Tempered safety glass can shatter into tiny pieces
Q. We were watching TV tonight and out of nowhere our sliding glass door just shattered to pieces. What could have caused this? Our house is 20 years old, and we have been through high winds, torrential rains and hot humid summers without any problems. Nothing hit the door from outside or inside. It just blew up. What could have caused this?
A. A similar occurrence once happened in my home as well. In the middle of the night, I was awakened by a loud shattering sound in the hall bathroom. The shower door had suddenly exploded into thousands of tiny pieces. What my shower door and your sliding glass door had in common was that both were made of tempered safety glass, specifically manufactured to break into small shards, rather than large pieces that could cause injury.
One of the downsides of tempered glass is that any slight defect, such as a scratched or chipped edge, can cause the entire piece to shatter. In some cases, a slight nick will have no effect until just the right vibration or a change in temperature adds that extra amount of stress. When that surprise moment arrives, look out!!
If someone were standing next to a tempered glass pane when the critical moment occurred, the experience could be frightening, not to mention potential eye injuries. Fortunately, this kind of breakage is not something that happens often.
Q. Our next-door neighbors are not very friendly. In the past few years, they've made problems for us. The main issue has been a large tree on their side of the fence. Its branches hang over our property, dropping large quantities of leaves in our yard and pool. In the past five years, we've had to replace the pool pump three times because clogging with leaves caused the motors to burn out. We asked them about trimming the branches on our side or allowing us to trim them, but they began screaming at us, were verbally abusive, and even called the police. Are there any legal solutions for resolving this problem?
A. When people are reasonable, problems are solvable by reasonable methods. When either party to a dispute is unreasonable, even small problems can seem insurmountable. In such cases, reasonable people may then seek unconventional solutions. Consider the case of a wise old friend who also suffered the inconvenience of a neighbor's overhanging tree.
The neighbor in that case also refused to address the issue of his tree in a friendly or reasonable manner. The wise old friend realized that the roots of the offending tree extended below the fence and into his yard. So he did some digging in his garden, excavated a few of the larger roots, and exposed them to some defoliant that he had purchased from the local nursery. When the tree died, the unfriendly neighbor had no choice but to have it removed.
It would be inappropriate to suggest that you follow the wise old friend's example, but it is amusing to consider the possibility.
• To write to Barry Stone, visit him on the web at www.housedetective.com, or write AMG, 1776 Jami Lee Court, Suite 218, San Luis Obispo, CA 94301.
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