Five Broken Glass Items You Thought You Couldn't Fix Yourself (But You Can!)

Accidents happen, and glass breaks. If you're like me, you never even knew that you could fix some broken glass items yourself. For those of us who don't fall into the "handy" category, it's often easier to do one of the following: let it sit around broken; throw the item away and pretend you never had it; or just buy a whole new one to replace it.

Here are a few broken glass items that can be easily fixed, and how to fix them.

Glass Patio Table Tops

Picture this: me, a patio umbrella, and a table with a glass top and a hole in the center for the umbrella. I put the umbrella pole into the hole in the tabletop. I miss the hole in the table base. There is a great reason to make CERTAIN that the pole is securely in the hole in the base. That reason was shockingly clear to me, when, missing the base, my umbrella tipped and instantly shattered the glass table top.

 

If I knew about Dulles Glass, I would have saved the base and the umbrella (and a lot of money!) and replaced the tabletop. (Instead, I let the base get rusty out behind my shed. Don't be like me.)

Replace your Patio Table Top

Glass Shelves

Glass shelves are beautiful, but like anything else, they can break. Whether it be during a move by being bumped, or because someone put something too heavy on them, there's an easy solution.

At the Dulles Glass online store, you can buy just the glass for a shelf, rather than a whole glass shelf kit. The shelves come in a large variety of shapes and sizes, from rectangular, to corner rounded or even "diamond" shapes.

If you need a custom shelf, you can select the following options:

 

• Thickness of the glass (from 1/4" to 1/2" thick)

• Type of glass - ultraclear HDGlass, clear, frosted, or even colors like bronze or gray

• Edge types - such as flat polish and beveled

• Corner finishes, like round, exactly to your spec

Whatever shelf you need to replace, it's pretty safe to say that you can order the replacement glass from us.

Replace Glass Shelves

Glass Top Desks

I don't even know what happened here, but we typically don't ask why you need the glass. And it's probably better that way!

There are two types of desktops you may need to replace.

 

1. A wood or metal stand, with glass resting on top of it.

1. A solid desk, where you would like the glass on top to protect the desk -- a glass table cover.

In either case, if you need to replace the glass, it's easy to order just the right piece at our online store.

For glass that covers a tabletop, you can order 1/4" glass. However, if a thicker piece would suit your fancy, we have that, tool. Beveled or flat-polished edges will work great for a glass table cover.

For a piece of glass that rests on a stand or pedestal, you can splurge on a thicker, sturdier piece. We offer the highest-quality glass in a variety of thicknesses, colors, sizes, and shapes. For example, if you don't feel like staring at the tops of your legs all day, you could purchase a piece of frosted glass for your desk. Have us bevel the edges of the glass for you (it's beautiful that way) and you'll be very pleased with the look.

Glass Table Tops

Glass Table Covers

Cabinet Glass

So another time, my grandma slammed the cabinet door so hard that the glass broke. This was over a miscommunication about mashed potatoes. And that cracked panel of glass served as a reminder for years -- do not question the mashed potatoes. (Is this getting too personal?)

If you get into an altercation about mashed potatoes (or whatever...we won't ask), solve it by ordering replacement glass as soon as you can.

You'll need to be familiar with using a measuring tape, and you'll need to measure carefully, including how thick of a piece of glass the door can hold. Many times 1/4" glass will be the right size for this job.

We suggest that regular annealed glass will be fine to use in a cabinet, but if safety is a real concern (you already broke your cabinets, after all) you can choose durable tempered glass.

Shop for Cabinet Glass

Fireplace Glass

So this really happened. We were sitting in front of the toasty fire, watching the flames, when the logs shifted and came shooting through the glass in the front of the fireplace. Talk about putting a damper on the mood!

If this happens to you, you can just head on over to (you guessed it) the online store and get a piece of replacement glass for your fireplace. We offer two kinds of fireplace glass: tempered and neo-ceram. Neoceram is specially treated to withstand higher temperatures. But, you can also replace your fireplace glass with regular tempered glass as well.

Of note: my husband did this himself, and rated it a DIY level "Extreme Beginner." So it's safe to say replacing your fireplace glass is pretty easy.

Get Fireplace Glass 

Here's the final scoop: Stuff happens, but Dulles Glass has got your back! Don't let that project go.