Where should safety glazing be used?
A6 – The Federal safety glazing law stipulates that safety glazing be used in architectural applications ( homes and buildings ) in defined hazardous locations. Generally the hazardous location include doors, immediately adjacent sidelites, bath and shower enclosures and glazing adjacent to passages where there are walking surfaces adjacent to the glass and the bottom edge of the glass is within 18″ of the floor. In addition to the Federal law, various local code authorities have additional requirement.
The locations requiring safety glazing are prescribed by applicable building codes. Some examples include doors, bath enclosures, and glazed areas adjacent to passages. Safety glazing is generally required for any glazed opening in a door through which a 3-inch sphere may pass. For glazed areas adjacent to passages, the opening must be safety glazed if the glazing is within 12 horizontal inches of the opening. Criteria for the use of safety glazing differ in various regions, so you should check local building codes to confirm the requirements for a given installation.
