Your Garage Door And Kids
Many households use their garage door as one of their primary entrance ways into their homes. The garage door is often convenient. They can pull their car right into the garage and in most cases use another door that leads into the home. This allows them to enter the home without fighting rain or snow and usually makes their trip with armfuls of shopping bags shorter. However, if you have young children in your home, then you want to make sure you take extra steps to keep them safe around your garage door and to make sure it is in safe condition at all times. Here are some things to watch for with your garage door and to ensure your child's safety around it.
Educate your child
The first thing you want to do is to educate your child on the garage door. Explain to them how it works and how it can injure them. Show them a clear line they don't want to cross. If there is a line on the flooring of your garage you can use, then use that as the safety line. If there isn't, then you can create one with sidewalk chalk or by showing them a spot on the wall they don't want to cross. Remind your child often to make sure they aren't past the line without you.
Explain to your child how the springs work, show them where the springs and hinges are and explain just how dangerous they can be if little hands should get near them. Children can be curious about mechanical things and teaching them all about something can be the best way to feed that curiosity, so they don't feel the need to touch or get up close. Also, let your child know they should tell you right away if they ever see a spring that is broken into two pieces.
Watch your garage door's safety eyes
Your garage door will have safety eyes if it is an automatic opening garage door. You will see small boxes with lenses in the front and that are located about a half-a-foot off the ground. They are attached to the side of the track and need to be in the right position in order to work correctly.
These eyes look directly at each other and will prevent the garage door from closing if anything blocks the connection between the two. However, if the connection is lost due to misalignment, then the garage door can also refuse to close for you. If the eyes aren't working, then the door can end up left open without your knowledge. This can be dangerous when you have a child who can get right out of the garage, should they decide to go wandering off in search of adventure.
Not only do the eyes need to be looking at one another, they also need to be cleaned to ensure that dirt doesn't block their connection.
Watch the reinforcement struts
If you have double garage doors, you may also have reinforcement struts that can resemble a ladder and are located on the interior side of the garage door. It's very important to educate your child on the potential danger that would come from trying to climb on them.
Keep the garage door functioning properly
If your garage door is noisier or having jerking motions, or any part has broken, then you need to have it repaired right away. When there is one thing wrong with the door that goes unfixed, it can lead to other problems with its mechanics. Contact a garage door repair service for more help.