Tempered Vs. Laminated Glass Skylight: What Are The Major Differences?

Skylights can be fantastic additions to just about any home. They can allow more light and heat into your home and they also introduce a new dimension in terms of design. Also consider installing skylights because they can increase your home’s value.

Upon deciding that you do want skylights, you will have another important decision to make. More specifically, you will have to choose a glazing option for your skylight. Included in your glazing options are tempered glass and laminated glass.

Laminated glass is often preferred because it shatters in a manner that is safer compared to tempered glass. Tempered glass is significantly more affordable though and that is a major selling point for many homeowners. Do note however that building codes may limit your usable glazing options so make sure to check them as well.

Should you choose tempered glass or laminated glass for your home’s skylight? Read through the details we’ve included below and obtain your answer to that question.

Manufacturers utilize a pretty cool process when creating tempered glass. To create tempered glass, manufacturers will first heat up the sheet of glass. They then cool it down rapidly.

The rapid cooling of the glass is crucial because it allows the exterior portions of the material to harden faster. With the center portion of the glass not cooling down at the same rate, it starts to tense up. The presence of that tension strengthens the glass.

You need that added strength if you’re using tempered glass for your skylight. The material could end up being quite vulnerable without it.

Laminated glass is a step up from its tempered variety. That’s because laminated glass is actually made from two sheets of tempered glass.

Those two sheets of tempered glass cover an interlayer of plastic. Both PVB (polyvinyl butyral) and SGP (SentryGuard Plus) can be used as the interlayer in laminated glass.

The different layers in laminated glass fortify it and make it capable of absorbing a significant amount of damage. Additional layers can also be introduced if the manufacturers want to make the laminated glass stronger.

It’s hard not to think about the possibility of shattering whenever you’re installing something made out of glass. That’s especially difficult to avoid when you’re thinking about skylights.

You want a material that won’t put you or your household in danger if it shatters. Both tempered glass and laminated glass actually do well in that regard. One option is just clearly superior.

When tempered glass shatters, it usually breaks into a mass of small cubes. Crucially, those small cubes have no sharp edges that can wound you as they fall down. Still, they can hurt if they fall from high enough and that explains why those building restrictions are in place.

Laminated glass is safer than tempered glass because its shards won’t fall after shattering. The interlayer of plastic prevents the glass shards from falling. You won’t be woken up by a sudden shower of glass if you have laminated glass installed in your skylight.

The processes of cleaning tempered glass and laminated glass are very similar. Ease of cleaning is probably not going to be a deciding factor for you because of that.

When cleaning your glass skylight, you can start by soaking it with a mixture of soap and water. You can then apply a non-abrasive glass cleaner using a similarly non-abrasive applicator. Follow that by quickly wiping away the glass cleaner with a soft piece of cloth.

As much as possible, avoid using anything sharp to clean your skylight. If there’s a stain that can only be removed with a sharp object, go with a razor blade. Use the razor blade carefully and be precise as you attempt to scrape the stain away.

Homeowners who want UV protection from their skylight should install one made from laminated glass. Laminated glass is capable of providing ample ultraviolet light protection because of its material makeup.

It turns out that the plastic interlayer offers its fair share of benefits. That layer of plastic helps block out UV light and your home is better protected as a result. The fact that the sunlight has to pass through at least three layers also limits the damage it can do.

All that protection from ultraviolet light is very helpful. It helps keep your pieces of furniture in good condition.

The reduction of UV light is also welcome from an energy efficiency standpoint. With the laminated glass blocking out a significant amount of sunlight, your home will not get excessively warm. You won’t have to run your air conditioner constantly to counter the incoming heat.

Tempered glass does offer some UV protection, but laminated glass outclasses it. You know which one to get if UV protection is among your main concerns.

Skylights are often installed above bedrooms. That can be an issue if your skylight allows sound to pass through easily. You may not be able to sleep well with all that noise coming from beyond your skylight.

Installing a skylight made from laminated glass should address that issue. Once again, the presence of multiple layers within laminated glass can work to your benefit. Instead of the noises passing easily through the skylight, they end up getting blocked by the materials in place.

Tempered glass does not compare favorably to its laminated counterpart when it comes to noise reduction. You probably should avoid using that tempered glass if you live in a noisy area.

Thus far, it’s become abundantly clear that laminated glass is better to use for your skylight than tempered glass. Laminated glass outdoes tempered glass in just about every category we’ve talked about so far.

So, is there still a case to be made for tempered glass? There is indeed a case to be made and it’s one based on cost.

Laminated glass is significantly more expensive than tempered glass. That fact alone could lead you to choose tempered glass. You may not even have a choice if you have a limited budget to work with.

Given the advantages laminated glass has with regards to durability and UV protection, you can argue that it’s more cost effective. Over the long haul, you could save more money if you have a laminated glass skylight installed. Unfortunately, the upfront cost of laminated glass may still prevent you from using it as an option.

Sheets of laminated glass and tempered glass are not always used for skylights. Sometimes, plastic is also used for that fixture.

Plastic is far from an ideal material to use for that application though. The plastic used in the skylight may wear down faster due to the constant exposure to the sun. It also allows a lot of UV rays to pass through.

You should also avoid plastic because it’s not a very durable glazing option. It won’t take long before you see scratches on the surface of your plastic skylight.

Related Questions

How Do the PVB and SGP Plastic Layers Differ from One Another?

We noted earlier that both PVB and SGP plastic may be used as the interlayer in laminated glass. So, how do those differ from each other?To put it simply, SGP interlayers are stronger than PVB interlayers. They offer more protection against objects that hit the skylight. SGP interlayers also tend to be thicker. That helps them provide just a bit more noise reduction.You may also have to pay more if you want sheets of laminated glass that use SGP interlayers. That could dissuade you from featuring them in your skylight.

Do You Need to Replace the Entire Skylight if the Glass Breaks?

Replacing the skylight completely if the glass it uses breaks is not always necessary. However, you may still want to go down the replacement route.If the glass broke a certain way, the entire skylight may have to be removed. Complete removal could be necessary even if you only want the glass replaced.You may be better off just replacing the skylight entirely so it’s brand new. Fully replacing the skylight will allow it to last longer and that’s worth the marginal increase in cost.