Often being the largest opening on most homes, the garage door is usually the most vulnerable to failure under high wind pressure such as hurricanes, tornadoes and storms in general. The pressure of the wind can destroy the garage doors during a storm that allows water and wind to enter the house. This can cause significant damage to furniture, electronic equipment, the contents in general as well as the house's structure. The garage door is often overlooked when strengthening the structure against high winds.
Massive building failures and strong winds have convinced storm-prone communities that residents must be prepared to employ active or passive reinforcement systems for their garage doors. An active system is that specific type of reinforcement that must be installed before a high-wind event while passive systems are built into the product and don't need any activation from the owner. For the home owner in hurricane-prone areas there are only two real options: either a new garage door with a built in passive reinforcement system or a garage door reinforcement kit.
The option of totally replacing the garage door is usually an expensive procedure so a garage door reinforcement kit would be a good choice if your budget for remodeling your garage is low. Although is rather expensive, a new garage door offers a more secure and safe option in front of a high wind.
If you'd rather choose the cheapest option, that is to reinforce your garage door you can protect your home in one of the following ways: first of all install pressure or impact resistant devices, such as shutters, panels, accordion fold shutters on the garage doors or install pressure/impact resistant garage doors that do not require shutters. If your existing door is impact resistant but it is not wind pressure rated, install an approved garage door bracing system to increase the wind pressure resistance. A pressure/impact resistant rating ensures that the device meets the wind pressure and debris impact requirements of the Southern Building Code Congress International standards or the July 1988 wind pressure and debris impact requirements of the American Society of Civil Engineers adopted in September 1994.
When adding a garage door bracing first ensure that there is enough and relevant documentation that the product has been tested at a certified testing laboratory. The product should be designed to withstand both positive and negative wind pressure. You should contact a local garage door supplier of approved garage door bracing systems to assist you in the selection of the necessary system for your needs.
There are some issues to be aware of concerning the safety and security. For example for young children, some old garage doors can pose a risk. Even if your home is child free, you need to concern yourself with any neighbor kids, even housebreakers! that you could be held liable for if an accident were to occur. The newer models of overhead roll up garage doors feature pinch resistant or anti pinch panels. This feature makes the door safe and fingers will not get injured if stuck in the gap between panels while the door is closing.
When you have decided which type and make of your garage door that suits you, the next step is to choose a garage door opener. You will need a powerful opener if the door is heavy. An opener with at least 3/4 horsepower may be your best option. Also choose a model that uses heavy-duty, industrial-strength chains that will guarantee you years of dependable operation. If your door is of normal weight you can go for a less powerful opener.
Most garage door openers make noises and so does the door itself although some models are specifically designed to be quiet. If you want a more quiet system you need openers with very quiet belt openers. The models have flexible rubber belts that mute vibrations and eliminate the metal-to-metal contact of other chain- or screw-based models. Also more powerful systems usually work easier, smoother and are more silent.
For safety reasons an electronic eye at the base of the door automatically cause the opener to reverses during the close cycle if an object or person breaks the beam. Usually the systems work even when the door sense an excessive load on the closing mechanism, which will automatically reverse the closing or opening.
In the market two types of garage door openers are available namely jackshaft type and trolley type. Even though the jackshaft type occupies less space, the trolley type is more popular. This is because of safety; in the jackshaft type it is difficult to sense when a person or a pet is being crushed under the door.
Some modern systems have auto reverse in case of obstruction like a pet or a vehicle. The remotes generally operate up to a range of 150 feet. Also most systems have keypads that are installed outside the garage and can be used if the remote goes dead.
Many models, actually a lot of them, claim to be virtually maintenance-free. It is usually self-lubricating systems with chains that always run smoothly and make as little noise as possible. More expensive models have a kind of isolation of the motor which gives a quiet and powerful operation.
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