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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?
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hannah_wright6mo 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.
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amy9756mo 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.
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jason5246mo 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.
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