Seven Days A Week
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UPSCALE HOME INSPECTIONS
H O M E C O N D O C O M M E R C I A L
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Dallas Georgia / Paulding County Georgia
Certified Inspector
Home, Condo, Commercial Inspection Services
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J C Weise
Property Inspector
Woodstock, GA
www.UpscaleInspections.com
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Tempered (Safety) Glass
Glass walls, doors, and windows were verified as tempered safety glass where typically required or desired. Generally safety glass is required where the glass is:
Safety glazing is required in the following locations:
1) In side-hinged doors including storm doors.
2) In both panels of sliding door and bifold door assemblies.
3) In doors and enclosures for hot tubs, whirlpools, saunas, steam rooms, bathtubs, and showers whenever any glazing is within 60 inches measured vertically from any standing surface. This would include windows adjacent to bathtubs.
4) Glazing within fixed or operable panels that are within 24 inches of either edge of a door in the closed position and the glazing is less than 60 inches above the adjacent floor.
5) Glazing in a fixed or operable panel that meets all of the following conditions:
A) The exposed area of an individual pane is more than 9 square feet.
B) The bottom edge of the pane is less than 18 inches above the floor.
C) The top edge of the pane is more than 36 inches above the floor.
D) There is a walking surface within 36 inches horizontally of the glazing.
6) Glazing in railings.
7) Glazing in walls and fences enclosing indoor and outdoor swimming pools, hot tubs, and spas where the edge of the pool or spa within 60 inches above a walking surface.
8) Glazing in walls enclosing stairway landings including areas within 60 inches of the top and bottom of the stairs whenever the glazing is less than 60 inches above the walking surface.
(For more information and diagrams see Safety Glass)
While all glass breaks, tempered safety glass typically will shatter into hundreds or thousands of smaller, less dangerous pieces (see Figure 1), whereas standard glass can shatter into large shards which can cause large cuts and
wounds, and even pierce internal organs. In many cases, tempered safety glass will even hold together, allowing cleanup to be accomplished more easily.
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Figure 1. Shattered safety glass from someone falling against it.
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I cannot verify tempered safety glass in doors and windows unless the safety seal is visible on the glass. Various regulations and standard building practices require that the safety seal be etched into the glass and visible. Areas where tempered safety glass or glass that could not be verified as tempered safety glass were present are noted in your email report.
Absence of tempered safety glass in sliding glass doors, certain other glass doors, and low windows creates a safety and personal injury hazard. Sliding glass doors typically are manufactured with tempered safety glass. However, tempered safety glass is expensive, and homeowners occasionally replace broken safety glass with regular glass without understanding the safety hazards inherent in doing so. I occasionally have found instances where the sellers removed high-quality safety-glass doors and replaced them with doors of lesser quality that did not include safety glass.
You should verify as tempered safety glass, or have tempered safety glass installed, any areas that were noted as not having safety glass at the time of the inspection. Additionally, you should take the time to verify that tempered safety glass is present where needed regardless of what was or was not noted in your property inspection report. It’s that important.
Thank you for using The Upscale Home Inspections Service.
www.upscaleinspections.com
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Upscale Home Inspections serving;
North Metro Atlanta Georgia, Marietta Georgia, Dallas, Buckhead, Vinings, Smyrna, Kennesaw, Acworth, Cartersville, Woodstock, Canton, Alpharetta, Roswell, Sandy Springs, Dunwoody, Norcross, Duluth and Surrounding Areas.
Bartow, Cobb, Cherokee, Douglas, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Paulding, Pickens County
Dallas Georgia Home Inspector - Paulding County Georgia Home Inspection
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