Glass Expert Discusses Construction Defect

Glass expert analyzed a failed shower enclosement wall made from tempered glass. The failure occured before the homeowner warranty had failed. The contractor refused to replace the glass panel. It was his opinion was that the homeowner had damaged the panel and was responsible. Glass failure analysis determined that the failure initiated under the frame. In addition, there was no damage to the metal frame (i.e. there were no "dings" or "dents"). Therefore, the panel had failed spontaneously as was claimed by the homeowner. The upper left photograph is an overview of the failed panel. Here one can see that the failure emanates from the lower right corner. The upper right photograph is a close up of the corner. As a result of the analysis, the contractor agreed to honor the warranty and replace the tempered glass panel.