A cracked windshield is like a cracked iPhone screen. How to fix a cracked windshield? It is not pretty, not usable and can lead to very precarious situations. Caused by all manner of road debris and land wildlife, cracked windshield chips and dents are some of the most common maintenance issues you’ll encounter with your car.
From nuts and bolts to birds and rocks, apparently everything in the world is there to break your windshield. Fortunately, over the past three decades windshield technology and construction has advanced to such an extent that few injuries are reported from such impacts.
Since windshield cracks are extremely common , The Drive’s Crack Information Team decided to create a guide for everything to do with windshield repair: what they’re made of, what can cause cracks, the different types of cracked windshields, how to fix and repair your cracked windshield, and a laundry list of frequently asked questions for your better education.
Learn the language of glass to repair a cracked windshield?
What is a windshield made of?
Although you can’t see the seams, cracked windshields in modern cars are made of three layers. Two pieces of curved glass sandwich a layer of plastic vinyl for protection and structural reasons. This construction ensures that most objects hitting the windshield stop before entering the passenger compartment.
Not only does this prevent the window from shattering, it also reduces the possibility of creating large chunks of sharp shards of glass entering your fleshy bodies. Most rock shards only damage the first layer of glass, allowing the windshield to be repaired rather than replaced.
Common things that will make your windshield crack
There are a multitude of everyday objects and environmental particles that can crack your windshield. Name one thing that can fall from a truck or be thrown out a window by your toddler. Yes, all of this can crack your windshield. Here are the most common items that can damage and crack your windshield.
Rock / Stone / Pebble
Rocks, rocks and pebbles are the most common assailants on your cracked windshield. They usually cause minor chips and cracks, but if they’re big and fast enough, they can go through all three layers.
Insects
Big bugs, people, big bugs. Yes, these flying, jumping, and multi-legged beasts can damage your cracked windshield if hit with enough force.
Birds
Descendants of dinosaurs are beautiful creatures, majestic as they soar. They can also be 2-30 pound missiles. Low flying or unconscious birds can strike your windshield and shatter or crack the entire piece of glass. It can also be the source of severe PTSD for your children when you scratch Big Bird from your cracked windshield.
Road debris / Garbage
Humans are filthy, disgusting, and lazy creatures. They tend to take the easy way out, including how they dispose of their car garbage and roadwork debris. You see a window as a window, others see it as a garbage chute. Leftovers are thrown away, litter the road, and can become high-speed cracked windshield impalers.
Nails / Nuts / Bolts
Some of the most common things that crack your car’s glass are nails, screws, washers, nuts, and bolts. Contractors with bulk cargoes often drop boxes of the offending items which become minefields on the road and can sprinkle your car’s cracked windshield in a succession of rapid shots. Lock your loads, friends, don’t blow them up.
Types of windshield cracks
What you might be surprised to learn is that there are actually a lot more types of cracks than, you know, a crack. Cracks, chips, stars, and combinations are all different and require a slightly different attachment methodology. To better assess your particular crack, here are all of the different types of cracked windshields.
Cracks
Cracks are actually available in three different varieties. Here is how they break down.
- Stress: Stress cracks often do not form because of an impact on the windshield that day, but because of repeated impacts and the final failure of the glass. These can also occur when your car is exposed to extreme heat or cold.
- Edge: As the name suggests, these cracks form on the outer edges of the windshield and extend towards the middle of the glass.
- Float: Float cracks tend to be about two inches or more from the edge of the windshield and can be made worse by extreme heat and cold.
Chips
Shards occur when debris hits the windshield and creates a small dent in the glass. Your windshield can contain multiple chips, although you want to fix them quickly so they don’t turn into cracks.
Stars
A star crack occurs when a chip has tiny cracks emanating from a star pattern. When star cracks do occur, they are among the easiest chips to repair with glass putty.
Combination
Combination cracks are, you guessed it, a combination of the aforementioned cracks, cracks, and chips. They often occur after multiple impacts and can weaken the integrity of the glass to a point where replacement is absolutely necessary.
Big
They are the big ones. The San Andreas windshield cracks. They cover the entire windshield and require immediate replacement.
Types of windshield crack repairs
There are two types of windshield crack patches; charges and replacements. Their names should be indicative of what they’re supposed to fix, but let’s talk about it.
Filling
Fillers are glues or transparent resins used to treat minor cracks, pits and fractures. These are used to repair and repair the most common types of cracks. They are not intended to repair or repair large cracks or holes. These can be done at home, most of the time.
Replacement
Replacing your windshield is necessary when the crack or hole is so large that it cannot be mended or repaired with fillers. These are very large, often spanning the entire windshield. Leave it to a professional.
How to repair your windshield
Now that you know what your windshield is made of, what types of things crack it, what types of cracks are there, and how to fix it, let’s talk about how to fix your windshield. And luckily for you, The Drive’s team of crack editors have the perfect garage guide to car windshield repair. Click on the link and take a look at the details if you want to repair your windshield at home.
