Garage Door Rules – The Proposed Rules And Requirements

In 1990, Congress enacted special legislation known as garage door rule requiring residential garage door operators to comply with the provisions of a standard published by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) to protect against entrapment. Basically CPSC proposed many certification and recordkeeping requirements and rules for automatic residential garage door openers. It was because of a large number of accidents and injuries due to garage doors. Not only the door designing and manufacturing companies, but consumers are also expected to follow these safety rules.

As a consumer the first rule for your garage door is to keep in mind that you should check your garage door and door openers on regular basis. And, educate your young children about different safety aspects and tell them how to avoid injuries. No matter what garage door opener you may have but once in a month check the door for its working by placing one inch- high block of wood in the path of the door, and close the door. According to new garage door rules, it should reverse direction within 2 seconds after striking the wooden block. If it doesn't, disconnect the opener and operate the door manually and call for authorized serviceman to repair or replace the faulty unit immediately.

As per the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 1990, all automatic residential Garage Door Operators (GDOs) manufactured on or after January 1, 1991 must conform to the entrapment protection requirements of the 1988 version of UL 325. In June 1991, the Commission issued the garage door operator standard also called CPSC mandatory safety rule. Not only this, but the Improvement Act also requires that when UL makes changes to the entrapment protection provisions of UL 325, UL must notify the Commission of the proposed changes. This is very important.

Basically, the Commission uses the information compiled and maintained by manufacturers and importers of residential garage door operators. This information is used constructively to protect consumers from risks of accidents and injuries caused by entrapment associated with garage door operators. More specifically, the Commission uses this information to determine whether the products produced and imported by those firms comply with the standard or not. The Commission also uses this information to facilitate corrective action if any residential garage door operators fail to comply with the standard in a manner that creates a substantial risk of injury to the public. We as a consumer or manufacture must follow these rules for our betterment as well as betterment of the society. The only aim of the Commission behind these rules is to make consumer products more safe, secured and comfortable.

About The Author:

John Wright is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.garage-doors-n-openers.com. Find everything you need to know about free garage plans, commercial and residential openers, installation tips, and more.