Tempered Glass at St. Louis Glass Works: Tempered glass is a popular choice for home projects because of its strength. Not only is tempered glass four times stronger than standard glass, but it’s designed to shatter into pixels rather than shards, making it safer should anything happen. While tempered glass tends to be more resistant, every now and then, it has been known to spontaneously shatter. Here’s how it happens and what you need to know for the glass in your home.
What causes spontaneous shatter?
One of the most common reasons for shattering is damage that might be hiding in the glass. Any small bit of damage will build over time until one day, it gets to be too much. Damage around the frame can especially cause these issues.
Another common issue is thermal stress. This can happen with uneven heating when the center of the glass is warmer than the edge. The heat will cause the center of the glass to expand, leading to additional stress around the edges. When the stress gets to be too much, this can cause an issue.
Finally, breakage can come from nickel sulfide stress caused by stainless steel machines during the glass-making process. These flaws will cause internal stress that can build up over time.
How can you prevent spontaneous shatter?
For starters, always use a professional for your glass installation. An expert will not only be able to easily install it in a way that minimizes damage, but they’ll also be able to detect most small issues during installation and amend them. They can also perform any necessary analysis to ensure thermal stress will not be a problem.
You can always speak to your glass company to find out if they offer any solutions to prevent spontaneous shatter. Glazed, toughened glass as well as heat-soaked glass might be able to provide a safe-guard against any issues.
Lastly, make sure you know what to do with broken glass. Spontaneous shatter is pretty rare, but familiarizing yourself with guidelines for disposing of broken glass is always a good idea, especially if you tend to be a little clumsy.
If you have any additional questions regarding glass installation for your home, let’s chat! At St. Louis Glass Works, we’re experts when it comes to house projects. We’d love to pair you with your perfect solution so your home can sparkle for years to come.