If you live in a region at risk for hurricanes, you know the importance of having secure garage doors during the storm season. Damage to garage doors is common during hurricanes, since the doors are often dislodged from their tracks.
This allows water to seep in, causing significant damage to anything in the garage. To help you secure your garage, we’ll be showing you how to secure a garage door for a hurricane.
Ways To Secure Garage Door for Hurricanes
1.Pull the cord
Although most people probably have never heard of or used it, there’s a (mostly) brightly colored cord attached to the garage door track. The term “Pull the Cord” refers to using the rope to manually disconnect the garage door from the track or carriage.
This will allow you to open the garage door whether powered or not in event of an emergency.
2. Manually lock Garage
One of the most important items to check is the manual lock. Not all manual locks are alike, and if your current one is old, rusty, or has been replaced, it may not be functioning correctly.
3. Garage Door Hurricane Brace
The Garage Door Hurricane Brace is a handy addition that can protect a garage door. It provides an extra layer of protection against strong winds. As its name suggests, it works by bracing the garage door against the wind and preventing it from moving as a result.
4. Hurricane Proof Garage Doors
Hurricane proof garage doors are a great consideration. These doors are constructed with a sturdy frame and materials that can withstand strong winds and even flying debris.
5. Garage Door Netting and Panels
For a garage door, hurricanes are the worst-case scenario. The storm’s high winds and torrential rains can dramatically weaken a door and allow it to virtually explode on its hinges. Garage door netting and panels essentially reinforce the door, helping make it safer in high-wind conditions.
6. Hurricane Insurance
Being prepared for the hurricane season is one way of showing that you are committed to your home. If you live in a hurricane prone area, you can’t do without proper insurance. It’s worth it.
How to install a garage door hurricane brace
The installation of a garage door hurricane brace is a simple 15-minute job that all homeowners should consider. A garage door with no hurricane brace or a damaged hurricane brace can easily install one in just a few minutes.
Tools Needed:
- A good drill, preferably cordless
- A sharpie or marker
- Masonry bit with a stop collar
- A shop vacuum
- A good hammer
Step One (Important):
- If you have a powered garage door, be absolutely sure to unplug it.
Step Two: Assembly
- Attach the floor flange to the base of the brace with the supplied hardware
- Both the inner and outer brace bracket have channels to slide the mounting hardware into. Go ahead and insert the hardware according to your manufacturer’s instructions.
Step Three: Upper Bracket installation:
Take your upper brace bracket and line it up above the top of the garage door at the center. Use your marker to mark where the drill holes should be. Drill your holes into the wall and attach the top brace bracket.
Loosely attach the deflection brackets to the brace. There should be two deflection brackets to attach near each garage door hinge.
Once the brackets are in place you can tighten the brackets down. We recommend using wing nuts if your brace doesn’t come with them.
Step Four: Securing the Brace
Assemble the large U-Bolt that came with the brace. Secure it over the top part of the brace assembly following the manufacturer’s instructions.
Next, it’s time to get the floor flange mount point ready. Line up the bottom of the brace so that it is resting on the garage floor.
Making sure the brace is centered and level, mark your drill holes. Now you can move the entire brace off to the side and drill the holes into your garage floor. Use your masonry bit with the stop collar so you don’t drill too deep.
Step Five: Floor Mounting
Once the holes are drilled, you’ll first drop the bolt anchors into the holes and use a set tool (hammer) to secure the anchors. You just need to tap the anchors a bit and they will lock into the holes. Vacuum any debris. Then just install the mount bolts.
The bolt heads are normally rounded so you can drive over them with no problems. Just remove the bolts whenever you need to install the brace mount.
Now it’ll take only a few minutes when you need to install your garage door brace.
Also read: How To Clean Garage Floor
Conclusion
That’s all there is to getting your garage door hurricane ready. Hopefully you enjoyed reading this article about how to secure a garage door for a hurricane. As you can tell, it’s really easy to protect your property in case of bad weather.
Remember to take precautions such as:
- Getting a garage door brace
- Manually locking your garage door
- Knowing how to use your garage door pull cord
- Getting hurricane insurance
Take care and be safe this hurricane season.
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