How to keep my windshield crack from spreading in the heat?

We've been going through Heat wave here in southern California. After May its non stop shorts and tank tops.  Then, June and July followed with record-breaking heats. (Both Eastvale and Riverside beat their previous record highs.) Now, October is shaping up to still have triple digits.

When temperature levels are this high, it can be difficult on your car. These high temperatures make a tire blowout more likely, specifically if your tires are under-inflated. Getting too hot is likewise most likely if your engine fluids is low or your coolant is polluted. And heat can even break your windshield.

That's right-- temperature alone can be the cause of a crack in your windshield! But how does this happen?

How Stress Cracks Happen

This kind of fracture-- called a stress fracture-- can happen when a swing in temperatures causes windshield glass to expand (when heated) and diminish (when cooled) rapidly.

This puts tension on the glass (for this reason its called "stress fracture"). If the glass experiences adequate tension, it will crack.

Sunlight can likewise trigger tension fractures in a comparable method. Heat from direct sunshine will heat up both the metal and glass of your automobile . When the metal edges of your windshield heat up faster than the middle of the glass, this can cause stress that results in splitting. These fractures often show up starting at the edges of your windshield.

Tension fractures are various from other kinds of chips and fractures due to the fact that there is no apparent point of impact and no glass is missing from the windscreen. Unlike chips from gravel, road particles, hail, and the like, tension fractures appear to appear out of nowhere. We've spoken with numerous automobile owners who've said that their windshield cracked "for no obvious reason." In fact, there is a factor-- just not one you can see with the naked eye.

What You Can Do about Stress Cracks

Tension fractures are an undesirable surprise, but the good news is that they are reasonably easy to avoid (unlike other types of chips and dings). While you can't control the weather condition or the modifications in temperature, you can typically control how much your cars and truck is exposed to it.

Here are a couple of ideas to assist you avoid stress cracks in your windshield:

Don't blast your air conditioning. It's hot outside, and it can be appealing to crank up the A/C as soon as you get in your automobile. Try to prevent this as much as possible. By adjusting your A/C to cool the cars and truck more gradually, you've avoiding the extreme temperature modifications (hot to cold) that put tension on your windshield. Park in the shade or a garage. Remember what we said above about direct sunshine? Parking in the shade or (ideally) in a garage will get your car out of direct sunlight and put less stress on your windshield.

As a benefit, your car will be cooler and more comfortable when you get back in it. (This, in turn, suggests you'll be less likely to blast the cooling!). Wash your car with warm water. After a winter season of driving through slush and salt, you're most likely thinking of washing your car. But don't clean it with cold water when it's hot outside: take the additional time to wash it with lukewarm water to prevent the abrupt temperature level modification from splitting your windshield.

Now that you've read the bright side, let's speak about the bad news: stress fractures can frequently be permanent.

Many windshield chips and cracks can be repaired as long as they are little, unpolluted by particles, and situated far from the edge of the windshield. Stress cracks, however, are normally long and frequently stem from the edge of your windshield. When that's the case, the windshield needs to be changed.

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