top of page

SURFACE DAMAGE

Glass scratches are the most common type of glass damage and are mostly caused by

improper cleaning.  The scratches can be divided according to their depth into hairline scratches, weak scratches, strong (deep) scratches or strong scratches with chips.  

Our process enables the removal of everything from fine scratches to severe stone chips

MECHANICAL SURFACES - DAMAGE

The different intensities and degrees of interference of scratches on glass surfaces can be described as follows:

ANGEL HAIR

Angel hair - scratches are extremely fine. Surface scratches that is neither visible nor palpable under normal daylight conditions. 

Angel Hair Scratch
Hair scratcher

SUPERFICIAL SCRATCHES

Superficial scratches are fine, usually only visible against a dark background or glass scratches that can be seen on closer inspection and marking.

Glass scratches that is visible but not palpable.

SURFACE SCRATCHES

Surface Scratches are weak glass scratches and are usually easily visible scratches in diffuse daylight and against a dark background. Glass scratches that can be felt with the fingernail.

Glass scratches that can be felt with the fingernail and are 0.003 mm deep.

slight glass scratches
severe glass scratches

STRONG GLASS SCRATCHES

Strong sub-surface glass scratches are highly visible damages. They are visible from any angle and against any background. Glass scratches clearly noticeable with the fingernail. 

Glass scratches that can be clearly felt with the fingernail. Strong glass scratches are 0.1 mm deep.

SCRAPINGS

Scrapings are extensive damages, which usually consist of a scratch coulter of weak to strong glass scratches.

Characteristic: Strong markings that appear whitish.

Mining
scratching

ETCHING

Are visible and very annoying writings scratched with a sharp object. Damage that can be clearly felt with the fingernail a scratch depth  from 0.1 mm.

STONE FALL

Rock falls often occur in new buildings. The most frequent causes are the cutting of stones, floor slabs or tiles, the sharpening of walls or simply the dumping of grit or gravel close to glass elements, which causes considerable damage to the glazing.

Rockfall
Spark throwing

SPARKS

During welding and cutting work, hot welding beads and sparks are released and can cause damage to the glass surface due to flying sparks. We choose the best processing method to suit your situation and thus ensure you a high-quality result when eliminating welding beads. 

CHEMICAL SURFACES
CORROSION

01

Glass has a high resistance, however, glass is very sensitive to alkaline attack and burns or surface changes occur.

 

Such a burn can occur when water runs over fresh concrete surfaces, becomes alkaline and then hits the glass surface.

02

Such burns are very quickly visible at pH values > 9 to 10. However, aggressive cleaning agents with alkaline components can also cause burns.

 

Likewise, the ion content in the water can lead to surface damage. This process is called leaching. Ionised water molecules (H₃O+ and HO-) that attack the glass on the surface are responsible for this.

03

This results in a visually dull coating on the glass surface, which is both visible and tangible. Unfortunately, weathering processes can also change the glass surface of old panes, e.g. certain coloured glasses in church windows.  Above all, the transparency of the panes is considerably impaired and reduced.

 

With our special procedure we repair such damaged glass surfaces without leaving any residues. In addition, we can prevent renewed cauterisation with a permanent sealant.

OUR RENOVATION PROCEDURE

Glass surfaces  

Repair / Restoration

The efficient patented coordinated complete solution of the Vitrum process consists of the machine and the finely tuned abrasives.

 

The grinding and polishing machines are applied to the glass surface. The grinding and polishing agents eliminate any kind of damage.

 

The glass damage is removed with the guided movements of the machine, depending on the severity of the damage. In this way, the process makes it possible to maintain glass surfaces of the highest quality absolutely plane-parallel and without residues. By using special edge processing, we guarantee the processing of zones close to the edge. 

 

With high-quality materials developed in-house especially for glass surfaces, we ensure dust-free and high-quality renovation.

bottom of page