Over 15 Years of Experience 
Reports have shown that nearly 30,000 people in the U.S. suffer physical injuries every year due to garage door malfunctions. A large contributor to injury or damage from a garage door is the lack of safety sensors or malfunctioning safety sensors. Safety sensors are a key component of a garage door system, installed to ensure the proper functioning of the door by preventing the door from closing on anything in its path.
The Role Of Sensors
The primary purpose of a safety sensor is to ensure that objects, vehicles, or even people are not in the way of the garage door’s path as it closes. Most garage doors have two sensors that are placed on both sides of the door, typically close to ground level. These sensors communicate through infrared beams and are connected to a control system that sends signals to the opener. Whenever this beam is interrupted, the sensor sends directions to the garage door to stop closing, thereby making sure that people, pets, property and vehicles are protected.
When The Sensors Malfunction
Every now and then, the safety sensors do malfunction, creating a potentially dangerous situation. People entering the garage as it is closing could get injured because the garage door will not know to stop. If you are noticing that your garage door does not close despite something being in the way, or if perhaps the garage door does not close when something is not blocking the sensors, it might be a clear indication that there is something wrong with your garage door sensor.
Ensuring Properly Functioning Safety Sensors
Though it is impossible to guarantee that the sensors will always perform well, you can take some simple steps to make sure that the safety sensors on your garage door are functioning correctly.
Proper installation is key factor for ensuring that safety sensors are working correctly. Garage door safety sensors should be installed correctly on every garage with a motorized opener. Sensors should be no more than 6 inches from the ground at the bottom of the garage door. Safety sensors should be even with each other in order to ensure a clear path for the infrared beam.
Salt Lake City Garage Door Service
Finally, no matter how tempted you might be, you should not attempt to install or repair components of your garage door system, including sensors, by yourself. Inexperience could cause even more damage. To ensure that your garage door system is functioning properly and that the very important safety sensors are in good working order, trust in the professional garage door repair service from Universal Garage Door Repair. Call us today at (801) 784-4550 for experience in repair, replacing or installing safety sensors or to address any other garage door issue.
Universal Garage Door Repair
2150 South 1300 East, Suite 500
Salt Lake City, UT 84106
(801) 784-4550