SANS 10400-N is the deemed-to-satisfy glazing rule under the National Building Regulations, read together with SANS 1263-1 for impact performance. It does not describe a preference. It describes where annealed glass is prohibited, and a building inspector can require the glazing to be replaced.
The position in one paragraph
SANS 10400-N sets out where glazing must resist human impact, and SANS 1263-1 defines what that resistance means in a laboratory. Together they produce a single instruction: in a defined set of locations, the glass must be safety glass of Class A, and the rest of the system must be engineered so the glass is never loaded beyond what it was tested for. A pane that satisfies neither is a liability that follows the installer, the fabricator and the professional who signed the drawing.
The six mandatory safety glazing locations
| Location | What triggers it | Minimum requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Doors and side panels | Any glazing within 300 mm of a door frame opening | Class A safety glass |
| Low-level glazing | Any pane installed lower than 800 mm from the finished floor level | Class A safety glass |
| Bathrooms and wet areas | All shower cubicles, bath screens and panels within 2.1 m of the floor | Toughened safety glass, minimum 6–8 mm, or 10 mm for frameless; laminated safety glass also accepted |
| Overhead and roof glazing | Skylights, rooflights, canopies and any glazing above head height | Laminated safety glass, so shards are retained on failure rather than falling |
| Frameless doors and balustrades | Structural glass with no frame to hold the panel in place | Toughened or toughened laminated: 10–12 mm for post systems; 12–15 mm and heavier for base-channel cantilevered systems, per SANS 10160 line loads |
| Public and hazard areas | Mirrors in gyms, dance studios, schools, malls and change rooms | Foil-backed safety mirror or mechanically secured safety glass |
SANS 10400-N, with impact performance per SANS 1263-1.
The mistake we are called to fix most often
3 mm or 4 mm annealed float glass in a door or a door-side panel. It is cheap, it is what a bakkie glazier carries, and it breaks into large shards at the exact height a child's hand rests. It fails the 300 mm door rule and the 800 mm low-level rule simultaneously. There is no repair for it other than replacement.
Choosing the right assembly for the opening
Minimum compliance is not the same as a correct specification. The application decides whether toughened, laminated or toughened laminated is right: toughened glass is stronger but releases into small blunt dice on failure, while laminated glass holds its shards on the interlayer and stays in the opening. Overhead, in a public space, or anywhere a failed pane could fall on a person, the interlayer is what protects you.
Specification by application
| Application | Typical specification | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Frameless shower door | 10 mm toughened, polished edges, 8 mm minimum for a framed enclosure | Wet-area rule plus the bending load carried by exposed hinges |
| Aluminium sliding door glazing | 6 mm toughened, or 6.38 mm laminated to a 300 mm door-side zone | Door and side-panel rule; laminated also satisfies the security and solar brief |
| Shopfront and entrance screens | 10–12 mm toughened; laminated in the pedestrian impact zone | Public occupancy and trolley/traffic impact |
| Glass balustrade, post system | 10–12 mm toughened laminated | Line load shared between the posts and the glass |
| Glass balustrade, base channel | 12–15 mm+ toughened laminated on a structural base shoe | Cantilevered panel takes the full line load at the base |
| Skylight or rooflight | 6.38 mm or 8.38 mm laminated, or a sealed DGU with a laminated inner pane | Overhead glazing must retain its shards |
| Gym or studio mirror | 4–6 mm mirror on a foil backing, mechanically fixed | Impact in a public space must not release flying glass |
| Free-standing glass partition | 10 mm toughened, or 12 mm toughened laminated for a full-height span | Low-level glazing and human impact |
Deflection is part of the glazing rule, not a separate engineering problem
Glass only performs as tested if the frame holds it within its design deflection. Over-deflect the framing and the edge stresses rise, the sealant opens and a water-penetration test fails even though the glass itself is correct. AAAMSA deflection limits exist precisely so the glazed opening stays within the performance that was certified.
Deflection limits
| Condition | Limit |
|---|---|
| Aluminium framing under wind load | L/175 of the span, or 20 mm, whichever is less |
| Exposed single glass edge | L/65 of the span |
What voids compliance, whatever the glass
- 01A door or door-side panel glazed in annealed float glass, regardless of thickness.
- 02A wet-area panel installed without toughened or laminated safety glass, even if it looks heavy.
- 03A mirror in a gym or studio fixed with adhesive only, with no mechanical restraint.
- 04A base-channel balustrade built from a panel thinner than the line load demands.
- 05A safe pane of glass held in a frame that deflects beyond L/175 under the site's wind load.