Few, if any, of today’s drivers remember anything about the days when motor cars either had no windshields or; if they did; the glass was standard and not safety glass. Back then; if the shield (or any other side or rear window) broke; that was it; dangerous glass shards everywhere and you needed to buy a completely new one and have it fitted to the vehicle.
Safety Glass
With today’s laminated safety glass; you do not get dangerous shards if the glass breaks; but, what you do get is a shield that has totally “frosted” over and you cannot see through it. When this happens; there is still no way in which to get an auto glass repair in Salinas or anywhere else. The only answer is still total replacement. This can be costly; not only the price of the new glass; but, also cleaning out all the ”safe” bits of broken glass; positioning the shield or window correctly and sealing it in position.
But, Surely Some Auto Glass Repair Is Possible?
Since side and rear windows are; not only less prone to damage; but, also have less effect on diving safety; we are mainly looking at damaged windshield glass in this article. And, you can actually undertake some auto glass repair work on windshields.
However, there are certain provisos that must be considered. Much of this is in accordance with standards prepared by the US National Windshield Repair Association. They say that damage caused by relatively small stones being thrown up and hitting the windshield is often repairable; but, this does depend upon the size, location, type and depth of the damage.
Surface scratches can be polished out but, if the glass has cracked or an impact has penetrated the outer layer of glass; then, repair or replacement are the only options. However, please note that the repair will not have the same level of transparency as the rest of the shield; because of this, repairs are not normally carried out at positions that are in the driver’s direct line of sight.
Basically, the repair involves sucking out the air between the shield’s two layers to create a vacuum at the damaged spot. Clear adhesive resin is then injected into the evacuated space. The average time taken for such repairs is between 15 and 20 minutes.
Contact us if the glass has cracked or an impact has penetrated the outer layer of glass.