If you’re like most homeowners, you probably don’t think of your garage door as a potential weapon. But you should. Garage doors are one of the heaviest objects in your home, weighing sometimes as much as 600 pounds, and they do cause thousands of injuries each year in the United States alone.
While garage doors and garage door openers are much safer than they used to be, things can still go wrong. People can be careless about safety around them, particularly where children are concerned. They can also neglect important maintenance.
One very important safety aspect on a garage door is the reversing mechanism. After several children were killed by garage doors in the early 1980s, the industry adopted standards by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission requiring reversing mechanisms on all newly manufactured garage doors. In 1992, those voluntary standards became mandatory.
Now, every new garage door is equipped with a reversing mechanism which consists of two parts:
Garage Door Opener – The garage door opener’s motor senses resistance, and reverses the door’s direction if a certain amount of resistance is met.
Infrared Sensors – These are usually mounted on garage door frame about six inches high. If anything comes in contact with the sensors, the door won’t work.
The CPSC recommends installing a new garage door opener if your existing opener predates 1982. CPSC also suggests checking the reversing mechanism every month to see if it is working properly. This can be done by placing a block of wood on the floor under the door. If when you operate the door, it does not stop and reverse at the wood, the mechanism should be adjusted or repaired. You could do this yourself using your operator’s manual, or you can contact a reputable garage door service technician.
