This post is written and brought to you by a Jersey Kids sponsor.
Without a doubt, garage doors bring great convenience to us. They serve as entryways, protect our valuables, and give space for some home activities. However, garage doors operate under massive amounts of tension.
This tension poses a hazard to children when your garage door is not maintained. A garage door also has sharp parts and components that can wear off and cause accidents. You should prevent these unwanted mishaps to keep your family safe, by childproofing the hazardous parts of your garage door.
On top of the list, you should consider childproofing your garage door since it is the largest moving part of your house. Now, the question is how to keep children safe around garage doors? There are several ways you can do it.
Educate your children
Clearly communicate with your children about the danger of being around your garage door. Help them know that garage doors are not like toys and should not be part of any games they play.
The information you teach your children should include:
- They should never ride the garage door when it is opening.
- They should never race under the doors when it is closing.
- The kids should not leave their toys or bikes in the garage door’s path.
- They should never touch any components of the door.
- The kids must remain away from the door when it is operating.
Carefully explain to your kids that garage doors are heavy and can cause serious consequences when playing around them.
Conduct regular maintenance
Staying on top of your garage door maintenance is the best way to ensure the system is running smoothly. You should conduct a simple inspection to check the parts and components, to ensure they are still intact and working properly. Most garage doors tend to have worn-out springs, cables, or other mechanical components.
It is highly appropriate to consider having a professional technician inspect for invisible issues and perform a proper repair such as garage door spring repair. Using a garage door with broken mechanical components can cause serious accidents, not just to the little ones, but to you as well. Therefore, you should have regular maintenance and professional garage door repair. You can always find a company near you in a local business directory.
Booking an appointment for a professional tune-up can save you money as well because the technicians can spot small problems before they get worse. It is advisable to do this once or twice per year.
Use the reverse mechanism and check the sensors
The reverse mechanism is an important feature because your garage door will automatically reverse when there is something or someone blocking the path. You should include this safety feature if your garage door doesn’t have one.
It is also essential to test the reverse mechanism at least once a month. You can do the testing by blocking your garage door with an object like a piece of wood and see if the door reverses when you try to close it. If yes, then your reverse mechanism is still in good condition.
On the other hand, your sensor may be having difficulty recognizing blockages if the reverse mechanism doesn’t work. You can clean or wipe the sensor to get rid of the cobwebs or dust that can cause the interruption.
Call a technician for a professional garage door repair if the reverse mechanism is broken.
Keep the opener and remote out of reach
Kids love to play with buttons or anything they can press. You can give them a warning not to touch the remote for garage doors but you cannot always know that they won’t play with it. Thus, storing your remote control out of your children’s reach is a smart way to prevent them from playing with the garage door.
Moreover, it is recommended to reposition the garage door opener to a higher location where the young ones can’t reach it. You can ask for a technician to do this job for you.
Seal the gaps of your garage door
Closing the garage door leaves small gaps underneath. Thus, it is crucial to seal these gaps with a rubber weather-stripping so that your garage door will close completely.
A small gap can tempt the kids to put their hands underneath the door where they can get stuck or worse, accidentally get hurt. Sealing the gaps will prevent unwanted mishaps and it also provides great insulation for your garage.
Final thoughts
Make your home a child-friendly environment by getting rid of the hazards. It is important to start with the big ones such as garage doors, the largest moving component of a house. It is highly advisable to educate your children too about the consequences that could happen if they play around the garage door without your supervision.
Moreover, having a regular check-up and garage door repair will surely prevent it from sudden malfunctions that can cause serious accidents. Hire a reputable company with skilled and dependable technicians to access high-quality services such as garage door spring repair, track adjustment, and other maintenance services.