Many people think that all of the glass they see is real glass, but in reality, glass has two common types when talking about safety glass for different purposes. This includes the auto glass that you can find in all types of vehicles. The two most common types are called tempered and laminated. You just need to choose the appropriate glass that will fit your requirements and to ensure that it is correctly applied. Because of this reason, every car owner needs to know the differences between these two glasses.
Tempered Glass: What Is It?
Tempered glass is a type of safety glass that is made using chemicals or heat to produce the required of standard glass strength. One of the reasons why is it known as tempered, because the manufacturing method of producing this type of glass is called tempering. It used to produce tempered glass up to four times stronger compared to the other types of glasses that have the same thickness.
The durability of the tempered glass is one of the reasons why it’s a famous choice among repairman and car owners. Besides, it is also bendable without breaking the glass and it has a better level of wind resistance. When the glass is damaged or broken, it shatters into a group of round cubes instead of pointy and sharp pieces. Most auto glass nowadays is tempered glass and sometimes it is also used for mobile phones, computer screens and as well as in skyscrapers.
Laminated Glass: What Is It?
The name laminated is already descriptive. From the word itself, this type of safety glass has a minimum of two panes of glass that are held together by a certain layer of material called polyvinyl butyral or plastic. It used to make a standard glass look like actual laminated glass. This kind of glass contains many layers such as additional three layers of glass that are separated by plastic.
One of the good reasons for using laminated glass is that it can protect you from UV radiation. Not only that, but it is also soundproof compared to the other types of glass. Laminated glass can be tinted or clear as it stays, depending on your needs or your preference. Maybe, the reason why laminated glass is pretty famous is that once the glass is broken, the laminated glass will stick to the plastic layer rather than flying into the face of the driver or the passengers. Also, this is most often used in car windshields but it can also be utilized in glass floors, railings, skylights, or other areas.
Laminated Versus Tempered Glass: Which is the Better Type of Glass?
In most types of vehicles, they can choose either tempered or laminated and it can be used for different purposes as well. Since most of the tempered glass can’t be repaired, laminated glass is often used for windshields. On the other, tempered is used for sides or rear windows in the car. Both types were developed hundreds of years ago and laminated glass was developed and legally patented in 1909 when two women were fatally injured in a vehicular accident from flying glass debris.
