A glass breaker is one of the top car safety tools every proactive driver should have. Sadly, it’s also one of the most commonly overlooked auto safety gadgets. Many motorists only appreciate the significance of a glass breaker when they’re already in a dire situation that calls for it.
However, it doesn’t matter whether you frequently embark on road drives or only use your car to commute to work. Incorporating a glass breaker into your vehicle’s safety kit can significantly turn the odds in your favor when stuck in an emergency.
This article shall explain how to use glass breakers properly. But first, let’s begin by introducing what this piece of safety equipment is.
Introducing Glass Breakers
A glass breaker is a hand-held safety tool designed to break through a glass window during emergency situations.
Glass breakers are commonly used to escape from vehicles involved in grisly accidents. That makes them a staple component of your auto safety kit. You’ll also find glass breakers in some buildings with emergency exits, particularly commercial premises.
Most glass breakers feature a small handle with a sharp, pointed metal tip, which serves as the business end. The metallic tip is strong enough to smash through tempered glass.
Many glass breakers designed for auto emergencies also include a sharp knife for cutting through seatbelts. There could be other add-ons meant to improve your survival chances, such as multi-tools and flashlights.
Since a glass breaker is so significant, it’s best to ensure the tool never lacks in your car safety kit. One way to do that is to subscribe to outdoor subscription boxes that supply high-quality glass breakers, such as BattlBox.
How to Safely Use a Glass Breaker
1.Start With the Right Tool
Glass breakers come in various shapes and sizes. That also means the tools differ in their efficiency levels.
Material and ergonomics are the biggest considerations when shopping for glass breakers.
Insist on a tool whose tip is made from exceptionally hard metals like tungsten carbide. With the right force, such materials can smash through tempered glass, regardless of density.
A glass breaker’s knife blade should preferably be made from stainless steel.
As for the handle, you can pick from steel, PVC plastic, or even rubber. Be sure to also check the handle’s ergonomics, as that will impact how efficiently you can use the glass breaker.
2.Survey Your Situation First
You’re enjoying a road trip with your family when suddenly, a speeding SUV rear-ends you.
Your first instinct is to escape the vehicle at the slightest opportunity available.
But before you make a rush decision, survey your situation first to ascertain that you and other vehicle occupants are safe. Mainly, ensure no one is closer to the window you intend to break.
You may also want to cut the seat belts before breaking a glass.
If other people are in the car, advise them to exit the situation calmly to minimize further injuries.
3.Find the Right Glass to Break
Your frantic attempts to escape an emergency might have you making some costly mistakes, such as breaking all the glasses in a car.
However, keeping your cool and finding the right glass to break is essential. This will depend on the nature of your emergency.
Break any window directly facing the sky if your car has rolled over.
If a tree has fallen on the vehicle’s windshield, it would be ideal to break the rear windshield.
4.Understand the Design of Your Glass Breaker’s Pointed Tip
The shape of a glass breaker’s business end determines how to use the tool.
As already hinted, most glass breakers come with a sharp-pointed tip. You simply hit the tip against the tempered glass to shatter it.
However, some glass breakers are developed with a blunt tip for bashing through glass barriers.
Note that the design of your glass breaker’s tip also determines the force you can apply.
Sharp-pointed tips have a smaller surface area, which may require significant force to break reinforced glass. That contrasts the blunt-ended breakers that only need moderate force to bash the thickest glass barriers.
5.Apply the Right Amount of Force
The force required to break a glass barrier depends on the type of glass and the design of your glass breaker. We’ve already expounded on the latter.
Now, most tempered glasses require about 20,000 to 24,000 pounds per square inch (PSI) to break. That’s roughly 60 pounds of force.
You may not have a force gauge in your car to determine how hard it is to hit the windshield. Even if you do, it may be unwise to go through all the trouble when the urgent need is to hop out of the car.
In most cases, the right amount of force to break a glass comes from personal judgment.
Just remember that too much force could send glass splinters flying all over the place, posing further risks to you and other people nearby.
Final Word
A glass breaker can be handy when stuck in your automobile or a building. The tool is especially useful in facilitating prompt extraction from a potentially dangerous situation, such as when you’re holed up in a leaking car or burning house.
But, like most safety gadgets, the efficacy of glass breakers depends on proper usage. Hopefully, you can refer to this article for insights on properly deploying a glass breaker.