Should I repair or replace a cracked windshield?

In fact, knowing how to repair a cracked or chipped windshield not only saves you time and money, but also ensures that the damage is repaired as quickly as possible for your safety and the safety of other road users. However, we recommend that you take your vehicle to a professional auto repair shop to assess the situation before deciding to repair or replace your windshield.

Did you know that your car's windshield provides up to 40% of the structural strength of your car's roof? The support that a windshield provides to prevent the roof from denting or collapsing during a rollover is vital to overall safety - for this reason, it is important to have a high-quality, structurally sound, undamaged windshield.

Different types of windshield damage

There are many different types of windshield damage from a variety of causes. Here are some typical windshield cracks.

Some typical cracks that appear on the windshield in order of danger from low to high

• Surface Cracks: Sometimes small pieces of rock hitting your car's windshield will only chip off a small piece of glass, leaving a barely noticeable mark. This is the most common type and may seem insignificant but can lead to more damage later on.
• Stress Cracks: Stress cracks can occur due to extreme changes in temperature. Stress cracks are usually long and usually start at the edge of the windshield. If you are dealing with ice on your windshield that contracts and expands as it warms up, a small crack can easily spread to a larger crack.
• Floating cracks: Floating cracks form around the center of the windshield or at least 5 cm or more from the outer edge of the windshield. Because the windshield is more vulnerable in the center, floating cracks are very likely to spread quickly.
• Edge Cracks: These are cracks that start at or around the edges of the windshield. Edge cracks can extend across the windshield and are often very crooked.
• Bullseye: A bullseye can be caused by a spherical piece of debris, like a small rock, hitting a car windshield. They resemble a crater in the glass and can be quite deep.
• Half Moon: Half moon cracks are also caused by a circular object hitting your car's windshield while you're driving. Cracks often form around the half-moon shaped pieces, but they're still unsightly and can obstruct visibility while also compromising the structure of the windshield.
• Starburst: Starbursts are small star-shaped cracks. These cracks can spread and turn into larger windshield cracks if not repaired in the future.

Should you repair a small crack in your windshield?

Small cracks do not cause immediate problems and damage, but if left untreated, they can affect driving safety. The body of the car has to flex during movement, and this puts pressure on the windshield. The same thing happens when your car is exposed to temperature changes. In cold weather, the ice outside and the heat from inside the cabin will cause expansion and contraction, easily causing cracks to appear on the windshield.

Therefore, car owners who encounter the above problems should immediately repair or change as soon as possible to avoid larger cracks in the future.

When seeing many small cracks in the windshield, many people will request a new windshield. But this is not necessarily the best solution. Replacement is only really necessary when the glass is too broken. Therefore, if the length of the crack is less than 15 cm, the treatment by welding the glass will be more successful. The larger the crack, the lower the success rate of repair.

Of course, if the damage is so extensive that the windshield is more than just broken, you can’t repair it and will need to replace it. Here’s a quick guide to knowing when you should replace it instead of trying to repair or refinish the glass:

• If the damage reduces your visibility to any degree.
• If the crack is longer than 15 cm or the starburst/bull's eye cracks are larger than 3 inches
• If the damage is near a corner or edge of the windshield
• If the crack has a certain depth.