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 any reason. Over 80% are impacted within the outside 3 inches of the glass edge. We call this exterior 3 inch band around the outside of the glass "The Crack Zone"
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 makes 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 that are thrown from the tread of another car's tire. These rocks get caught in the groves of the tire and are thrown out as the wheel spins. Once they impact the edge of your windshield you soon will have a crack that will 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 specialized and recently patented technology and the cost is usually paid for by your comprehensive insurance. Check with your insurance company to see if your repairs are covered. Any time you hear the sounds 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, the glue that holds your windshield in your car from the sun's ultra violet rays. The frit only adds to the problem of cracking because it hides the impact and heats up with the sun.
About the author
Tim Evans has over 20 years in the windshield repair and replacement business.
He owns several patents to repair cracked windshields up to 24 inches and new technology to prevent cracked windshields.
For more information go to
www.windshieldrepairkits.net
www.streakfreewiperblades.com
