Three Types Of Windshield Repair Customization Available At The Repair Shop That Aren't Available With A DIY Kit
Although you may not realize it when a technician is repairing your windshield, there are actually a lot of decisions that go into fixing the damage from the rock chip that hit your windshield. If you opt for a professional repair, you may be deceived by the practiced ease with which the repair is accomplished. However, it's not as easy as it looks. Here are three of the things professionals base their repair customizations on to produce the best possible windshield repair.
1. Size of the damage
Conventional wisdom has said for decades that the size you can expect a technician to be able to fix is a chip smaller than a quarter or a crack up to the length of a dollar bill (or about six inches). Cracks are repaired in one way and chips in another. However, with newer technologies that some auto shops now have, it can be possible to fix a much larger crack. This is only the case if the crack meets certain specifications—for example, if it doesn't reach the edge of the windshield or obstruct a crucial point in the driver's field of vision and if the laminate on the underside of the glass is still intact. If the first shop you go to says the crack is too long to fix, you may simply need to find a shop with newer repair technologies.
2. Shape of the chip
Some common chip shapes include bullseye and star. Both of these types of chips can be repaired with relative ease, but things can get trickier when the technician is faced with a combination chip that combines bullseye and star aspects. The repair techniques used will depend on the type of chip. Some chips will allow the technician to heat the area first and then place the resin, while other chips will require a different technique (to minimize the chances of further damaging your windshield).
3. Resin customization
The depth of the damage, the temperature of the day, and other factors can affect the type of resin that the technician uses. For example, deeper chips require a thicker resin. The resin that comes in DIY kits isn't thick enough for deep damage, which is why auto repair shops recommend that you only use it for surface scratches. Fortunately, auto repair shops keep multiple types of resin on hand to meet every situation.
These three types of customization ensure that no matter what type of damage your windshield has, you're likely to be best served by going to a repair shop like Econo Glass Company for anything but the most superficial damage.