Is Safety Glass Required At The First Floor

Safety glass is required when the lowest point of glazing is within 800mm from floor level.

Is safety glass required at the first floor.

Glass floor tiles being installed in an aluminum grid system. There are restrictions on using film instead of toughened or laminated glass and this depends on the size of the glass pane and its thickness. As the drawing below shows any glass in doors that does not start over 1500mm from the floor must be safety glass. Tempered glass is glass that has an extra proceedure done to it to make it 4 to 5 times stronger.

The main one you need to understand is when it is required to use tempered safety glass. All glass in the bathroom or around a hot tub or sauna must consist of safety glass if the bottom edge is less than 60 inches above a standing or walking surface such as the shower floor. International residential code irc since inception in 2000. This process makes the glass stronger and also changes the way the glass breaks.

Tempered glass is required as safety glazing in hazardous applications such as floor to ceiling partition walls entrance doors sidelites etc. Glazing adjacent to doors windows side panels wholly or partially within 300mm of the edge of a door and which is also wholly or partially within 1500mm from floor level must be safety glass. The history of safety tempered glass dates back quite a ways. Safety films can be used to bring ordinary glass up to grade a safety glass requirements.

Cast glass usually 1 thick cast glass is made in a mold as solid one piece panel. Glass cannot be further processed cut drilled etc after tempering. There is a walking area within 36 inches of the glass. Builders are required to use safety glass next to stairways ramps and landings providing that the glass is less than 60 inches above the walkway.

Florida building code fbc since inception a couple of years later. Also glass on a perpendicular wall to a door and opposite the swing must be safety tempered as illustrated below. It works in a similar fashion to laminated glass by holding shattered glass pieces to the film if broken. The exposed glass surface is less than 60 inches above any walkway.

Uniform building code ubc since 1967 and southern standard building code ssbc at about the same time. Glass floor pavers in a 1 thickness. The proceedure involves heating the glass up and then cooling it down rapidly. Glass pavers 1 thick solid pavers can be circular or square and are set within an aluminum stainless steel or cast iron framework.