Put Safety First To Prevent Garage Door Injuries

Most people use their garage doors every day, not necessarily considering them a possible safety hazard. However, when not used correctly, or repairs are attempted without the right tools or knowledge, they can cause serious injury. Garage doors can weigh hundreds of pounds, plus contain many moving parts which can be dangerous if the proper safety precautions are not followed. 

Garage Door Safety Tips

Most garage doors have many safety features to protect users from injury, such as sensors to prevent closure on objects or people. However, like any device, it is possible for these features to malfunction, especially if they aren’t maintained. To keep your family and your home safe, it’s important to follow a few basic safety rules. 

  • Child safety. Children should be educated on garage door safety. These are not toys; children should not operate garage doors without adult supervision. Explain to kids to always beware of a closing garage door, and to stay away from the doorway until it is completely closed or open.
     
  • Maintenance. Simple maintenance can help prevent many injuries. An annual tune-up by your garage door service company can ensure all parts are working correctly, including your safety features.
     
  • Repairs. Many DIY homeowners have been seriously injured trying to handle garage door repairs on their own. Springs, cables and other load bearing parts should only be repaired or replaced by trained professionals. 

Putting safety first when it comes to garage doors can prevent injuries and protect you and your family from harm. Always be cautious when operating your garage door, and call in a professional for any major repairs or problems to ensure your safety.

Posted on behalf of Habpro

Adjusting Garage Door Limit Switches

Automatic garage door openers are equipped with several mechanisms that help ensure safe and proper operation.  These include the opening and closing limit switches, the opening and closing force mechanism, and the reverse contact mechanism.  All of these are usually set when the opener is installed, but sometimes need to be adjusted.

Be very careful when making any adjustments to your garage door opener or doing any kind of garage door repairs.  Garage doors are heavy moving objects and can easily cause a serious injury.  If you are uncomfortable at all with adjusting the garage door, please allow an experienced garage door service professional to handle the adjustments.

The open and close limit switches control how far the door opens and closes.  If the garage door stops before opening or closing completely, you may need to adjust the open or close limit switches.  Also, if the door closes completely, but then immediately reverses direction you may need to adjust the close limit switch.  What is happening here is that the opener is trying to close the door too hard and reversing safety feature is being activated.

Your owner’s manual will provide the details for your specific opener, but in general you can locate the switch adjustment knobs on the back or side of the opener power head.  They may be behind a panel or under the light cover.  You will probably need a flathead screwdriver to adjust the switch.  Turning the adjusting knob in one direction or the other adjusts where the door stops in the open or closed position.  Make small adjustments and operate the door to check the open and closed adjustments.  Continue making adjustments as necessary.