Denray Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 This bathroom glass has that rough texture on the outside. No etched label though. Wondering if it is safety glass? Click to Enlarge 31.72 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 The texture has nothing to do with whether or no it's safety glass. I use a small mirror and a flashlight to see etchings that are too subtle for me to see unaided. If I can't see the etching, I say that I couldn't see an etching and to replace it with safety glass that does have an etching. If someone wants to argue with me, I invite them to show me the etching. On two occasions, others have found the etching where I missed it. (That's when I started using the mirror.) The other alternative is to use a BB gun. (See, I told you it wasn't tempered. . . ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denray Posted March 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 Thanks again Jim! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry Simon Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 "I use a small mirror and a flashlight to see etchings that are too subtle for me to see unaided." Please elaborate. "The other alternative is to use a BB gun." As I recall from my youth, sliding glass door panels make a nice *puff* noise with a BB gun. . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Raymond Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 The process of texturing generally involves heat. Most decorative glass is annealed as a result. It's hardened, but not tempered. Most likely not safety glazing. As Jim said, without a bug the only way to tell is to break it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 Take comfort in the fact that in today's market, products made for buildings are required by codes to be listed for the use they serve. I don't think you would ever find a bootleg non-tempered shower door/enclosure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimK Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 Does anyone know when the requirement for safety glass in shower enclosures was introduced? It occurs to me that this is likely in an older home, which may have pre-dated the safety glass requirement. (I'm getting the shower scene of Hitchcock's "The Birds" in my head now) Take comfort in the fact that in today's market, products made for buildings are required by codes to be listed for the use they serve. I don't think you would ever find a bootleg non-tempered shower door/enclosure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garry Sorrells Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 This bathroom glass has that rough texture on the outside. No etched label though. Wondering if it is safety glass? Where was the glass? By/in tub? How far off floor? In passage doorway? Subject to fall area? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denray Posted March 2, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 Click to Enlarge 26.23 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 "I use a small mirror and a flashlight to see etchings that are too subtle for me to see unaided." Please elaborate. I carry a small mirror, the size of a business card. Place the mirror against and perpendicular to the glass and use the flashlight to shine a grazing light against the glass. The mirror will often show the etching where I couldn't otherwise see it. Of course, the etching will only be on the smooth side on pebbled glass. You might have to go outdoors to look on the other side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted March 2, 2016 Report Share Posted March 2, 2016 Now I see. It is a window in the wall, not a shower enclosure. Within 5 ft vertically of the tub drain is IRC. I have seen lots of windows over tubs that were not tempered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lamb Posted March 3, 2016 Report Share Posted March 3, 2016 "I use a small mirror and a flashlight to see etchings that are too subtle for me to see unaided." Please elaborate. I carry a small mirror, the size of a business card. Place the mirror against and perpendicular to the glass and use the flashlight to shine a grazing light against the glass. The mirror will often show the etching where I couldn't otherwise see it. Of course, the etching will only be on the smooth side on pebbled glass. You might have to go outdoors to look on the other side. Are these scratches the etchings you speak of? Click to Enlarge 26.2 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted March 3, 2016 Report Share Posted March 3, 2016 Are these scratches the etchings you speak of? Click to Enlarge 26.2 KB No. I'd just call those scratches. Also, with that much scratching, it's unlikely to be tempered glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lamb Posted March 3, 2016 Report Share Posted March 3, 2016 Do you have a picture? This photo is from a large shower enclosure in a pretty fine home. I used to write up that I could not be sure if shower glass was tempered if it wasn't marked but stopped doing that a long time ago. I tried the mirror technique you spoke of but didn't see how that made any difference in what I was looking at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garry Sorrells Posted March 3, 2016 Report Share Posted March 3, 2016 Click to Enlarge 26.23 KB How high from floor is the window? I am guessing 53inches, but could be closer to 60, but can not tell. What did you measure? it may be a case of close was good enough for permit sign off. If that was the case then it is not tempered and stamp/etching not to be found. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denray Posted March 3, 2016 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2016 They won't care anyway. Click to Enlarge 39.88 KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjr6550 Posted March 4, 2016 Report Share Posted March 4, 2016 I believe the requirement for tempered glass adjacent to bathtubs was first required in the 1996 IRC. I see many houses without tempered glass there. My own house was built in 1990 and did not have it until I replaced the window. Many replacement window companies still don't install tempered glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Katen Posted March 4, 2016 Report Share Posted March 4, 2016 I believe the requirement for tempered glass adjacent to bathtubs was first required in the 1996 IRC. I see many houses without tempered glass there. My own house was built in 1990 and did not have it until I replaced the window. Many replacement window companies still don't install tempered glass. I think you mean CABO. The requirement is much older, though. It's in the 1979 CABO and in the '76 UBC. (Those are the oldest ones I've got.) But I suspect that it first showed up in the early '70s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BADAIR Posted March 4, 2016 Report Share Posted March 4, 2016 Does anyone know when the requirement for safety glass in shower enclosures was introduced? It occurs to me that this is likely in an older home, which may have pre-dated the safety glass requirement. (I'm getting the shower scene of Hitchcock's "The Birds" in my head now) Take comfort in the fact that in today's market, products made for buildings are required by codes to be listed for the use they serve. I don't think you would ever find a bootleg non-tempered shower door/enclosure. "ICBO's Uniform Building Code 1961 edition was the first to require safety glazing for shower doors." http://www.ashireporter.org/homeinspect ... azing/2198 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Baird Posted March 4, 2016 Report Share Posted March 4, 2016 I believe the requirement for tempered glass adjacent to bathtubs was first required in the 1996 IRC. I see many houses without tempered glass there. My own house was built in 1990 and did not have it until I replaced the window. Many replacement window companies still don't install tempered glass. I think you mean CABO. The requirement is much older, though. It's in the 1979 CABO and in the '76 UBC. (Those are the oldest ones I've got.) But I suspect that it first showed up in the early '70s. IRC inaugural edition was Y2K. Before that we were SBCCI, which used CABO for residential. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Raymond Posted March 4, 2016 Report Share Posted March 4, 2016 Many replacement window companies still don't install tempered glass. Because it's costs money. Tempered glass is cheap for new construction standard sizes built by the thousand. Not so much for custom replacementsoftware built one at a time. If no permits are required, consumers don't know they need it. I always recommended it, but people would rather spend $20 a lite for grids than $100 a sash on safety. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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