22702 State Hwy 249
Tomball, TX 77375
346-278-2575
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Tomball, TX 77375
Call Today
Click here for an appointment
In any vehicle there are many types of glass and mirrors. Whether it is your windshield, back window, side or wing mirrors, windows, and rear view mirror, there are all sorts of glass features that are developed to help us obtain optimum visibility and safety when driving. Most of us don’t even notice that there’s a difference in the glass between the different components but there are.
Windshields are designed to not shatter under impact, therefore they are constructed with a different glass than a normal window in a typical home.
The glass used in windshield construction is what auto repairmen call laminated glass and was designed in the 1920s. Laminated glass is essentially two sheets of glass put together and sealed under extreme heat with a PVB (polyvinyl butyral) between them. This heating and sealing creates the sort of safety net which defines laminated glass. Between the layers in the glass and the heating method, it prevents your windshield from shattering into harmful shards. And if a passenger is thrown into the windshield, it works to absorb the impact and lessen the force on the person. Laminated glass is also used to construct your vehicle’s rear windows. It can be repaired easily if it has a chip or crack.
Side windows are made from tempered glass. Tempered auto glass is formed by a single-ply sheet of glass, but it is heated and then rapidly cooled. Tempered glass prevents your side windows from breaking into sharp pieces when they shatter. Since side windows are not as prone to impact breakage, tempered glass is used instead of laminated glass. In the event of tempered glass shattering, the pieces of glass become rounded and unsharp (as you can see in the image above), causing minimum harm to the passenger. If there is a chip or crack in tempered glass, the entire pane of glass will have to be replaced because it’s a single sheet and the nature of its composition.
