|
|
|
Windshield Articles
Are you wondering why your windshield
cracked
when you do not
remember being hit with a rock?
You woke up one morning and your windshield had a crack in it that seems
to have come from no where. You are not alone. The most common cause of
windshield replacements are very small impacts at the edge of the windshield.
The impact is so small that it usually goes unnoticed. Windshields do not just
crack for no reason. Over 80% are impacted within the outside 3 inches of the
glass edge. We call this exterior 3 inch band around the outside edge of the
glass "The Crack Zone".
See photos of impacts below.
With over 20 years of repairing and replacing windshields I
have heard this many times. People say, "My windshield just cracked and it was
not hit". I show them the tiny spec where the rock impacted their windshield
and caused the crack. They say, "That can not be the cause". But I assure
them, it is the cause of their windshield crack.
The size of the impact needed to crack your windshield is greatly
reduced the closer to the edge the impact is. Rock impacts of this size inside
"The Crack Zone" usually make only a small speck the size of a dot, a tip of a
pencil would make on a piece of paper. Impacts of this size past the first 3
inches of the windshield out of "The Crack Zone" will usually make surface
specks I call sand blasting, and most at this point do not crack. Most of
these rock impacts come from stones thrown from the tread of another car's
tire. These rocks get caught in the grooves of the tire and are thrown out as
the wheel spins. Once they impact the edge of your windshield you have a crack
that will now need to be repaired or replaced usually within a day or two.
Now for the good news.
Cracks up to 24 inches can now be repaired with our specialized and
recently patented technology and the cost is usually paid by your
comprehensive insurance. Check with you insurance company to see if your
repairs are covered. Any time you hear the sound of an impact on your
windshield visually inspect your windshield for a tiny impact as in the photos
here. Many times these impacts will be in the black part of your windshield
called the frit. The frit is a ceramic paint applied to the inside of your
windshield to protect the urethane from the sun's ultra violet rays. The
urethane is the glue that hold the windshield to the body of the car. The frit
only adds to the problem of cracking.
Information provided by Tim Evans.
Tim has 24 years in the windshield repair and replacement business.
He also owns several patents in long crack repair up to 24 inches
and crack prevention technology.
Check out the rest of our web site at www.windshieldrepairkits.net.
|
|