Bathroom Glass Sink Shattered

[tetonpizza]

Good Evening all

Our coach is parked in Florida all winter long. With that said no major temperature changes here.

We left for supper tonight and when we returned to the coach the sink had shattered all over the floor. We took a close look and could not see anything that could have dropped on the sink. Just wondering if anyone else had had this happen to them. Please see pic's attached.

Thanks for your time

Joe

[Iggy]

WOW! Never seen anything like this.
Those glass sinks are really hard but looking at the total destruction it must have self destructed. I would send these pictures and details to Forest River warranty person.


Kevin Stratton
Forest River Warranty
Georgetown / FR3
Phone: 574-206-7611
Fax: 574-206-2484
kstratton@forestriverinc.com

[tetonpizza]

Thanks for the response. I spoke with my dealer this morning and was told this is the third sink this has happened to. They thought it was due to the cold but since our coach has been in Florida all winter that's not the case. This is warrantied and the dealer has ordered us a new sink. It's just crazy though. It took a chunk out of the door, showed track and wall. Now finding glass shards everywhere. Even in the hall way. (The door was closed)

That's the update for now


Joe

[DaveSchwartz]

Looks like FR got a batch of improperly annealed glass sink bowls. Since there's quite a bit of mass there, if the stresses when cooling them down from casting temperature are not properly relieved, there can be a lot of energy stored (as you found out) and just a small thing can set it off.

[bubbles]

I think it's tempered glass and that's what its supposed to do, break into small pieces without sharp edges. If it's not tempered, it should be.

[DaveSchwartz]

Yes, if it shatters, pebbles are preferable to shards however it is still necessary to properly anneal glass to avoid undesired stresses that can cause the piece to deconstruct itself without an obvious mechanical cause. Tempered glass has stress patterns that are designed in to make the glass break into crumbs but the thermal process still has to be well controlled to get a proper result.

Point is that the OP could find no obvious cause and the fact that a dealer admits to having seen multiple instances indicates a manufacturing defect.

[BillMFl]

Having worked in a scientific lab products manufacturing plant many years ago, Dave is correct. Annealing takes place in large oven conveyor belts that heat glass products and then slowly cool them in order to evenly distribute internal stresses.

[Ford Idaho]

I would rethink replacing glass with glass.

https://www.google.com/#q=round+copper+sink

Someone makes one someplace.

[bubbles]

Originally Posted by DaveSchwartz

Yes, if it shatters, pebbles are preferable to shards however it is still necessary to properly anneal glass to avoid undesired stresses that can cause the piece to deconstruct itself without an obvious mechanical cause. Tempered glass has stress patterns that are designed in to make the glass break into crumbs but the thermal process still has to be well controlled to get a proper result.

Point is that the OP could find no obvious cause and the fact that a dealer admits to having seen multiple instances indicates a manufacturing defect.

Hey, I don't know why it broke I was only trying to offer an explanation why there are so many small pieces if someone was wondering. Maybe no one cared but thanks for your insight and evaluation professor. Most valuable.

[BillMFl]

We have three glass sinks in our 2012 360. No problems. Above counter glass sinks have gained popularity in recent years and are often used in upscale new homes. Properly made they have a very long useful life. FR's source just had a bad production run. They probably had a temporary issue with their glass formulation or lehr (oven) temperature or cooling rate during the tempering process. Even flat glass can shatter if its internal stress isn't distributed evenly. Curved glass increases this stress especially at the curved area and can be observed with polarized light.

[tetonpizza]

All I know it that we're still finding little glass shards all around out bathroom. Thanks for all the comments.

[DaveSchwartz]

There are a number of similar accounts to be found online and most report glass fragments embedded in walls, door frames, etc in one case even a person. The Wikipedia article on tempered glass says that the compressive stress should be above 15,000 psi so that's a lot of stored energy.

[bldhnd617]

Hi I have a 2014 360 XL bought new December 2013, drove it home parked it, a month latter found glass vessel sink had basically exploded. I live in PA and presumed it was the cold weather. Had it replaced under warranty. I did find my own replacement just in-case on the web under glass sinks if it happened once it might happen again.

Bldhnd

[bmurph44]

We have the exact sink in our 2012. One would think a recall is in order, that could do some serious damage to a persons body if they happen to be in the bathroom when that happens. Lawyers start lining up!