Glass and Glazing – Safety Glass, U Values,
Low E glass and Double Glazed Windows Information – in association with
WindowsToday.co.uk
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Glass Safety
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The following short guide is necessarily
worded in a general way and cannot cover every circumstance. It is
intended only as a guide for manufacturers, suppliers and installers of
new and replacement glass and glazing products for domestic use. Additionally the content is relevant to UK - domestic
situations only.
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| Where glass and glazing products are
supplied for domestic use (such as conservatories, garages, double
glazing, porches) they must comply with the 'General Safety
Requirement' of the General Product Safety Regulations 1994 (GPSR).
This requires consumer products to be reasonably safe and this may be
achieved by conforming with British Standard BS 6262: Part 4: 1994
(as detailed below) with reference to the Approved Document N of the
Building Regulations 1991. |
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WHAT
GLAZING MUST BE SAFE?
The updated British Standard "BS
6262: Part 4: 1994 Code of Practice for Glazing for Buildings", introduced
new requirements that glazing fitted in 'critical locations' in domestic
buildings must be safe.
This may be achieved for example by fitting
glass which breaks safely; small panes of ordinary glass; thicker ordinary
glass; by protecting the glass with a permanent robust screen; or using
plastics glazing sheet. Further details are given below.
The GPSR and the standard apply to all domestic
glazing installations whether new build, replacement or
refurbishment.
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WHAT IS A CRITICAL
LOCATION?
Certain internal and external areas are
considered 'critical locations' in terms of the safety of vertical
glazing, as they are at risk from accidental human impact. The critical
locations defined by the standard are similar to the Approved Document N
of the Building Regulations 1991.
The 'critical locations' in any
internal or external domestic area are:
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| Doors |
Any
glazing or part of that glazing in a door, which is between the
finished floor level and a height of 1500mm above the floor level,
is in a 'critical location'. |
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| Side Panels to Doors |
Any
glazing or part of that glazing, which is within 300mm of either
side of a door edge and which is between the finished floor level
and a height of 1500mm above the floor level, is in a 'critical
location'. |
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| Windows, partitions, and walls |
Any
glazing or part of that glazing, which is between the finished floor
level and a height of 800mm above the floor level, is in a 'critical
location'. |
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EXAMPLES OF
LOCATIONS
Diagram 1 below gives examples of glazing in
windows, partitions, walls, doors and side panels. 'Critical locations'
are shaded grey. Any glazing within a shaded area must comply with BS
6206.
In Diagram 1, glazing unit No. 10 falls wholly within a
'critical location' and so the glazing must comply with BS
6206.
Where only part of a glazing unit falls within a 'critical
location' the whole of that unit must comply with BS 6206. In
Diagram 1 this applies to units Nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11 and
12.
In Diagram 1 only glazing units Nos. 1, 4 and 8 fall wholly
outside the 'critical location' and need not comply with BS
6206. |
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Diagram 1
Glazing in
Windows, Partitions Glazing in Doors and Side Panels and
Walls |
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WHAT GLAZING IS 'SAFE' IN 'CRITICAL
LOCATIONS'?
Safety Glass and Safety
Plastics
Safety glass, which complies with 'BS 6206: 1981
(1994)' may be fitted in 'critical locations'. This standard requires
the glass to pass stringent tests involving impacts from a "punch bag"
containing lead shot. Providing the glass does not break or breaks safely
it is categorised as Class A, B, or C with A being the highest grade of
safety glass.
Different types of glass can be classified
as safety glass:
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| Toughened Glass (also called tempered) categorised as
Class A |
This
looks like ordinary glass but receives a special heat treatment
process to toughen it. It is much stronger than ordinary glass and
on impact disintegrates into small granular pieces, which are not
sharp, reducing the risk of injury. |
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| Laminated Glass available in Class A, B or C |
Consists of two or more sheets of ordinary glass which are
attached together by a plastic interlayer. The plastic layer
provides a barrier and on impact any broken shards of glass will
remain attached to the plastic reducing the risk of
injury. |
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| Wired Glass (also called Pyroshield safety clear/textured)
categorised as Class C |
This
glass has a network/mesh of wires embedded in it. Certain types of
wired glass can satisfy the impact requirements for safety glass
while giving a level of fire resistance. |
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| Plastics Glazing Sheet |
Certain types of transparent plastic sheet can satisfy the
impact requirements for safety glass. Please Note: Glass in doors
and side panels may only be glazed in Class C materials where the
smaller dimension is a maximum of 900mm. Where this dimension is
greater than 900mm glazing categorised as Class A or B is
required. |
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WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR
ON SAFETY GLAZING?
'British Standard 6206: 1981 (1994)'
requires that each piece of safety glazing used within 'critical
locations' should be marked with the all of the following: |
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The British
Standard number 'BS 6206'. |
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Identification
of the type of glass used i.e. 'L' for laminated, 'P' for plastics,
'T' for tempered (toughened), 'W' for wired or 'SFB' for safety film
backed. |
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The category of
safety glass used i.e. 'Class A', 'Class B', or 'Class C' (based on
its performance under impact tests). A suffix 'o' denotes front
impact test only e.g. mirrored wardrobe doors. |
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An identifiable
name, trademark or other identification mark of the manufacturer. If
any of the above markings are lost by cutting, then the company
which carries out the cutting must replace markings a) to c) and add
their own identifiable name or trade
mark. |
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| This leaflet is
necessarily worded in a general way and cannot cover every circumstance.
If you require any further advice on the subject of this leaflet contact
your supplier. |
