5 Garage Door Safety Tips Every Homeowner Should Know!

May 13, 2022

Garage Door Safety

3 minute read

Garage doors protect and secure the largest opening in your home.  Following simple yet effective garage door safety tips can increase the longevity of your garage doors; while keeping you and your loved ones safe!  Since more than 70% of homeowners use their attached garage as the main entranceway into their home, making sure you practice garage door safety is a must.  So, what can you do as a homeowner to stay safe?  Following some easy safety tips from industry leaders such as IDA and DASMA, will help guide the way.       

5 Easy But Effective Garage Door Safety Tips 

Check Your Garage Door Cables:  Your garage door cables are affected by everyday use.  DASMA recommends the following to ensure they are in proper working order:

Visually inspect the cables that attach the spring system to the bottom brackets on both sides of the door. If these cables are frayed or worn, they are in danger of breaking, which can cause injury. Due to the dangers associated with high spring tension, these cables should be replaced only by a trained garage door technician.
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Watch Your Fingers: Since your garage door is most likely the largest and heaviest opening in your home, this DASMA tip is especially important:

Every year, many unsuspecting homeowners injure their fingers by placing them between the garage door sections to pull down on the door.  According to DASMA Standard 116, if your door lacks pinch-resistant joints, you should have lift handles or suitable gripping points on the inside and outside of the door. Even if your door has a garage door opener, the garage door must occasionally be operated manually. Never place your fingers between the door sections. If you manually open or close the door, use the handles or the safe gripping points! 

Don’t Chance It; Check It:.  Your garage door opener should be equipped with a safety reverse system to ensure that the garage door is not able to close completely should something be under the door!  In fact, DASMA standards require such a system:

Since 1993, all openers manufactured for the U.S. must include a second safety reversing feature such as photoelectric eyes. These are installed near the floor. Once the invisible beam is broken, the door reverses automatically. If your opener lacks a similar safety reversing feature, it’s time to get a new opener. 

Listen for Squeaky Springs: Springs can make squeaky noise after multiple closures.  They can also make grinding or scraping sounds.  This does not necessarily mean the springs need replacing.  First, spray lubricant designed for garage doors onto the springs.  Should the noise continue, contact a professional Amarr garage door dealer near you for expert help!

Service Your Garage Doors Regularly:  Maintenance on garage doors is no different than maintaining your AC unit or changing out the batteries in smoke detectors.   A proper maintenance routine for your garage doors can make the difference in simply needing to repair a garage door versus having to replace your garage door completely.

Since May is garage door safety month, we encourage all garage door owners to explore more about garage door safety tips.