Safety glass, sometimes referred to as tempered glass, is designed to resist breaking and, if it should break, does so in a way to minimize injury. Tempered glass is made by increasing its tensile strength through a process of controlled heating and cooling. Tempered glass, when broken, will break apart into rounded pieces rather than jagged, sharp shards.
Safety glass is required in three specific places in a home according to the Wisconsin Uniform Dwelling Code (UDC) - Comm 21.05 (3) – Safety Glass. Those three general locations are:
Often people think that a requirement exists for safety glass if the window is very close to the floor; that, alone, is not true. The idea of safety glass in the three areas mentioned above have to do with the common thread of accidents happening in and around those areas.
There are very specific rules regarding the three general locations and you can read about them in the code section but I have found these pictures to be especially helpful in making a determination. These pictures are courtesy of the 2009 UDC Commentary.
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