GLAS TEK
WINDSHIELD REPAIR
ILLINOIS 877-899-3447 ST. CHARLES 636-978-6677 ST. LOUIS 314-922-7777
Windshield Repair Blog
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April 22 2009 Using a cigarette lighter for windshield repair
Today one of my customers asked me if i use a lighter like the last windshield repair he had done.
my reply was no way and any windshield repair tech that uses a lighter does not have a clue of what they
are doing butane burnes at 2000 to 2400 degrees F any temp above 80 degrees will cause the adhesion
properties in the resin to break down. not to mention they could make the damage spread or in the case
of a star break expand the legs closed. To many poorly trained techs out there.
DIY windshield repair Kits
These things are JUNK waste on time and money. All they are good for is screwing up a windshield
repair . sure you may get lucky on a small percentage of breaks. but 95% of the time they will mess
the repair up. WHY? three reasons off the top of my head 1. inferior low grade resin 2 .no drill bit that
many repairs need to create an opening so the resin can flow in 3. they cannot pull a proper vaccuum to remove air from break .
Super glue and Windshield Repair
Occasionaly a customer will ask me. Is that super glue you injecting in the windshield? My reply is
Ya super glue on steriods, just kidding . super glue is way to thick to make its way into tiny cracks.
you need a special formula made for windshield repair call UV resin its comes in many viscosity for
diff types of windshield repair. Never use super glue it will just clog the repair up.
SURFACE CHIPS on WINDSHIELDS
Every now and them i get called out for surface chips unfortunately there is nothing i can do for these.
a surface chip is when a rock hit a windshield and takes a small piece of glass out of the windshield
usually these are superficial, most common are about the size of a tip of a inkpen to a 1/8 inch in dia.
unless there is a small crack or a dark black area under them dont sweat it they should be fine.
RainX and windshield repair
If you have a chip in your windshield do not apply rainx over the top of it. it will contaminate the repair,
many rock chips are open to the elements rain,dirt, washer solvents, water repelants [rainx] etc the
best thing to do if you get a chip in your windshield is to put a small piece of UPS box tape over it
to keep it free of moisture and dirt.
This Windshield repair Tech Is suppose to know what he is doing click here
To start off he needs to learn how to drill his drill bit moves all over the point on impact making the finished repair more visilble.
Second he takes his probe and creates more damage {trust me this is NOT needed} then was there in the first place. Heath fly into St. louis i will train you properly.
Black area around Windshield (Frit Band)
Think of the black area around your windshield like trim on your house, it finishes it off. It also keeps the UV rays of the sun from breaking down the factory seal (urathane). The most interesting fact is
that 75% of windshields that crack get hit by rocks in this area.
Two reasons for this is 1, you never see a chip in this area unless you look really close. It is a good idea every now and then to focus in this area, if you see a chip, look close to see if it has a star or dark shadow under it. If it does, call your windshield repair professional.
2, alot of stress is put on the windshield the closer to the frame making it more breakable.
Clear Nail polish and rock chip repair
Every now and then when i arrive to do a rock chip repair i see that my customer has put clear nail polish
on the repair thinking that it will stop the cracking process.Not True this will only hinder the repair process
nail polish is way to thick to make it down in side the chip, not to mention it is not formulated for windshield repair.
Windshield Repair and factory glass (OEM) vs After market glass
From a windshield repair stand point i do just as many repairs on Factory Windshields as i do on after
market windshields.The repairs seem do turn out the same assuming all things are equal.
Putting on Windshield Wiper Blades( BECAREFUL)
Once in a while someone will call me with a crack in there windshield from a wiper arm. When they are changing wiper blades the spring loaded arm will snap down on them striking the bottom of the windshield
putting a nice sunburst star break. 99% of the time this type of break is none repairable.a good idea is to
put something like a roll of paper towells between the wiper arm and the windshield this will help prevent
this from happening.When i am doing a repair under the blade I always do this.
Fingerprint on the inside of windshield opposite rock chip.
Funny fact a large percentage of people when they get a chip in there windshield will touch the glass on the inside to see it came through. I guarantee if it comes through you will know it. It will be so big there will be no doubt. Once i had a customer, a lug nut sheared off another cars wheel, penetrated the windshield, the damage was about the size of a baseball.Lucky for her it skiped off her dashboard and went in the passengers seat.Windshields are made up of two pieces of glass with a piece of safety plastic sandwiched between them, it helps keep objects out and passengers in the car in case of a accident.
Size of a dollar bill windshield repair?
One of the large auto glass repair companies advertise windshield repair up to the size of a dollar bill. To clairify what they mean: A single line crack up to the length of a dollar bill. At Glas Tek we can do single line crack up to 14 inches in length using the ONLY patented resin on the market.
Customers will ask if they can watch the Windshield Repair Process?
I will tell them sure I don't mind just don't stand too close. There is always a chance of resin squirting out of the injector when I slide it to the side to inspect the repair. UV windshield repair resin has acrylic acid in it. I always have to wear glasses when doing a repair. There is a 1 in 100 chance the resin will squirt out, trust me, it will burn your eyes and skin so I never let them stand too close.
7/31/09
Why dont Full Service Auto Glass Shops Offer Long Crack Repair?
The answer is very simple there is much more profit in a windshield replacement. At Glas Tek all we do is windshield repair so if we dont repair we dont get paid, So we will do everything possible to repair your windshield when other companies will only do rock chips up to the size of a Quarter.
8/04/09
TV Commercial
One our competitors frequently runs an ad on tv, I need to take time to thank them.The month of Oct 2009 was our best on record. We beat them hands down in both price and quality and less complaints..Check it out for yourself. Better Business Bureau, A+ rated we have Zero complaints and Angies List we are the only shop in STL to receive there best award for customer service.
Insurance and Windshield Repair
In St. Louis, most all major insurance companies will waive your deductable and pay for rock chip repairs. The only exceptions are State Farm and AAA (Triple A). These two insurance companies will only pay if your have a zero deductable on your comprehensive part of your policy. In the event of auto glass replacement your deductable would come into play. Example would be if you have a 100 dollar deductable on your comprehensive part of your policy, you would be responsible for the first 100 and your insurance company would pay rest.
We dont RATE ourself.
Recently I ran across one of my major competitors ads in the sponsored ads of Google. I had to laugh. They wrote something like "Voted #1 in St. Louis". At that same time they actually had an "F" rating with the BBB in St. Louis. At Glas-Tek, we are the highest RATED windshield repair shop in St. Louis for windshield repairs rated by our CUSTOMERS. We don't rate ourself.
Windshield replacments.
At Glas Tek we specialize in windshield repair ONLY. For all auto glass replacements we always recommend Spencer Auto Glass. They have been in business for over four decades and do the highest quality work in the St. Louis area. Don't take our word for it, check out for yourself their rating with the BBB is an A+. The only auto glass replacement shop with this rating.
I am having my windshield in an Audi A6, 4 door sedan replaced. The quote included 2 windshields - a basic rain sensing windshield (which is what I currently have) and then a "solar coating" windshield which is almost twice as much. I've looked online and it appears all windshields have some "solar coating" but I couldn't find a distinction. I'm not opposed to spending a little more if I can justify it but I just can't find info on why it"s better? The solar coating windshield cuts down on UV rays entering the car through the windshield, more than the average windshield. Think of it like window tinting, it helps keeps the car cooler on hot summer days and also helps tone down the brightness of the sun when looking through the it.
Question?
Can windshield crack repair be done on these cold St. Louis winter days?
Yes! during the coldest winter days Glas Tek can still do high quality windshield repairs. First of all we keep our windshield repair chemicals warm by keeping them in the front of our vehicle by the heater. This keeps the viscosity perfect. Also you can always simulate a warmer day by turning the defrost on low heat, carefully monitoring it or using a halogen heat lamp on a low setting will also take the chill off the windshield. And finally if the sun is out you can pull the vehicle out in the sun. Glass warms up quickly on sunny days. The best thing a customer can do when they have a windshield repair scheduled is to have the vehicle facing opposite the wind. Windy days will definately lower glass temperatures. The best case scenario is if covered parking is available (ie. garage/carport).
Non Qualified Windshield Repair Technician !
Last week i noticed a sign at a gas station that read FREE WINDSHIELD INSPECTION. It just so happened I was pulling in to fill up my vehicle. Curious as to what the guy was doing I watched him. The first thing he would do is to clean the windshield with window cleaner and then squeegee it off and look for rock chips that might need to repaired. The worst thing when you are about to do a windshield repair is to have moisture in the break. I always tell my customers the best thing to do when they get a crack on there windshield is to wipe it off with a DRY towel then put a piece of box tape (UPS packing tape) over the break to keep it dry so when I arrive the windshield will be 100% dry. Any type of solvents or washer fluids or window cleaner will just contaminate the damage taking any dirt deeper in the break. One thing about windshield cracks they are extremely open to the elements. Any moisture that gets on the windshield goes right down into the break and usually takes up to 8 hours or so to dry out in winter months. Unfortunately there is no way to clean dirt out of a rock chip repair. Always choose a certified windshield repair tech to do your repairs. Not some johnny come lately windshield repair tech trying to make a quick buck that is going to make the outcome of the repair WORSE !! For more info about what to do if you get a windshield ding click here.
02-14- 2010
St. Louis owned and operated..
Windshield Repair Treatments.
A few times a year i will do a rock chip repair on a windshield that has a sticker on it that says Diamon-Fusion USA treated glass, this product is supose to make the surface of your windshield stronger. The idea behind it is to make rocks skip off your windshield instead of cracking it. My question is then why am i doing windshield repair on these treated windshields ?
Windshield Repair Pricing
Why dont auto glass repair compaines show what they charge for rock chip repair? At Glas Tek we list all our prices. click here.we dont hide any thing from our customers.One of our largest competitors charge 119.00 another 90.00. and one of these compaines have an F rating with the BBB. Are prices are fair in comparison to our competitors.
Scheduling your windshield repair.
When you schedule a windshield repair with Glas Tek we will always give you a two hour window, we know your time is valuable. If we are running late for any reason we will always call you, ninty five percent of the time we run on time. If by chance we are running late and fail to call you the windshield repair is free. For your convenience we have a schedule a repair online form just click here
