Garage doors come in many shapes and sizes, but one of the first things that every garage owner must decide is whether they want a manual or automatic garage door option. There are quite a few benefits to installing an automatic garage door, but there are some negatives too. You must decide whether the benefits outweigh the downsides for you, whether you are installing a brand new garage door, or you are considering upgrading your manual garage door to an automatic one.
Those who have experienced the convenience that an automatic garage door offers will likely never go back to a manually opening door. Especially in bad weather, there’s no better feeling than a simple click of the button keeping you and your belongings dry. That being said, that same storm might bring with it power outages that could leave your garage door incapacitated and you stuck out in the cold. On the flip side, when you’re inside the garage with no power and you need to get out for work it’s important to have manual open option in your garage door.
While you may have not been in this situation before, chances are you have experienced something similar. If you are one of the many homeowners who has a garage installed on their property, you have grown accustomed to using the electronic opener and would not even think to do things manually. Now that you think about it, could you open your garage door manually if you had to?
Garage doors are heavy pieces of machinery, and we tend to rely solely on electric openers when using them. The situation mentioned above, as well as many others will require you to use manual force to open your door from time to time so where should you start?
Chances are that you have seen the rope hanging from the box that opens your garage. This rope tends to have some sort of handle at the end, and when pulled, it puts your garage in manual mode. Now do be aware that pulling this rope will disengage the trolly from the rails, and if your door is partially open, it could come crashing down. Once the rope has been pulled and the door is no longer connected, you should be able to move it up and down with ease, as most garaged doors are weighted to do so.
If you are expecting the power outage to last for a while, or simply need to use the door in manual mode for a while, you can pull the rope down and towards the back of your garage o fully disengage the doors electric functions. Once power has fully been restored to your area, you will need to do the opposite to reconnect the door to the tracks. Simply pull down the roe once again, but this time towards the front of the garage and away from the motor. This forces the springs to reconnect and kicks your garage back into automatic mode.
Those who have experienced the convenience that an automatic garage door offers will likely never go back to a manually opening door. Especially in bad weather, there’s no better feeling than a simple click of the button keeping you and your belongings dry. That being said, that same storm might bring with it power outages that could leave your garage door incapacitated and you stuck out in the cold. On the flip side, when you’re inside the garage with no power and you need to get out for work it’s important to have manual open option in your garage door.
After all the trouble with your automatic garage door it’s good to be Staying in Manual Mode
The red rope controls the spring attachment in the trolley. If the power is going to be out for a long period of time or the opener motor is malfunctioning, then you may have to stay in manual mode. When you want to continually open the door in manual mode it’s important to pull the rope down and towards the back of the garage (or the motor) so that it doesn’t get caught on the tracks.
It’s important to get familiar with the layout of the garage door opener spring mechanism in non-emergency situations. If you’re locked out when the power is out and the garage is your main way of accessing the home, it may be possible to release the lever from the outside. Placing a shim in the weather stripping near the top of the garage and sliding a bent clothes hanger in to flip the lever will enable the door to be opened manually. Of course, this is a great security risk, so you’ll have to weigh the options on whether installing a secure shield or being able to engage your door manually from outside is more important.
To be safe and lower risks, it is best to hire a professional garage door specialist. The specialist can determine and address the problems of your garage door and propose a feasible solution. Feel free to contact us any time for help. Call Yuval at (215) 805-9209 or visit SecureGarages.com – don’t forget our Awesome Amazon Local Deal! Garage adjustment, reconditioning + safety inspection. and for another $34 we will replace up to 8 rollers! Mention Code: Secure4Sure10 to get another 10% off your order!
