Glass Over Panels

Over panels in frameless showers.

These glass panels are found at the top above the door of many frameless glass showers. Sometimes people mistakenly assume these are shelves and we often hear they have thrown a towel over it or store their shower products up there.

What are they?

This piece of glass is actually a stabilising support to reduce movement when the door is opened and closed which can cause your shower to be misaligned and lead to further risks of non-opening doors or smashed glass from glass to glass or glass to tile contact.

Why do they break?

One of our most common complaints when someone calls us needing a shower realignment or new over panel is “why would they put that shelf up there?” and usually the person is in shock as it is very frightening when these break especially when someone is in the shower at the time.

We have found that misuse – using it as a shelf to store products, or pulling a towel across it instead of opening a door is often the culprit of loosening the over panel over time and causing it to come down.

Do we need it?

The short answer is yes. New Zealand having such changeable weather means our building move. The addition of swinging doors means we expect these showers to stay plumb with the walls despite changeable conditions with millimetre accuracy. Without the overpanel to brace the shower if there is movement we see the door catching or scraping on the wall, floor or glass beside it and this glass edge being the most sensitive part of toughened glass can cause the panel to explode.