Have you ever had a glass table shatter?

Question

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/investigative/13802790/detail.html

I had not heard of this before. The statement that really concerns me is:

"Patio glass is not regulated. There are no manufacturing or safety standards for tables. Even some people who sell them suggest consumers might want to consider wood."

Answer 1

My ex kicked a glass table in the air in temper it took nearly 2 years before we stopped finding bits of glass, despite cleaning the whole room when it happened, and 2 years of weekly vacs

Answer 2

It could have had a tiny flaw in the glass that simply decided it was time to go. Tempered glass to be tempered is put through a heat process. This causes the glass to have a constant pressure that sometimes, though rare breaks the glass at some point. While tempered glass is over all stronger than standard (annealed) glass, this only applies to the surface. The edge is very prone to damage. Your best bet for a table top is annealed glass. If you tap the edge of a thick (3/8 and thicker ) piece of annealed glass it will not shatter, but will chip instead. At that thickness it is very unlikely to actually crack.

Answer 3

I have had patio tables shatter into a million pieces. I actually redo peoples tables with cedar slats. They have seen what I did with mine and paid to have me do theirs. My damage was caused by the wind tipping the table over.

Answer 4

I'm 36 and I can have had glass patio tables my entire life. I have had 3 of my own and my parents have had them forever. Not one of ours has ever broken. I'm not saying its impossible. I'm just saying that I haven't seen it happen.