When you first notice a rock chip or tiny crack in your windshield, you might brush it off as nothing more than a minor annoyance. But as the team at Hilltop Auto Glass , with locations in Apollo, Kittanning, & Natrona Heights PA, explains, even the smallest crack can grow into a serious windshield repair problem over time, eventually requiring a complete windshield replacement. Here’s a closer look at how this happens.

Environmental Effects

Even if you avoid driving entirely after noticing a crack in your windshield, the crack is still likely to grow due to fluctuations in temperature. As glass is heated or cooled, it naturally expands and contracts. This puts additional pressure on the damaged area, causing the crack to expand.

Unless your vehicle is kept in a perfectly controlled environment, it will experience these fluctuations in temperature every day — especially during the summer and winter. The longer you wait to schedule windshield repair, the more the crack will grow.

Driving Hazards

Of course, most drivers aren’t going to keep their car in a garage for months on end when they see a crack in the windshield — after all, you need to get to work and run errands. The vibrations that occur as you drive will further aggravate the crack and cause it to grow — especially when traveling at higher speeds.

Running your air conditioner to cool off a hot car during the summer, or using a heater in the winter, will also exacerbate the temperature-related strain mentioned earlier. The more you drive, the greater your risk of the crack expanding across the entire windshield.

Rather than letting a small crack grow, schedule rock chip repair as soon as possible to stop the spread of damage. With over 40 years of experience, the team at Hilltop Auto Glass will provide safe, reliable windshield repair, no matter what your auto glass looks like. To learn more about their services, visit them online or call 1-800-544-1713.