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Old glass windows are thicker at the bottom because of the way they were made. During manufacturing, the glass panes were often placed vertically, causing the glass to flow down slightly due to gravity. Over time, this slight deformation led to the thicker bottom edge that we see in old glass windows.

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Why are very old homes glass is often thicker at the bottom of windowpanes?

It is a myth that very old homes have windowpanes with thicker glass at the bottom. This misconception likely arose due to the way glass was made in the past, which resulted in uneven thickness rather than intentional design. Old glass windows may appear thicker at the bottom due to the effects of gravity over time.


What is the true chemical nature of glass?

Glass is almost completely Silica (silicon dioxide), the naturally occurring form of the element silicon, and is actually a liquid. Look a the bottom edge of an old plate glass window (50 years or older). The bottom will be measureably thicker than the top. This is due to the silica "flowing" downward in response to gravity.


Why is a glass considered more of a liquid?

Cause it fills the container/space that its in-eventually. if you look at really old glass you will see that its thicker at the bottom than the top, and it will have little sort of ripples in it. but i mean seriously it takes forever.


List of a substances that are useful because of their viscosity?

Oil and Grease - Oil for lubrication when its really hot inside your engine. Grease for other lubrication when its cold outside your engine. Adhesives, Silicone Caulks, inhibitors for making wet mount slides for microscopes, Types of glass are also considered to be a highly viscous liquid, as very old windows in 18th century homes have windows whose glass panes are considerable thicker at the bottom than at the top.


What is the state matter of gel?

At room temperature, honey is a highly viscous liquid. Viscosity is a liquids resistance to flow. I think gelatin is also a liquid but it is even more viscous. Glass is probably the most viscous liquid I know of. It takes many years for glass to flow even a little bit. If you ever visit buildings that are hundreds or thousands of years old, you might notice the glass in the windouws is thicker at the bottom than the top.

Related Questions

Why are old glass windows thicker at the bottom?

Old glass windows are thicker at the bottom because of the way they were made. During the manufacturing process, the glass was often unevenly distributed, causing it to flow and become thicker at the bottom over time.


Why are very old homes glass is often thicker at the bottom of windowpanes?

It is a myth that very old homes have windowpanes with thicker glass at the bottom. This misconception likely arose due to the way glass was made in the past, which resulted in uneven thickness rather than intentional design. Old glass windows may appear thicker at the bottom due to the effects of gravity over time.


Why does old glass get thicker at the bottom?

Old glass appears thicker at the bottom due to the manufacturing process used in the past. During that time, glass was often made by blowing it into a mold, causing the glass to be unevenly distributed and thicker at the bottom.


Why are the bottoms of windows thicker in old buildings?

Believe it or not, glass is a liquid, and it moves VERY slowly. Over decades, perhaps more, the glass in windows will succumb to gravity and drip down to the bottom of the windows, pooling up there and making the lower parts of windows slightly thicker as time passes. The older the building is, the more irregularity you will find between the bottoms and tops of its windows. As far as architecture goes, you do not need to worry about the durability of the windows or anything of the sort because of this.


What state of matter is glass?

Glass is a solid. Specifically, it is an amorphous solid. The reason that many old panes of glass are thicker at one end is because the medieval glaziers sometimes could not cast perfectly uniform sheets of glass and, for obvious reasons, put the thicker end at the bottom. glass is actually a liquid. older windows tend to be thicker at the bottom than at the top. this is because, though it moves VERY slowly, it is a liquid, not a solid. This is a MASSIVE oversimplification of a highly technical argument. It's also factually incorrect; panes of glass in old windows are thicker at the bottom because they were thicker on one edge to begin with (due to how panes of glass were made at the time) and the glaziers cleverly figured out that, hey, they balance better if you put the WIDE edge on the BOTTOM instead of the top. Also, you can without too much difficulty find windows where they put the glass in any old way, and the thick edge is on the top on some panes, and on the left on some panes, and on the right on some panes, and on the bottom on some panes. To put the final nail in the coffin, the lead solder used to hold the panes in place (which NOBODY argues is a liquid) often has a measurably LOWER viscosity than the glass does, but you don't see little puddles of lead at the bottom of the windows. Among materials scientists, the preferred term is "amorphous solid" or, indeed, "glass". (Not universally, but by a pretty clear majority.) Those who are primarily interested in thermodynamics properties will sometimes use "supercooled liquid."


How can you tell if a glass is old?

Glass is a solid liquid it flows very slow as if you ever had a very old piece of glass it will be thicker at the bottom than the top it takes about 100 years to see a big difference in the glass thickness at the bottom hope this helps


Why glass panes of ancient buildings look milky and thicker at bottom?

Glass is an amorphous solids and therefore are pseudo solids.Hence like liquids it has tendency to flow.therefore in old buildings the glass paneslook milky in appearence.by Jaspreet Singhanswered on 1-04-2013


Did pioneer homes have glass windows?

Many of the old homes did not have glass in the windows and used shutters instead when they needed protection from the elements.


Temperature at which glass changes from solid to liquid?

Glass is not a true solid. It has no crystalline structure. It has no set melting point, as it is what is known as a "super cooled liquid". The hotter it gets, the faster it flows. I've read that cathedrals with stained glass that is centuries old, find that the glass is each segment is thicker at the bottom. In other words, the glass has flowed downwards over the centuries.


Why do old glass windows look wavywhen you look though them?

The reason old window glass sometimes looks wavy, is because old methods of producing glass did not produce perfectly clear or flat glass.


Do people at the past believe that glass is a liquid?

It's basically gone through three phases: # The dawn of time to maybe 40 years ago: it's a solid. # About 40 years ago: it's a liquid, hur hur hur. # As sanity prevailed after a few years of that nonsense: it's an amorphous solid.


Can matter be a semisolid?

No it is not. The belief that glass flows very slowly over time is an old wives tale. The "Proof" shown buy the windows of old buildings being thicker at the bottom is how they were manufactured. There are old glass artifacts that still hold shape and are much older than any house made in the us in the last 200 years.