Finding Better Glass For Your Home

The glass in your car is there to protect you from the weather, deflect flying debris, and keep things inside your car from blowing out. When you have a crack or hole in the windshield most people know to have it fixed as soon as possible. However, what about side windows or the rear window? Should you have them repaired because of a small chip or do you need to have them replaced?

Size and Type of Damage

When it comes to the side and rear windows in your car, only small damage can be repaired. The glass in it is not the same as a windshield. Quite often, even a little hole or crack will have the whole window crumbling into pieces. Luckily, it is made to keep from shattering. However, if the damage is merely a chip that does not go through the thickness of the glass, you may want to talk to an auto glass technician about repairing it.

Visibility

While you are not looking through a side window constantly while driving, you do need to be able to see out and into the side mirrors to stay safe. It is possible to have a chip repaired but you should keep in mind that there will probably be an imperfection that can distort the view where it was. If this imperfection is in the direct line of where you look to see into a side mirror or to see to the side or back when looking out the back window, you should probably have the window replaced.

Further Damage

While auto glass repair technicians do their best to fix any damage done to the window, sometimes the problem grows either during the repair or after it. Anytime this happens, it is important to have the window replaced. It indicates the integrity of the glass has been destroyed and will not be safe regardless of any work done to it. If this does occur, take the car back to the place where you had the work done. They may deduct the cost of the repair from the cost of the replacement because the technician should have noticed the damage was not fixable.

If you are unsure of the integrity of the glass, have it replaced. It is much better to spend the extra money and be safe than to worry about it breaking while driving down the road with kids in the back seat.