June is here, and with the longer days and scorching temperatures come observations such as Flag Day, Father’s Day and Garage Door Safety Month. You probably weren’t expecting that last one; you might think that as long as your garage door is opening and shutting as expected, you don’t need to worry about potential safety issues. Well, since summer is here and your garage is probably being used a lot, between taking the cars in and out, working on various projects and having the kids take their bikes out with friends, now’s a great time to make sure that your garage door is up to current safety standards.

Take a few minutes and carefully go over the condition of your garage door, as well as some of your habits as they pertain to the way that you use this particular appliance:

• Make sure kids know that the garage door is not a toy.

  Keep the controller in a safe place away from young children, and don’t let kids open or close the door without your permission and supervision. Never let children play games where they attempt to run under the garage door while it is closing; this can result in tragedy. 

• Watch carefully as you open and close the garage door.

  Be sure that the door is sliding up and down smoothly, without going off-kilter, with one side sticking in a higher or lower position than the other side.

• Inspect the garage’s cables, brackets and springs.

  With the garage door in both the opened and closed positions, check to see that all of the brackets are tight; loose brackets can cause injury. Make sure that the cables are not frayed or worn-looking, and check the springs for signs of wear.

• Conduct a paper towel test.

  Lay a roll of paper towels on the floor under the open door, then use the controller to close it. If the auto-reverse function of your garage door is working properly, as soon as the door touches the paper towel roll, it should immediately begin opening again. 

• Don’t keep the controller in your car
  
  Some home invasions have been enabled after the homeowner left the garage door controller in an unattended vehicle, whether locked or unlocked.

• Don’t leave the garage door partially open.

  Not only does this give critters and people access to your garage and possibly your house, but the garage door might begin to close if the controller or wall-mounted button is touched, and someone standing in the way might not have much time to react.

If you notice any issues with the condition of your garage door, do not attempt to fix them yourself; unless you are a trained professional, you may do more harm than good. The safest route is to contact a local garage door installation expert, who can safely repair your garage door and examine it for further damage at the same time. Some professionals specializing in garage door repair in the Phoenix area include GarageAZ, Sun Devil Garage Doors and A Authentic Garage Doors Service Company.

Don’t let a garage door accident injure someone or cause damage; carefully check over your garage door this June, during Garage Door Safety Month!

Author Resource: Michelle Kulas writes about June is Garage Door Safety Month, Arizona Garage Makeovers. Arizona Garage Makeovers is an affordable and reliable Company for a Custom Garage in Phoenix.

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