Windshield Crack

[Thudman]

My pax windshield had a stone thrown up from the hiway & dinged the W/S near the center post (about the size of a nickel). Had the lcl glass people come out & treated it (filled). There are two opposing, radiating cracks about 1/2 inch each. I marked them to measure any creep in growth. This was about three or four years ago, and no growth occured. Now I see growth of one crack, which has almost doubled in two days.

Can this crack be drill-stopped (successfully)? In worst case, who should change out the W/S (located in Destin, FL). BTW, I'm a full timer, so I can't "just leave it".

Thudman

[RVThere]

The windshield in my old 2003 Suncruiser cracked from road debris and I had it changed out at the Winnebago dealer. They ordered the new windshield and the special glue that does not have a long shelf life. Insurance paid for it.

Make sure they seal it well because mine leaked after replacement and they had to re-seal it.

[Harry B]

The cracks will probably continue to get larger, which is usually due to temperature change causing the expansion and contraction of the glass. There is a mobile service out of the Tampa area that specializes in MHs. They replaced my windshield once and did a great job. Can't remember their name but I am sure someone else will chime in with their name.

[ua40j]

I've had to replace at least 4 windshields in the past 6 years. Sometimes I think they crack just sitting in storage.

One thing I can confirm, as Harry said, if a crack is increasing in size, it will continue...even if you don't move the coach. Just the heating and cooling during the day will cause the crack to get larger.

I don't know about stop drilling. None of the windshields I've had to replace were eligible for that process. All of my cracks were at least 18" long.

But I can say it only takes a windshield place about 2 hours to remove the old one and install the new one. The new glues they use are set in 1.5 hours. If you're someplace warm, it would probaby be less time. I drove my coach to them and waited for it each time.

Hope you can find someone to come out to yours.

[adventurous2]

Our insurance (Progressive) sent someone to replace our broken windshield right in front of our house!! how is that for service! We are in Florida near Ocala.
The guy said that the Winnebago rigs are notorious for cracked windshields because the cab is build with steel(nice safety feature) and rust puts pressure on the glass. Our crack came right from the top of the glass. We did check the other windshield and sure enough there was lots of rust also. It was sanded off as much as possible and so far so good.

[Roadking]

About 5 years ago I received chips in both sides of my windshield. Two of these cracked and spread. One crack was 8 inchs long on the left side and the other about 5 inches on the right half. I drilled each using a diamond tip bit in a dremmel and while drilling I sprayed the tip and glass with water. Both cracks held for more than 5 years and did not spread. However last fall while in the southwest I had put a sheet of the aluminum coated bubble wrap stuff against the window and apparently the built up heat between the foil and the glass was to much and the half with the 8 inch crack extended across the entire window. Bummer... The other half with the 5 inch crack has not moved in five years. After 5 years I have recieved other chips and will be replacing boths halves later this spring.

[Thudman]

The crack grew to about six inches and began to curl upward, so I had it replaced today by a local auto/RV glass company. They did it at my location, but had a hassle removing it and it had multiple cracks when they finally got it out. There was some rust along the channel and they removed it with an electric sanding wheel. Then he applied a thick, black, goupy primer paint (fast drying) to seal the bare metal.

Installation went quickly & seems OK. They recommend no travel for 48 hours, for curing. Took about 2 1/2 hours. Insurance (USAA) paid for all.

It was obvious that they've done it before (since 1976).

Thudman

[David and Fran]

In the first year we owned our coach we picked up a rock chip at the lower edge of the windshield near the center. It had 2 cracks upward which curved and ran parallel to each other. The chip was filled and the cracks drilled at the ends. So far they have held.