What causes tempered glass panel to explode?!

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Par for the course, my 20 month old Newegg/ABS prebuilt has failed in another way, the tempered glass side panel exploded. Recently, the computer would not regularly boot. Had to shut off psu for 10 seconds and try again, ad nauseum. Well today after about 10 minutes of that, I decided to see if the mobo had any error lights or whatever replaced beeps. Unscrewed the 4 screws holding glass panel, then as soon as I touched the panel's edge... it shattered! Few shards in my hand, between fingers, as typing this sentence a glass splinter dislodged from my pinkie finger. Hopefully the 3090 and pals are ok. I haven't moved the computer or anything I could think that could be problematic.. I only recently started using the panel, maybe a year of using the case without the glass on change the case enough where it put pressure oddly..?

Case is a "DEEPCOOL MATREXX 50"
The computer has been off for >12 hrs. At lowest possibly 45f on the floor.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spontaneous_glass_breakage

Any ideas? Also will glass eviscerate a hepa vacuum filter? Might put a stocking inside vacuum to hopefully catch glass
 

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Tempered glass is always handled with care and caution. Bending or stressing it in any way can cause it to shatter, that is reality with that kind of glass.
 
A crack, chip or scratch, and uneven pressure (or extremely uneven heat) on the panel. For instance, if you had a screw point pressed against a panel, and you bumped it (creating a large uneven force), it would likely shatter.

if there was a crack or scratch, and you had a screw a bit too tight, and/or the case side wasn't quite flat, and you heated and cooled the panel a few times, that could potentially apply force to the panel and cause it to shatter.

If the panel was loose, and a screw was wedged funny, or the edge of the panel was touching a sharp point or edge of the case when you bumped it, that could potentially cause it to shatter.
 
That's why some manufacturers don't put screws through tempered glass, or even use them to hold the panel down by some other mechanical means. Instead they use magnets, or glued on plastic clips, which pull the panel against the case instead of pressing it against the case.
 
Nobu said:
That's why some manufacturers don't put screws through tempered glass, or even use them to hold the panel down by some other mechanical means. Instead they use magnets, or glued on plastic clips, which pull the panel against the case instead of pressing it against the case.
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yup. my case has rubber standoffs that you press the glass on to and the thumb screws have a thick rubber washer to avoid metal on glass and bummers like this.

op, bet you barely tapped a corner of it on the tile floor....
 
Wanna be nit-picky a f?
The only concern i see is glass and bearing/grease.
All fans are surely covered, but we are talking rather miniscule glas-powder, so let`s stay on the save(r) side.

"ocd-me" would take this as an excuse to disasseble the thing up to the fans so my eyes can inspect everything.
Personally i could not resell it otherwise in a few years without a knot in my gut.

In real life:
Don`t turn it and don`t turn it on until the cheapest compressed air-in-a-can arrives in the mail.
Spray the heck out of it from evey posttion with tight safey-glases and a mask on. Shower afterwards. Like for realz! That shit can cut and travel everywhere.
Don`t spray that close that you can see ice forming on the surface.
And put the candles out first. Who knows what`s in the cheap compressed can.
Then turn, jiggly-wiggly and repeat.
...Outside?

ps
fan spin is ok but not faster than it is rated for. ... hard to measure using a can as propulsion. Shorts burts from far away help dialling it in.
 
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Damn, that's awful. I've built a couple rigs with the matrexx 50 series cases. Really used to like them. I've actually got a white one in the basement I haven't used yet, ugh. I'm not exactly careful with any cases glass panels while assembling either. Generally just plop em down on edge against my desk until I've finished building but inevitably bonk, bang and kick them several times during the process. Maybe that's a good thing... inadvertent testing.

I wonder how Deepcool is going to make this right after you blow up their Facebook page?
 
sorry op.... that sucks.. I have no idea... when the glass wasn't in use was it exposed to extreme temperatures (stored in non-insulated garage or something?)

Well, I have to say this story has done nothing to lessen my hatred for all these tempered glass side panel cases out there... I mean who gives a **** anyways.. the inside of a computer isn't all that exciting and I dont need RGB bull**** in my face while I am trying to use my computer anyway... Apparently they will take my NZXT H630 without case windows from my cold dead hands...
 
Carlyle2020 said:
! That shit can cut and travel everywhere.
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I would have thought one of the advantage of tempered glass is to be particularly safe, because if break in nice not that cutting piece versus regular glass, a bit like car windows and movie stunts.
 
My Corsair 780T and Corsair 600T cases both use acrylic side panels and now after seeing this I appreciate them much more. I already appreciated the weight savings because the main rig already weighs about 70 pounds? It takes quite a bit of muscle 💪 to change the cooling liquid or blow out the dust when needing to move the fully loaded case out of the PC room.
I have a Fractal case in the basement I was planning on using but it has a tempered glass side panel. Now I'm paranoid about using it for my 3rd standby rig lol.
 
LukeTbk said:
I would have thought one of the advantage of tempered glass is to be particularly safe, because if break in nice not that cutting piece versus regular glass, a bit like car windows and movie stunts.
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It is safe in that it will give you small cuts when handled instead of slicing open arteries. That's why vehicles use it.
 
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