When it comes to choosing the right type of strengthened glass for your commercial property, understanding the differences between other common types of safety glass and tempered glass is crucial.
Safety glass offers improved durability and safety over standard glass, but there are several types of safety glass that serve slightly different purposes and are designed to address different concerns.
Whether you're looking to improve the security of a storefront, protect against potential injuries in commercial spaces with lots of glass doors and windows, or meet building code requirements, this guide will help you make an informed decision.
We’ll break down the key differences, benefits, and applications of safety glass vs tempered glass and more below.
Safety Glass VS Tempered Glass: What You Need To Know
What Is Safety Glass?
Safety glass is a broad term that can be used to refer to different types of strengthened glass that are designed to reduce the likelihood of injury if the glass breaks.
While there are several different types of safety glass, it’s always engineered in such a way as to hold up better under stress than regular glass and, if it does shatter, it breaks in a way that minimizes the chance of serious harm.
This makes safety glass a popular choice for high-traffic commercial areas, storefronts, and buildings that need to meet specific safety regulations.
Types of Safety Glass
1. Laminated Glass
Laminated glass consists of two or more layers of glass with an interlayer, usually made of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) or other strong materials. This interlayer holds the glass together if it breaks, reducing the risk of sharp shards and keeping the glass intact.
In addition to its use as a safety enhancement in commercial buildings, laminated glass is often also used for its security benefits, as it’s more resistant to forced entry attempts and other impact-related threats.
2. Wired Glass
Wired glass has a mesh of wire embedded within it. When the glass shatters, the wire holds the pieces together, much like laminated glass.
While not as common in modern commercial applications due to advances in other safety glass technologies, wired glass is often found in fire-rated doors and windows in older buildings because of its fire-resistant properties, but its use is declining due to its inability to meet modern impact safety standards.
3. Tempered Glass
As a type of safety glass, tempered glass is designed to break into small, blunt pieces when shattered, significantly reducing the risk of injury to people nearby.
Tempered glass is made by heating the glass to high temperatures and then rapidly cooling it, a process called tempering, which strengthens the glass and changes how it breaks.
It’s important to note that, although tempered glass is designed to be significantly stronger than regular glass, particularly in its ability to resist impact, it is not built for security applications.
What Is Tempered Glass?
As we mentioned above, tempered glass is a type of safety glass that undergoes a special heat treatment to make it stronger than regular glass — about 4 or 5 times stronger, to be more precise.
Tempered glass starts its life out as a sheet of regular glass, which is heated to extreme temperatures and then cooled rapidly, a process that compresses the surface of the glass and makes it more resistant to breaking.
If tempered glass does break, it shatters into small, granular chunks rather than sharp shards, making it much safer in areas prone to impact or heavy use.
Tempered glass is used in a variety of commercial building applications, including office windows, glass entryway doors, and storefronts. It is also commonly used for various interior architectural glass features, such as glass railings and stairs, where the risk of accidental breakage is higher.
Safety Glass VS Tempered Glass: What’s the Difference?
Right about now you’re probably thinking something like: “If tempered glass is safety glass, what’s the difference?”
The key thing to understand is that safety glass is a broad term that encompasses a variety of different types of glass and glazing products that can be used to improve safety in commercial spaces, while tempered glass is a very specific type of safety glass.
In other words, not all safety glass is tempered, but tempered glass is safety glass.
Though tempered glass is technically a type of safety glass, it is important to distinguish between it and other types of reinforced glass, like laminated glass. Here’s a closer look at the key differences to understand when it comes to safety glass vs tempered glass:
1. Manufacturing Process
The main difference between tempered glass and other safety glass is in how it’s made. Tempered glass undergoes a heat treatment process that strengthens the entire piece of glass after it’s already been made.
Laminated glass, on the other hand, is made by sandwiching an interlayer between two sheets of glass, which holds the glass together even when broken, while wired glass is made by embedding wire mesh in the glass while it is still in molten form.
2. How They Break
Tempered glass is designed to shatter into small, granular pieces when broken, which makes it safer for commercial environments with a high risk of impact. The small, blunt fragments reduce the risk of serious injury, making tempered glass a popular choice for commercial windows, doors, and other architectural glass where human contact is frequent.
If laminated glass is broken, it cracks like regular glass, but stays in one piece due to the interlayer holding it together. This feature prevents shards from scattering, which not only enhances safety but also provides extra security. This makes laminated glass a better option for applications that require stronger security, such as retail storefronts.
Wired glass behaves differently when broken. The embedded wire mesh can hold the broken glass in place if it cracks, keeping large shards from falling out of the frame. However, wired glass can still break into sharp pieces, and its safety is limited compared to more modern alternatives like laminated and tempered glass.
3. Applications
- Tempered Glass: Intended for applications where breakage could occur and safety is the top priority. It’s also used in areas where building codes require safety glass, such as in windows near the floor or in glass entryway doors.
- Laminated Glass: Ideal for applications that require both safety and security, such as storefronts and other glass surfaces that need to be able to withstand significant force (e.g., during storms or break-in attempts).
- Wired Glass: Primarily used in old buildings in fire-rated doors and windows, due to its ability to prevent the spread of fire while containing broken glass fragments. Though once widely used, wired glass is now less common due to modern safety standards that prioritize impact resistance.
Safety Glass VS Tempered Glass: Choosing the Right Glass for Your Property
Deciding between tempered glass and other types of safety glass depends on your specific needs.
For general safety in high-traffic commercial areas or to meet building code requirements, tempered glass is often sufficient. It provides enhanced strength and shatters in a way that minimizes injury risks. However, if security is a top concern, laminated glass offers superior protection and durability.
If you need maximum impact resistance to protect against forced entry, rioting and looting, storm damage, and other major security threats, there are also several types of non-glass security glazing you might consider, such as polycarbonate-based glazing shields. This type of security glazing provides all the benefits of safety glass, but is virtually unbreakable.
For a budget-friendly option, you might also consider applying safety and security window film to existing glass doors and windows. This window film doesn’t prevent the glass from breaking due to impact, but can hold broken shards of glass in place, much like the interlayer found in laminated safety and security glass products.
At Campbell Glass and Films, we can help you determine what the best type of safety and security glazing is for your needs and goals and even provide installation services. Contact us today for a free consultation!
