In most instances, you can see where your windshield is broken and that you need windshield repair. However, there are times when you either cannot see the damage or you think the damage is not that severe. Here is how to tell that your windshield is broken, even when you cannot see it, and how to recognize when the damage is more severe and should be repaired right away. 

It Rains, and You Have Dripping Water on Your Dash

It should never rain inside your car. If you have water dripping from the area around your windshield, try to find where the drip is coming from. By following the drips of water from your dash back up to the windshield, you can eventually find where the hairline cracks are. It is really quite something when the cracks are so seemingly small or have managed to fool the human eye with the way the glass managed to split. These steady leaks of rain onto your dash must be attended to immediately. The damage the water can cause is several times worse than the cost of a new windshield, and the problem you have with your windshield now is one that can easily be fixed with a little clear glass sealant. 

The Chip in the Windshield Is Worse Than You Think

Let's say that you are following behind a dump truck on the highway. This is a pretty common scenario. Then, a rock or large piece of gravel falls off the dump truck ad hits your windshield. At first, you are stunned, but because the rock/gravel hits your vehicle in a corner of the windshield, you really cannot see the true damage. You forget about it and let it go.

The trouble is, that chip out of the corner of your windshield is actually the start of a bigger problem. If you look closer with a magnifying glass, you might see a hairline crack or two starting away from the center of this little chipped area. It only takes a little pressure, a little windstorm, or some hail before the windshield begins to crack all the way across.

If you get the almost-unnoticeable chip fixed right away, the cracks will not happen. They will never spread, and your windshield will never turn into a cracked disaster right when you least expect it. If you never look for and examine this chipped area from the start, the splitting, cracking glass will be an even bigger shock. 

For more information or to schedule a windshield repair, contact a glass repair shop.