Had a tempered glass shower door basically explode on me yesterday

I was doing a simple install in a new build in Tempe, just putting the final touches on the hardware. The 3/8 inch thick door was leaning against the wall, and out of nowhere it just went. It didn't just crack, it turned into a pile of tiny cubes all over the bathroom floor. The noise was crazy! I think maybe the edge got a tiny nick from a metal stud when we moved it in. I've seen glass break before, but never a full spontaneous shatter like that. Has anyone else had a tempered unit let go without a direct hit, and what do you think the most likely cause was?

3 comments

3 Comments

hannah_wright1mo ago

Saw a thing online about nickel sulfide inclusions in tempered glass. Basically little impurities that can expand over time and cause a spontaneous break. Could have been that, or yeah, a tiny edge chip from moving it. That stuff holds crazy tension, so when it goes, it really goes. Wild that it just let go while leaning against the wall.

amy9751mo ago

Wait, couldn't it just be bad luck and not a chip? @jason524 makes it sound like a tiny nick is always the cause, but sometimes glass just fails. The stress from leaning it at a weird angle against the wall might have been enough all by itself. Those nickel things hannah_wright mentioned are pretty rare, so maybe it was just a weak spot in the glass from the factory. Not every explosion needs a clear reason, sometimes stuff just breaks.

jason5241mo ago

Turned into a pile of tiny cubes" is the perfect way to describe it. Sounds like your bathroom tried to make a last-minute switch to an ice cube tray. That's the thing with tempered glass, it's either perfectly fine or it's a glitter bomb of sharp confetti. A tiny nick from a stud is all it takes, it's like it's just waiting for an excuse to quit its job. At least you got a free science demo out of the deal.