When installed and functioning properly, garage doors pose virtually no safety risks to your family members. Yet, as with any other home system, it’s a good idea to check in once in awhile to ensure your doors are working well. Your safety is the number one priority for the team at MP Garage Doors. Based in Dothan, AL, the garage door company has provided exceptional installation and repair services to the Southeast Alabama tri-state area.

Here are three tips recommended by the team for checking on the safety of your garage doors:

• Check the Down Force: When a closing door fails to stop after coming into contact with an obstruction, it becomes a risk for injuries. This is likely due to the fact that the down force settings are too high. To test yours, place a piece of wood, such as a 2-by-4 flat, on the floor where your door would normally hit. If the door fails to go in the reverse direction, turn the down force control counterclockwise and repeat the process until it reverses effectively.

• Check the Open Force: The same way garage doors have a down force option, they also have varying degrees of open force. You can run a similar experiment to check the open force setting— grab the garage door when it’s about halfway up. If it doesn’t stop, decrease the open force and repeat the experiment, making adjustments as needed.
• Check the Photoelectric Eyes: Photoelectric eyes detect obstructions to prevent your garage door from closing if a person, vehicle, or another object is passing through. To verify yours are installed and functioning, wave something in front of the eye beam as the door is in motion. Should your door fail to stop and return to the open position, your photoelectric eye is either out of place, installed incorrectly, or is no longer working.

If your garage doors don’t pass the safety tests described above, call MP Garage Doors at (334) 793-2089 to discuss available solutions. You can also learn more about the company’s available services by clicking here. If you want to stay up-to-date on social media, follow them on Twitter.