How to calculate the weight of a glass
lite
S afety depends upon knowledge and awareness. You
must know the approximate weight of anything you are
going to try to lift.
Everybody has some idea of how much weight he or she can
safely handle, based on some previous experience, good or bad.
It is possible that you base your personal limit on what you
once dropped instead of what you know you can safely carry.
Unfortunately, a bad experience with glass can injure you
for life. For your own safety and for the safety of those who
work around you, you must know the approximate weight of a lite
before you attempt to handle it. When handling glass by hand,
knowing what a lite weighs helps you determine if one person
can safely handle it or if two people are needed. Knowing how
to estimate the weight of a lite of glass is a good field skill
to develop.
Different types of glass have different weights. Because of
this, the best source of information concerning weight is the
manufacturer. General figures based on glass thickness can also
be used to find the approximate weight of a lite of glass.
The table below shows the approximate weights of glass based
on thickness. Remember, these figures are approximate for
single lites of glass. Be sure to figure insulating glass units
as two single lites to determine their approximate weight.
To calculate what a lite of glass weighs, you need to know
two things: the thickness of the lite and its area. Both can be
found with a tape measure. To figure the area (the number of
square feet), multiply the length by the width. You may wish to
convert each dimension to feet or multiply the dimensions in
inches.
If you multiply the dimensions in inches, you must divide
the answer by the number of square inches in a square foot (144
inches) to find the total number of square feet.
For example, suppose you have a lite of ¼-inch glass that is
48 inches wide and 62 inches long. To find the number of square
feet in the lite, convert the inches to feet: 4 feet by 5.17
feet. Multiply length by width to get the number of square
feet: 20.68 square feet. To find the approximate weight,
multiply the area by the weight per square foot of ¼-inch
glass: 3.23 x 20.68 = 66.8 pounds.
If you prefer to work in inches, multiply 48 inches by 62
inches and then divide by 144 to get the total number of square
feet: 2,976 square inches ÷ 144 inches = 20.67 square feet.
Then proceed as above.
|
Thickness
(Inches)
|
Weight
(lbs. per sq.
ft.)
|
|
1/16
|
.97
|
|
3/32
|
1.20
|
|
1/8
|
1.60
|
|
3/16
|
2.51
|
|
7/32
|
2.82
|
|
1/4
|
3.23
|
|
3/8
|
4.78
|
|
1/2
|
6.37
|
|
3/4
|
9.55
|
|
7/8
|
11/20
|
|
1
|
12.80
|
|