# Glass Table Top + Kids = Bad Idea??



## CMF (Dec 16, 2008)

Our casual dining table that is in our kitchen is work station central for my kids who are between 3 and 7 years old.  I've been using vinyl fitted table cloths but they last about a month before I have to throw them out - they get ripped up.

I am considering getting a piece of glass to put over the table.  I don't mind the frequent cleaning and I think glass table surfaces must be OK since they are in many a Marriott timeshare that I've visited.  But what do you all think?  My biggest worry is that the kids will slam something down on it and shatter the glass. The table is 60 inches in diameter - yes, it's round.

Charles


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## Rose Pink (Dec 16, 2008)

Charles, I have a round table and was able to get a piece of tabletop glass at Pier 1 Imports--they come in standard sizes.  We've had it for a couple of years.  It does protect the table top.  If you can't find one specifically made for tables in your size, you can go to a glass shop and have a tempered glass one made to fit your table.  I've done that with glass shelving as well as glass to top my woven nightstands. Just make sure it is tempered and it will be fairly tough--tougher than the wood it sits on.


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## hibbeln (Dec 16, 2008)

Our kitchen table that we use daily with our kids is a round glass table.  It is simply a piece of glass that sits on a pedestal.  I had the glass cut at a glass shop when the youngest had just turned 2 years old.  Well, he's now 11 (and his older brother almost 14) and we have had no problems whatsoever with the glass.  And that is with 2 *boys*!  They set the table, clear the table, bang pots and pans and trivets down on it too hard...usual boy stuff but never a problem. It is great for "projects" because glue, paint, marker, crayon, white-out, glitter.....nothing sticks.  The only problem we have ever had is that it is a piece of glass and sits unattached on the pedestal, so if you leverage yourself to get up in the wrong spot and put pressure on it you can tip the whole piece of glass.....but our kids learned quickly not to do that.  It sounds like you would be laying the glass OVER your tabletop, so that wouldn't even be a problem for you.

It cleans up great.  After dinner the kids run a wet sponge over it to get the worst of the "stuff" off of it, then go back over it again with Windex and papertowels.  It's a great surface for kids.


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## CMF (Dec 16, 2008)

I read some on this issue and some folks recommend laminated glass over tempered glass.  The problem with tempered glass is that it won't chip, it shatters.  The problem with laminated glass is that you get two pieces of glass instead of one and two pieces of thin(ish) glass are not as strong as one thicker piece.  How thick was the glass that you used?  The local glass shop is suggest 1/4 inch.

Charles


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## KCI (Dec 16, 2008)

I put a beveled edge piece of glass over my teak table and here were the problems I had:  fingerprints, elbow prints, etc.  It never looked clean.  Glass also scratches so looks old rather quickly.  The biggest inconvenience was the fact that "stuff (crumbs, small amount of liquids, etc) got between the glass and the wood top table around the edges and my husband and I would have to lift the glass top off, clean the table top and the under part of the glass and replace it on the wood.  It was heavy and there were just the two of us most of the time...no kids.  We have long since gotten rid of the table but I would never go through that again.  Maybe I'm just too fussy but it was too much work.  Good luck with whatever you choose.  Linda


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## dmbrand (Dec 16, 2008)

We have had glass tops made for both of our kitchen tables over the years.  My kids are now 17 & 19; we still have it on.(teens can be just as "crafty" as little kids).

As mentioned above, have a glass company custom make one.  If you think your children will use glue, glitter pens, glitter glue, markers, paints, etc. during their school-age years on this table, the glass top will have immense value.

It is true that the glass will tend to scratch over time; but it is protecting the wood surface from those scratches and normal wear. Our table was expensive, and I intended for it to be the last one I ever purchased.  When the kids are on their own, out goes the glass!

DawnB


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## CMF (Dec 16, 2008)

A local glass shop will cut a 1.4 inch piece of glass for $155. They don't recommend tempered glass because they say it will explode off the table if shattered. I think it's worth a try.

Charles

PS Pier 1 only has sizes up to 42 inches in diameter.


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## wackymother (Dec 16, 2008)

We have a huge oak table, seven feet long. It came with our house, and it had a custom-made piece of heavy glass on top of the wood to protect it. It was a pain, because we couldn't clean under it; we were afraid to lift it without about six people, for fear it would twist as we lifted it. 

After living here for about four years, I managed to drop a wine glass so it jjjjjuuuuuuust hit the edge of the glass--and the piece of glass shattered. Not explosively, but that was the end of that. Removing it was an absolute royal pain, because once we had picked up the broken pieces, there was a gigantic piece about five feet by four feet with a jagged edge. We didn't want to hit it with anything, because we didn't want to damage the wood underneath. In the end we got three sturdy lifters to carefully, carefully lift it up and put it in our recycling barrel outside, where we donned gloves and protective eyewear and gently hit it with mallets till it broke into big sharp pieces. Then we had to cover the barrel with a big paper note for the garbagemen so they wouldn't hurt themselves....what a mess!

Then we went to the decorating store and got high-quality table pads, the old-fashioned kind, which I am really, really happy about.


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## TubTub (Dec 17, 2008)

Very bad idea!


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## Rose Pink (Dec 17, 2008)

*Measurements*

Charles, I took the measurements and our round table is only 42 inches across.  The thickness of that glass is about 3/8 inch.  That is the piece from Pier 1.

The glass we had made to fit our night stands is only about 1/4 inch thick and the shelving is 3/8 inch thick.

As others have noted, glass is very heavy and I can't imagine having to deal with a bigger table piece by myself.  If I need to lift the 42 inch piece I have, I really do need help to be safe.  I've found that I can slide the glass a little to the side to clean under the edges and I rarely need to pick the whole thing up from the table.  The crumbs just don't get that far under the glass.  It's fairly easy to just slide it a few inches in one direction or another to get at those pesky crumbs.  A bigger, heavier piece may not be so easy to move, however.

You can try it.  $155 for glass to protect your wood is not much compared to the cost of refinishing your table should it get damaged.  If you don't like it after awhile you can go back to using what you were before.  We are glad we have the glass--I like to see the wood, not cover it up with a tablecloth.  Yes, it is a little scratched--but the table isn't!  It isn't hard to clean.  I just wipe it off with a damp cloth and follow with a dry one--30 seconds, max.


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## pjrose (Dec 17, 2008)

I don't know about glass, but I have gotten very inexpensive flannel-backed vinyl tablecloths on clearance at K-Mart and at the dollar store.  I covered our table with them whenever the kids needed to do a project, and also used them for outdoor picnics, birthday parties, to spread on the floor for projects, etc etc etc.  

I've gotten way more than my $1 or $2 out of them, and would do that rather than going for the expense and possible problems of glass.


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## hibbeln (Dec 17, 2008)

Hmmmmm, I will have to measure how thick our piece of glass is when I get home.  As I said, it's from a glass shop.  I told them what I wanted it for, and they picked out the best kind of glass and cut it for me.  I know myself (and my kids) have all managed to drop heavy heavy pots on it from time to time, and it has never broken or chipped or anything.  I did notice recently that there is a funny scratch in one area, it looks like someone pushed something very heavy and metal across it, and there are probably some minor scratches....but with kids in the house what ISN'T scratched?!

Again, with our kids we haven't been careful with it AT ALL and have been completely pleased with it over the years.


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## Autoeng (Dec 18, 2008)

My fav singer/songwriter Glen Phillips had a run in with a glass table  .


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## CMF (Dec 18, 2008)

Those rockers . . .!  They do crazy things.

Charles


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## divasglass (May 27, 2011)

CMF said:


> Our casual dining table that is in our kitchen is work station central for my kids who are between 3 and 7 years old.  I've been using vinyl fitted table cloths but they last about a month before I have to throw them out - they get ripped up.
> 
> I am considering getting a piece of glass to put over the table.  I don't mind the frequent cleaning and I think glass table surfaces must be OK since they are in many a Marriott timeshare that I've visited.  But what do you all think?  My biggest worry is that the kids will slam something down on it and shatter the glass. The table is 60 inches in diameter - yes, it's round.
> 
> Charles



please visit this site:http://www.divasglass.com/en/Products/Crystal-glass-table-base-list_5.html


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## Kay H (May 27, 2011)

I don't know what I was tinking but my kitchen table, coffee table and 2 end tables are all glass and I hate them.  They always seem to have finger prints and I can't just dust them, I have to clean them with windex and make sure I get all the streaks out.

When my oldest son was a teen ager, he fell asleep in the living room with a candle lit on the coffee table.  The plastic flower candle ring caught on fire and burned to the table top and broke it in half.  Thank goodness my whole livingroom didn't burn.  I replaced the glass but still hate cleaning it.


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## ronparise (May 27, 2011)

You know your kids better than me...In my house its me we worry about

We have a glass table and I have  moved it several times over the last 35 years. Its pretty tough. I havent broken it yet. and its ridden in the back of a uhaul truck several times

Scratches, finger prints etc...sure you will have to deal with that


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## ace2000 (May 27, 2011)

CMF said:


> A local glass shop will cut a 1.4 inch piece of glass for $155. They don't recommend tempered glass because they say it will explode off the table if shattered. I think it's worth a try.
> 
> Charles
> 
> PS Pier 1 only has sizes up to 42 inches in diameter.


 
Have you thought about getting one second-hand?  I purchased a set from a neighbor across the street for a $100 (with chairs).  It is a very nice glass table and chairs.  

However, it's hard to tell if you're more concerned about the cost or the danger?


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## jhony32 (May 27, 2011)

*Spoiler *

I really don't want to do this but come on...kids these days.. 

If you're more than willing to stress yourself out thinking about the glass, I sure recommend that you forget about the thing TEMPORARILY. You can rethink about it after a few years.


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## Rose Pink (May 27, 2011)

jhony32 said:


> I really don't want to do this but come on...kids these days..
> 
> If you're more than willing to stress yourself out thinking about the glass, I sure recommend that you forget about the thing TEMPORARILY.* You can rethink about it after a few years. *


 Yeah, this thread was started two and a half years ago and just reopened with an advertisement from China.

Charles, what did you end up doing after all?


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## ace2000 (May 27, 2011)

Rose Pink said:


> Yeah, this thread was started two and a half years ago and just reopened with an advertisement from China.


 
LOL - sure did get things started this morning...


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## lvhmbh (May 27, 2011)

We have a very large (seats 8) octagonal glass table.  We had it frosted so you WOULDN'T see all the fingerprints and scratches (although we don't have any).  I love it.  I keep those pop up things of windex under my sink and voila it's clean
!


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## CMF (May 28, 2011)

Wow.  I'm surprise to see this thread come back up.  We had the glass custom cut, it's maybe 1/4 in thick.  Love it so far.  I don't mind wiping it down with Windex after every meal since I would have to to the same with any other surface. 

Charles


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