# How to secure glass in wood frame?



## crosby1 (Feb 23, 2013)

I'm putting the finishing touches on a recessed medicine cabinet and I'm trying to figure the best way to install the glass panel in the door frame.

The glass sits in a routed channel on the back of the door frame. The glass is 1/8" thick; the routed channel is 3/16" deep x 1/4" wide.

My original plan was to use glazier points to hold the glass in place, but as I'm looking at it, the problem is 2-fold:

1) There's only 1/16" of wood to work with on the frame (3/16" channel depth - 1/8" glass = 1/16"). I don't think that's enough wood to avoid splitting when pushing the points in.

2) I don't want to see the points through the glass when looking at the cabinet

Soooooo, the question is: how to secure the glass to the wood frame?

I was thinking about running a bead of silicone in the channel and dropping the glass in?

Any thoughts or hints would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.


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## Brian T. (Dec 19, 2012)

First thing = you have to "float" the glass. That means a couple of really skinny rubber corners (bottom left, bottom right) to support the glass. No thicker than the glass. In the old days, we used bits of crapped-out inner-tube. If you have enough slack, put more up top to quench vibration.


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## crosby1 (Feb 23, 2013)

thanks, but not sure that answers my question about how to secure the glass to the wood frame?


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## Lola Ranch (Mar 22, 2010)

crosby1 said:


> I was thinking about running a bead of silicone in the channel and dropping the glass in?
> 
> Any thoughts or hints would be appreciated.
> 
> Thanks in advance.


That's how I've always done it. I remove the doors and lay them flat, upside down, run a bead of clear silicone in the rabbet and then set the glass in place. 

Test fit the glass first to make sure it fits against the rabbet on all corners. You don't want to push too hard on the glass (if at all) after the silicone because it will squeeze all over and be harder to clean up. Let the silicone dry over night and clean up any excess with a razor blade.

You do not need to do anything else if you don't want to. The beauty of this method is that the glass does not rattle. You can (for good measure) add some glass retainer tabs. They are like a plastic oblong washer with the screw hole to one side. Just screw it to the flat next to the rabbet and swing in over the edge of the glass. Simple.

Bret


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Lola Ranch said:


> That's how I've always done it. I remove the doors and lay them flat, upside down, run a bead of clear silicone in the rabbet and then set the glass in place.
> 
> Test fit the glass first to make sure it fits against the rabbet on all corners. You don't want to push too hard on the glass (if at all) after the silicone because it will squeeze all over and be harder to clean up. Let the silicone dry over night and clean up any excess with a razor blade.
> 
> ...


Completely agree.

George


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## crosby1 (Feb 23, 2013)

That's how I've always done it. I remove the doors and lay them flat, upside down, run a bead of clear silicone in the rabbet and then set the glass in place. 


AWESOME! Clear silicone it is then!


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

Another option if there is enough room is to put a piece of trim on the back side of the door. That way the glass would be easier to change if it was ever broken.


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