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Can Your Auto Glass Spontaneously Break?
websitebuilder • Aug 20, 2020
You may have heard tales of windshields or other auto glass suddenly cracking or even shattering. In truth, sudden breakage can occur, but it's not as spontaneous as you might think. To understand more, you need to understand the factors that can lead to your auto glass suddenly breaking.
What Does Spontaneous Breakage Mean?
A spontaneous break means the glass develops a crack, seemingly out of nowhere. You may even see it happen right in front of your eyes. Or, you may go to sleep one night and wake up with a cracked windshield the next day.
A more drastic example can come if your windshield or other auto glass shatters completely with no warning. You can close a car door, hit a pothole, or have an insignificant fender bender only to watch your car's glass crack or shatter.
In just about every case, glass breakage isn’t truly spontaneous. Several factors can contribute, over time, to what you think happened suddenly.
What Is the Real Cause of Sudden Auto Glass Breakage?
Usually, a spontaneous break in your auto glass likely started as a crack or some other damage that went unnoticed for some time. Any damage to auto glass can lead to more damage in several ways.
Temperature
Very cold temperatures can cause a crack to in your auto glass to contract. The pressure from that contraction can lead to further damage. Contraction can also cause the glass to shatter, but that's an extreme case. However, if the damage from contraction continues to spread, shattering can have a more likely chance of suddenly happening.
Extreme heat causes expansion. A crack or nick in your auto glass can grow as the glass expands under the heat. In addition, too much heat on one side of the glass can cause the glass to expand on that side, but not the other.
This process can cause bending which can create tiny fractures in the glass, which will grow if the process continues. After too much of this, the glass can completely shatter if it receives any type of shock or hard shake. Whether heat or cold, the process of thermal stress is a common cause of auto glass damage.
Installation
Preventing things like spontaneous breakage is one of the key reasons why you must have your auto glass repaired or replaced by a professional service. When installing auto glass, there's a risk of introducing damage to the glass during the process.
Nicks, chips, abrasions from tools, and other things can introduce damage at the edges of the glass where you won't see them. How the technicians place the glass can also introduce or contribute to hidden damage.
As your auto glass goes through the process of expansion and contraction, all those hidden points of damage can create the possibility of your glass spontaneously shattering. Even if that doesn't happen, you can still develop serious auto glass damage over time.
Inadequacies
Auto glass isn't all the same. Manufacturers have specifications when it comes to replacement auto glass. Your vehicle needs glass repair and replacement that adheres to or exceeds those specifications. Some glass defects that can lead to premature breaking or shattering include:
- Glass containing hard impurities
- Glass that's too thin or too thick
- Imperfections introduced during manufacture
All these things can contribute to auto glass breakage. Some manufacturers even have recalls when they find potential problems with their auto glass.
What Are Some Ways to Prevent Spontaneous Auto Glass Breakage?
All the rules for taking care of your auto glass are also meant to prevent things like spontaneous breakage. Understand that auto glass damage will happen over time no matter what. Any damage to your auto glass, especially your windshield, can begin the process that can eventually turn into what looks like sudden cracks or outright breakage.
Some things you can do to prevent premature breakage include:
- Pay attention to your auto glass
- Repair any damage to your auto glass immediately
- Always use a professional auto glass service
If you have an accident, even a small one with no noticeable damage to your auto glass, you should still consider having the glass inspected or replaced.
In addition, you should stay cognizant of the temperatures inside and outside your vehicles. You can slow down thermal stress by making sure you raise temperatures in your vehicle gradually and not overheating or overcooling your vehicle.
Your auto glass can take a lot of stress. However, once damage starts, it will grow and continue to grow. Once you actually notice the damage with your own eyes, there's a chance the damage isn't new or sudden at all. This is another reason why it's important to repair auto glass damage or replace your auto glass as soon as possible.
At MS Glass Outlet we can professionally repair or replace your auto glass the right way. If you notice any signs of auto glass damage, don't wait, contact us immediately.
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