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Tips on Safe Garage Door
Operations
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1-877-883-6337
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Almost every home in Canada has a garage door.
In many cases
the door is operated with the use of an automatic garage
door opener. Because the door opens easily, with the touch of a
button, we
often forget that garage doors are extremely
heavy and can be dangerous. |
The best way to ensure the safe running of your garage door is to have the
door tested and make sure that both the door and opener are properly
installed. Regular maintenance and testing of all equipment is vital to
ensure safe operation. Remember, a poorly balanced door could result in
injury or even death |
| Caring about your safety! |
| Please read the following safety tips and have your door and opener
checked regularly in order to avoid injury.
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Also ensure that you have read
and understand the user
manuals which came with your door and/or opener.
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uIf
you do not have a safety manual for your garage door opener,
contact the
manufacturer and ask them to send you one right away. It
is a good idea to have the manual close at hand and not to wait until
there is a problem
to contact the manufacturer.
uIf
there is no other entrance into the garage besides your garage door
and you have an automatic opener installed, please make sure that you
have an emergency key release installed on the outside of the door at
least
6’ from the ground. Keep the key in a safe place with easy access.
If some one
is trapped in the garage or under the door and the opener
is malfunctioning or
power is cut to the garage, your emergency key
release may be the only way to
open the door.
uThere
should be a push-button installed near the garage. This
button should be at least 5 feet from the nearest standing
surface.
It must be out of reach of children. It should not be near
any
moving parts and the door should be clearly visible when
operating
the opener from the push button or transmitter. Do not move
from the line of vision until the door is fully open or
closed.
uNever
allow children to play with or near the garage door. Make
sure that the transmitters are kept out of reach of children.
Do not
let children or adults walk under a garage door when it is in
motion. |
uMake
sure that everyone is aware of the dangers incurred by irresponsible
operation of a garage door. In the same way as you
must explain to children
not to touch a hot stove, play with electrical
outlets or matches, you must
also explain to them that garage doors can be
very dangerous and also
cause injury or even death. Make sure that
everyone is aware
of the danger of being trapped in the garage or under the
garage door.
uNever
put your hands between sections or near any moving parts of the
garage door. Explain to children that if fingers are caught between
sections of the garage door or in any moving parts serious injury can
occur,
even if you do not have an automatic opener installed on the door.
uMake sure that regular
maintenance and inspections are performed on your
garage door and opener
once per year by a trained professional. Never perform
this maintenance
yourself. Door springs are under very high pressure, some
screws and
brackets are attached to the spring system through the cables and
if you
have not been properly trained you could get seriously injured.
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In between yearly maintenance you should inspect the door yourself
regularly to ensure that:
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uThe safety eyes are working correctly – place
a flat piece of wood 2 by 4
(1-1/2" thick) on the floor directly below where the opener is installed.
Push the button or transmitter to close the door. The door should reverse
within 1 to 2 seconds of making contact with the object. If your opener
was installed prior to 1993 it may not have safety photo eyes installed.
It is strongly recommended that you replace the opener with a new model
which now, by law, come with these safety features installed.
There are also some safety options which can be installed
on your existing opener. Please contact a qualified professional
to discuss these options. If the safety eyes are not reversing
correctly,
call a service repair man immediately. Disconnect the
opener
and do not use it until a repair man has checked it.
uThe door is properly balanced – If you have
an opener installed on the
door, please disconnect it before checking balance.
You should be able
to lift the door easily with 2 fingers, with a
down force weight of no more
that 3 to 5 KG. Try this simple test
to check for correct balance.
With the opener disconnected
and the door on manual, lift the door
half way. Gently remove your hand from the door,
making sure
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that your feet are clear of the opening. A properly balanced door will remain in the
half
opened position. If the door continues to close there is not enough tension on
the spring If the door starts to open, there is
too much tension on the springs
NEVER TRY TO ADJUST THE SPRING TENSION YOURSELF, you could get
seriously injured. If your door is not balanced call a repairman immediately.
An incorrectly balanced door could cause
the safety feature on your opener to
malfunction, it could also cause damage to your opener and other garage
door parts.
uCheck for wearing parts – Prevention is always the best policy, if you see
any parts that are starting to wear, have them replaced before they break.
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| Here is a list of garage door parts for you to check. |
uMake
sure that all nuts, bolts and brackets are tight and all parts are
securely fastened and not separating. Check all the panels for cracks and
signs of wear. With the door in the down position check the lift cables
for
fraying and examine the torsion spring and axles for cracks in the axle,
signs of
slippage where the torsion springs are anchored to their axles
or broken spring
segments.
uCheck
the down force/up force on your door opener – Push the button or
transmitter to close the door. As the door is coming down, grab the
bottom of
the door. If down force is properly set then the door will reverse.
Now push the
button or transmitter to open the door and grab bottom of the door
while it is
opening. If the up force is properly set then the door will stop.
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| √ Springs |
√ Shaft |
| √ Rollers |
√ Hinges |
| √ Cables |
√ Brackets |
| √ Panel Condition |
√ Tracks |
| √ Drums |
√ Strut |
| √ Center Bearing |
√ Spring Anchor |
| √ End Bearing Plate |
√ Bottom Weather Seal |
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At
Doors your safety is our first
concern. Garage door accidents can be deadly and most people know that
children should not play with matches or that faulty wiring can cause a
fire but the dangers of poor garage door maintenance are not as well
known. Now that you have educated yourself on the potential dangers, you
are half way to protecting yourself and your loved ones. Follow through
with regular maintenance visits and together we can prevent tragic
accidents through education and prevention.
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