What glass is considered a safety glass?
Emily Sparks
Published Jan 12, 2026
Safety glass is glass with additional safety features that make it less likely to break, or less likely to pose a threat when broken. Common designs include toughened glass (also known as tempered glass), laminated glass, and wire mesh glass (also known as wired glass). Wire mesh glass was invented by Frank Shuman.
What type of glass is considered safety glass?
Safety glass is a type of glass made in such a way that it is less likely to cause injury if it breaks. Tempered glass is one of the most well-known forms of safety glass, but it's not the only one. Safety glass can also be laminated, engraved, and made of wire mesh.
How can you tell if glass is safety glass?
To identify whether your property has laminated or toughened glass, you will need to look for a printed kitemark code in the corners of the glass:
- BS EN 14449 – laminated glass.
- BS EN 12150 – toughened glass.
What defines safety glass?
safety glass, type of glass that, when struck, bulges or breaks into tiny, relatively harmless fragments rather than shattering into large, jagged pieces.
What is difference between tempered glass and safety glass?
There is a large difference between these two types of glass. In the end, the main difference all boils down to how the glass breaks. Tempered glass breaks into smaller pieces, and laminated glass will crack but remain together due to the plastic layer that is baked between the two pieces of glass.
15 related questions foundIs safety glass the same as toughened glass?
Toughened glass, also known as tempered glass after its method of production, is a type of safety glass that is five times stronger than annealed and laminated glass of the same size and thickness.
Is wired glass a safety glass?
Traditional wired glass is NOT safety glass
The wire actually weakens the glass and increases the likelihood of breakage even under the relatively mild force exerted by a small child.
Is laminated glass the same as safety glass?
Both laminated and tempered glass are considered safety glass because they meet the requirements set forth by various code organizations that enable them to be used in the situations above.
What are the different types of safety glass?
Two types of safety glass are heat-strengthened and tempered. Heat-strengthened glass is cooled at a rate faster than regular annealed glass. Tempered glass, in turn, is cooled at a faster rate than heat-strengthened glass. Another way to strengthen glass is to use more than one lite of glass in the application.
What thickness is safety glass?
The most common form of safety glass (and the lowest cost) is 4mm toughened glass. This glass is used for almost all residential safety glazing and 4mm toughened comes in a large range of obscure patterns as well as the energy saving glass – Pilkington K glass.
Is all double glazing safety glass?
Therefore, in these situations all panes of glass in double glazing and triple glazing are required by law to be safety glass. In residential replacement and new fenestration, there are three main types of glass 1) float glass, 2) toughened glass and 3) laminated glass.
Is all toughened glass stamped?
Toughened glass is required to be marked with BS6206a, this can take the form of the circulaur BS Kitemark or a simple line. It is also possible that the glass is laminated, which will also satisfy the requirement for safety glass, if so it is unlikley to be marked.
Is all safety glass marked?
According to section 7 of BS 6262-4:2005, the safety glass needs to be permanently marked so that it is clearly visible after installation. By marking glass, consumers and Building Control Officers have confidence that it conforms to standards and regulatory requirements.
Is safety glass laminated?
Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that is made of two or more panes of annealed glass joined together by a layer of plastic, or polyvinyl butyral (PVB). You can think of this joining as creating a glass sandwich (glass, plastic, glass).
What is Category II safety glass?
A Category II rating (Class A per ANSI Z97. 1) is given to glass when the impactor is dropped from a height of 48 inches. At a minimum, all safety glass must comply with the criteria for Category II; however, Category I glass is permitted when the exposed surface area of a single pane is 9 sq.
Is annealed glass considered safety glass?
Annealed glass does not have the strength of tempered glass, and thus is not used when safety is a concern. It is more commonly used for décor products rather than window glass.
Can glass be both laminated and tempered?
Finally, there is a way to make glass both laminated and tempered. The process can be difficult and expensive, but the outcome is worth it. Many car manufacturers are switching to a tempered, laminated glass.
Is tempered glass safe?
Tempered glass is a safety glass owing to the fact that it shatters into smaller pieces when broken. The smaller pieces are not as dangerous as the larger sharp pieces formed when an ordinary glass is broken. Tempered glass can also be laminated and used as safety glass.
How can you tell if glass is laminated?
You can tell if you have laminated glass by viewing it on edge. Laminated glass has a visible interlayer. It also sounds different from annealed or tempered glass when knocked on (but it may require an ear attuned to the difference).
Why is wired glass not used now?
Despite its traditional status as a form of “safety” glass due to its internally reinforced structure, wired glass is increasingly being viewed as both obsolete and hazardous due to the serious injuries it can inflict upon impact, as well as the development of viable alternatives.
Are sliding glass doors made of safety glass?
Tempered glass, also called safety glass, is often used in sliding glass doors, as it breaks into small pieces when impacted instead of leaving more dangerous, large pieces of glass stuck in the door.
Is Georgian wired glass a safety glass?
What is Georgian Wired Glass? Georgian Wired Glass is sometimes also known as 'Safety Glass', although this name isn't particularly accurate (more on this later). Essentially it is glass manufactured with wire mesh embedded into it to prevent it from shattering and breaking whilst also increasing its fire rating.
Is safety glass toughened?
Toughened glass is sometimes known as tempered glass or safety glass. The glass is four times as strong as standard annealed glass and if broken, shatters into small granular pieces that don't have sharp or jagged edges.
Do all windows need safety glass?
Safety glass should be fitted in all doors and other windows or glazed areas that are lower than 800mm from the floor level. Glass panels less than 250mm wide can be fitted with 6mm glass or laminated glass instead of toughened glass. In doors where the glass comes within 1500mm from floor level.
What should be stamped on safety glass?
The markings should include: ∎ The manufacturer's name or trade mark ∎ The product number for the type of glass * ∎ The impact performance classification e.g. 1, 2 or 3 to BS EN 12600 or A, B or C to BS 6206.