Glass bonding in the sanitary sector

One relevant detail in the construction of glass shower cabins is the hinge. Depending on shape, size, color, and material, the hinge makes a great contribution to the visual appearance of the shower cabin. Previously, point or strap hinges have been used most. However, the use of these hinges requires extensive glass machining as the two hinge halves of point hinges must be screwed together through the glass plate, while strap hinges involve the use of a counter sunk screw as thrust bearing, requiring complicated counter sunk boreholes for attachment. A further disadvantage results from dirt and lime which often deposits at the attached hinges, signifying considerable cleaning efforts for the customer.

Bonding instead of screwing
Hinges which are not screwed, but bonded and, therefore, do not require any counterparts or counter sunk screws are an efficient alternative. Even from the customer’s point of view, bonded hinges provide decisive advantages: Besides visual elegance, cleaning of the inside of shower cabins becomes much easier as there are not any hinge elements or screws.

Moreover, the use of bonded hinges simplifies assembly considerably as bonding can be done with high production accuracy resulting in the omission of the otherwise common on-site fine adjustment. However, in order to be able to utilize all advantages bonded hinges offer and ensure permanent functionality, adhesives for glass bonding in the sanitary sector must meet a multitude of special requirements. Thus, the adhesives used must be highly transparent, resistant to yellowing, and resistant to humidity in order to guarantee long-lasting functionality. Besides excellent adhesion to glass, aluminum, chrome, and stainless steel, it is decisive that the adhesives are insensitive to climatic stress, e. g., heat and cold, and resistant to various cleaners.

Precondition: elaborated process control
With especially developed DELO-PHOTOBOND products made by company DELO Industrial Adhesives, it is possible to meet all these requirements. The one-component, solvent-free acrylates cure in seconds and have been successfully applied in practice for many years already. The product DELO-PHOTOBOND 4468 shows extreme resistance of to climatic influences, such as dry and humid warmth, in glass connections as well as in mixed bondings of glass and aluminum.