Glass Fittings – Keeping Up Your Good Work

Glass is the material of the millennium. We prefer it for food and beverage storage, and we love to include it in our homes and offices. When it comes to building design, it’s not hard to see why glass is so popular with architects, designers and homeowners alike. It’s aesthetically pleasing and can be moulded into just about any size, style and shape. It’s ideal for walls, windows, doors and partitions, as well as balustrades and shower enclosures. When your clients choose glass in their homes or offices, they choose light, beauty and infinite possibility.

Benefits Of Glass In Residential And Commercial Buildings

Using glass immediately enhances the beauty of a building. It is durable, strong, and helps cut costs by reducing your energy usage. Here are some other reasons why homeowners and architects love using glass:

• Light – Glass transmits up to 80 percent of available natural daylight. Boosting the amount of natural light in a room also boosts the mood of the people in that room, improving productivity.
• Tough – Untreated glass breaks easily, but glass used in construction is specially toughened and treated. This means it’s highly weather resistant and stands up well to the long-term effects of rain, sun and wind.
• Resistant – Glass does not corrode or rust and doesn’t degrade as a result of environmental chemicals, pollutants or general conditions.
• Recyclable – Glass is 100 percent recyclable, and it doesn’t degrade during the recycling process. This means it can be repeatedly recycled without losing its inherent quality or purity.
• Noise – Sealed glass panes transmit little sound, making them good sound insulators.
• Maintenance – Glass’ smooth, shiny surface makes it extremely easy to clean.

Choose The Best Glass Fittings To Support Your Glass Structure

Of course, as a contractor, knowing why it’s good to use glass in as many applications as possible is not the same as knowing what to do to ensure that the glass structures you install are fitted safely and correctly. This is why choosing the right, high-quality glass fittings is so important.

Glass Balustrades

Frameless glass balustrades give an incredible feeling of space and visual continuity while still providing and safe and secure barriers around pools, on staircases, and on sundecks, balconies and verandas. As an architectural feature, they add value to your home while also enhancing it aesthetically.

Commonly, 12mm Toughened Safety Glass is used, which can be tinted if the client prefers.  Toughened glass provides the highest available impact resistance but, if it does break, it shatters into small, blunt granules. This makes it the safest option for frameless glass balustrades.

When it comes to safely installing a glass balustrade, it’s important to use the correct fittings and architectural hardware that comply with all the relevant safety requirements. Often, the balustrades are mounted into a channel that is encased into the concrete. This means the glass can be secured without any fittings being visible. This is perfect for both straight and angled staircases.

There is a wide range of clamps, hinges, spigots, bolts and latches available, so do your homework to ensure the job’s done right the first time. No comebacks mean happy clients and happy contractors!

Glass Shower Screens And Doors

Glass shower screens immediately add timeless elegance to any bathroom. The simplicity of their design, combined with clean lines, ensures maximum light and minimal visual intrusion. They can also make small bathrooms look and feel bigger. Choosing the right fittings for a shower screen is important not only from a visual and health point of view (the fewer fittings you use, the fewer places there are for unsightly and unhealthy mould to grow) but also from a safety perspective. Make sure you choose the best quality hinges, shelf clamps, stabiliser bars and gaskets from a reputable supplier.

Frameless Stacking Glass Doors

Stacking glass doors are perfect for large openings where a physical, not visual, barrier is required. They offer the best of both worlds – an unobstructed view of the outdoors, coupled with the security of a strong and durable barrier. When it comes to fittings, choose a single, in-line running track that allows for a wide range of applications. Glass panels enjoy a full range of motion from 90° 180°- including segmented curved radius openings. Stacking doors are usually opened and closed frequently, particularly in the summer, so strong and durable hinges are also essential.

GHI Architectural Solutions has been the leading distributor of hardware to the South African architectural aluminium and structural glass industries for over 25 years. We are a proud stockist of Silhouette Glass Solutions for balustrades and pool surrounds, frameless showers and glass wall and door systems. We also have a team of knowledgeable consultants standing by to help and answer any questions you might have, so why not chat to us today?