Is Your Garage Door Safe?

Garage doors can cause injury and property damage (including expensive damage to the door itself) in several different ways. The most common causes of injury from garage door systems include falling doors, pinch points, improperly adjusted opener force settings and safety eyes, attempts at do-it-yourself repair without the proper knowledge or tools, and uncontrolled release of spring tension (on torsion spring systems).

A garage door with a broken spring, or the wrong strength spring, can fall. Because the effective mass of the door increases as the garage door sections transfer from the horizontal to vertical door tracks, a falling garage door accelerates rapidly. A free-falling garage door can cause serious injury or death.

The sections and rollers on garage doors represent a major pinch hazard. Children should never be allowed near a moving garage door for this reason. On manually operated garage doors, handles should be installed vertically, to promote "vertical orientation of the hand".

Mechanical garage door openers can pull or push a garage door with enough force to injure or kill people and pets if they become trapped. All modern openers are equipped with “force settings” that make the door reverse if it encounters too much resistance while closing or opening. Any garage door opener sold in the United States after 1992 requires safety eyes—sensors that prevent the door from closing if obstructed. Force settings should cause a door to stop or reverse on encountering more than approximately 20 lbs (9.07 kg) of resistance. Safety eyes should be installed a maximum of six inches above the ground. Many garage door injuries, and nearly all garage door-related property damage, can be avoided by following these precautions.

Certain parts, especially springs, cables, bottom brackets, and spring anchor plates, are under extreme tension. Injuries can occur if parts under tension are removed.

Extension spring systems should always be restrained by a safety cable that runs through the middle of the spring, tying off to a solid point at the rear and front of the horizontal door track. The safety cable prevents hazards to bystanders when a spring, pulley, or cable breaks under tension and makes the system quite safe.

Torsion spring systems can be very dangerous as they are always under tension and release energy when the spring fails. Serious injury or death can be caused by the projectile pieces of a failed torsion spring. Many people have been injured or killed trying to adjust torsion springs, and special training and procedures are required to safely adjust a torsion spring, it is a job for a professional not a homeowner or DIYer.

Article source : Wikipedia

How long have people used garage doors?

The history of the garage door could date back to 450 BC when chariots were stored in gatehouses, but in the United States, they arose around the start of the 20th century. As early as 1902, American manufacturers—including Cornell Iron Works—published catalogs featuring a "float over door." Evidence of an upward-lifting garage door can be found in a catalog in 1906.

A typical version of an overhead garage door used in the past would have been built as a one-piece panel. The panel was mounted on each side with unequal parallelogram style hinge lifting mechanism. Newer versions of overhead garage doors are now generally built from several panels hinged together that roll along a system of tracks guided by rollers. The weight of the door may be 400 lb (180 kg) or more, but is balanced by either a torsion spring system or a pair of extension springs. A remote controlled motorized mechanism for opening garage doors adds convenience, safety, and security.

The Importance of Your Garage Door

Your garage door is an essential part of your home. Besides keeping your residence safe from intruders, an attractive and properly working garage door can also improve your home’s curb appeal, help with energy savings, and increase the home’s value.

Garage Doors and Home Safety

A garage door is the largest entry into your house, so you want to be sure it is safe against intruders making an unwanted entry. You also want it to be safe to use for people living in your home.

Many home invaders gain access to a house through the garage door, but you can prevent this by taking the proper preventative action.

Thieves sometimes cruise around neighborhoods with a garages door openers, looking for a door that opens using the same electronic codes. Often, they target homes that look unoccupied and where the residents appear to be away on vacation.

When you go away for an extended time, unplugging the garage door opener or installing a vacation lock keeps thieves out. Another option is installing a garage door opener with a rolling code technology.

Rolling codes garage door openers automatically change the electronic code needed to open the door each time the opener is used. Doing this makes it next to impossible for someone to open the door using another opener.

A poorly operating garage door can also be a significant safety hazard for people who use it. Two of the most important safety features are the electronic eyes that prevent the door from closing onto a person or pet and an emergency release mechanism for opening the door in the event of a power failure.

Your garage door specialist can efficiently and economically install a rolling code garage door opener, vacation lock, and sensors to prevent an accident and to keep thieves from entering your home through the garage.

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Surprising Facts About Home Garages

The garage is one of the hardest working spaces in your house. But how much do you really know about garages and how they’re actually used by homeowners?

35 surprising home garage stats and facts

> 55% of Americans spend 1-2 hours each week in the garage doing hobbies and other activities. (Impulse Research survey)

> A 2-car garage in an average-sized home comprises approximately 13-15% of the home’s overall square footage.

> Only 11% of homeowners say they’re satisfied with their garage and wouldn’t want to improve it. (Wall Street Journal survey)

> When purchasing a home, 80% of buyers factor in the garage when making their decision. (Impulse Research survey)

> Five famous companies that started in the garage: Apple, Amazon, Disney, Google, and Harley-Davidson.

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Are Garage Doors the New Front Door?

In the last several decades, it has become a common trend for most Americans to use the garage door as the primary entrance to their home instead of the front door. In fact, surveys over the last fifteen years have found that up to 70% of homeowners enter their home exclusively through the garage door. This information has several important impacts for those who are either selling their home or looking to buy a new one. It means that you should now be considering visual appeal, safety, and convenience for a garage door system.

Visual Appeal
Since the garage door has been dubbed the “New Front Door,” it has become even more important that you apply careful consideration to its visual design. In the same way that a brightly colored or elegantly designed front door makes a statement for your home, your garage door needs to be striking to add to your curb appeal. After all, this is likely the entrance that a potential homebuyer will notice first.

To ensure that your garage door creates a great first impression for your home, consider updating the style or exterior finish. Carriage house and modern style garage doors are both eye-catching options that go a long way to elevate the beauty of your home. Whether you choose an elegant carriage design with a clean white finish or a bold statement piece like a modern full-view glass door, the effort you place into the garage exterior will be noticeable to buyers. Maybe your current garage door is only a few years old, but you want to give it some new life. Consider repainting the exterior, replacing the hardware, and giving the windows a thorough wash. Just these small, affordable steps could be the difference in making that great first impression.

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