If the glass in your car has suffered any sort of damage, you should think about auto glass or windshield replacement right away. The dangers posed by even minor damage to your windshield are quite insidious, because they often do not show up right away. Instead, the problem may build over time and become far worse than if you had attended to it when you had the chance. In this article we will consider both the problems associated with cracked windshields and what can be done about them. Total replacement is not always necessary; there may be less expensive alternatives, for the short term at least.

Dangers

It is not really surprising that a chip of asphalt occasionally finds itself flying towards your windshield. Given the number of cars on the road, it is almost surprising that it does not happen more often. In general, the damage that occurs from an average chip is not catastrophic immediately. Typically, only a small crack is created. Unfortunately, because of its small size, many drivers opt to ignore it. The problem is that this small crack, left untreated, is likely to spread. It will also begin to weaken the windshield so that it is more likely to fail catastrophically when it next receives an impact. Whether the windshield is currently dangerous or not depends on the severity of the crack. If it is only an inch long, then it almost certainly will not affect you immediately, at least unless it is directly in your line of sight. However, even a small crack like this can quickly become much larger if the windshield is stressed.

Repair Or Replace?

In many cases, a total auto glass or windshield replacement is not necessary, at least if the crack is caught early. Instead, a relatively minor repair can be done. This usually involves injecting a small amount of clear resin or similar into the crack. The purpose of this treatment is to seal and reinforce the crack and thus prevent it from spreading. This treatment is typically not very expensive. However, if the crack is more severe and in a spiderweb pattern, then an immediate replacement of the windshield is required. This will be a far more costly operation, as the entire pane must be removed, a replacement must be sought, and the new pane must be installed carefully and without any scratches or blemishes. In practice, catching a fracture early can therefore really save you some cash.

Conclusion

Whether a full auto glass or windshield replacement is in order depends on the severity of the fracture. In many cases, the first crack created by a rogue stone is quite small. A full replacement is probably not necessary in this case. However, the windshield should still be treated in order to prevent the fracture from spreading. If it does spread or blossom into the classic shattered spiderweb, then a full replacement will be necessary. There are many good places that can do an auto glass or windshield replacement; look online for the best deals.