Yes, that's correct. Somebody would need to be in the bedroom to watch the other person in the bathroom. We have 2 queen beds in that room and will accommodate friends and family when they come to visit. Not always are they in a romantic relationship in order to enjoy watching each other in their birth clothes, lol. Although I am from Europe and assuming that I am more open to nakedness than average American people I still would prefer to have total privacy when using the toilet, even when it's my husband on the other side of the glass door. Simply said, we made a mistake believing that privacy glass is really private. The light situation in the showroom was just very different from the situation at home and in the night. @ Window1: Nothing in the contract said that the glass would be a privacy glass or something similar. We trusted the seller and we trusted what we saw in the showroom with our own eyes, just not knowing better. We know now. Maybe this post will help somebody else with their future decisions once it comes to having glass door installed in a room where privacy is still wanted.

Skmom, drop the neighbors an anonymous note and save everyone further embarrassment!

You could argue that it's not fit for purpose and that the seller understood the purpose when he sold it to h]you having seen the area and had conversation about it.