Roller Shutter Garage Doors: Key Safety Considerations

But not everything is so clear-cut. The rising popularity of roller garage doors has also led to an influx in cheaper models, many of which fail to comply with current safety legislation. 

As a member of the Door & Hardware Federation (DHF), it is our duty to raise awareness of such problems and ensure that you have all the information you need to protect you and your family from harm.

The Benefits Of Roller Shutters

Before we cover safety considerations, let’s first explore why somebody might choose a roller garage door for their home. They certainly have several practical and aesthetic advantages, and an understanding of these can help us to become more familiar with the risks behind them. 

Firstly, because they open vertically, roller shutters are perfect for homeowners looking to use their garage as an extension of their property. Many of our customers have chosen to do this in the form of offices, playrooms or workshops. A double skin aluminium lath, supplied as standard with roller garage doors, offers a level of insulation to make this additional space more appealing. 

Like other models, roller shutters can also be purchased in a number of attractive colours and finishes, which allows homeowners to select a finish that suits their existing décor. They can be made to virtually any size too, meaning there are very few restrictions in terms of design. 

Perhaps the biggest advantage of insulated roller garage doors is how easily they can be automated. Both handheld transmitters and wall button options are available to achieve this automation. And it’s this design feature that has the biggest impact on garage door safety. 

DHF Advice On Roller Shutter Doors For Garages

So what do you need to be aware of? 

Whether they’re roller shutters, sectional doors or otherwise, automatic garage doors are legally recognised as machines. Manufacturers must therefore fit their products with safety features to reduce the risk of injury to people or animals. 

To aid your understanding of these safety features, the DHF have created a helpful video. You can watch this in full here, but just in case you’d rather see everything written down, you can find the key points below: 

• ‘Hold to run’ is a popular type of automated garage door mechanism. Pressing and holding a wall-mounted push button will trigger the garage shutter to move up or down. The shutter will stop when the button is released.

• Manufacturers have different interpretations of how homeowners with ‘hold to run’ controls should be protected. Garage openers that only work when the door is in sight do not require extra safety features.

• As the door must always be in sight when ‘hold to run’ is being used, there is some legitimate debate as to whether handheld transmitters should be used on this type of system.

• The alternative to ‘hold to run’ is remote control. This gives the convenience of operating the door using a handheld transmitter.  

• Doors that open remotely require additional safety measures. Examples of such measures include safety edges and light curtains. Safety edges force the door to stop and retract upon contact with an object or person. By contrast, light curtains use light beams to detect obstructions and will retract safely before any contact is made. 

Doorfit: Trusted Suppliers Of Roller Shutter Garage Doors 

Doorfit has been supplying many different types of garage door to customers since 1953. We are proud of our reputation for quality and will never install a garage door without first taking into account any necessary safety and security features. 

If you are interested in maximising the space in your garage, we have a number of roller shutter doors to view in our Birmingham showroom. These include: 

• Hörmann RollMatic and Hörmann RollMatic T 
• Garador GaraRoll and Garador GaraGlide
• AlluGuard 77 and AlluGuard 55

To receive an accurate roller shutter quotation for your property, please schedule your FREE home survey with the team today.