Garage - No Man Door

[socaldano]

OK, to answer the question, like how to get into the garage in a blackout or other failure. The method to "meet code" is to keep a battery powered circular saw inside the house or courtyard, slyly mark where the 18" vertical studs are. Then in a crisis, you just cut the emergency hole, repair it later (or put a door in the holes place), making sure there is NO plumbing or electrical which you might hit.

I have that "theoretical" problem with a non attached garage where SOMEBODY (me) blocked the side door with stuff so it wont open (it was swollen shut anyways). And apparently someone killed the power to the garage door opener and I can't figure out which of the 5 electrical panels they killed the power. 5 panels you ask????? This started as a 1 bedroom church parsonage. But they started adding on, about 5 additions best I can tell, 3 massive additions are for sure. Half the house is a doctors office the other half is house and additional areas are "living space". So we might have to cut out the windows in the door push someone through to pull the emergency release on the main garage door so we can start tracing the electrical issue.

I might ask the building inspector what is acceptable to the city for a second access. Can I just frame in a window that we can crawl in? Can I make a doggie door or lawnmower door for emergencies. If you have this issue, other houses in your area probably have them.

 

[socaldano]

This situation occurs all the time. You can buy a cable that attaches to the disconnect and feeds through the garage door to the exterior face of the door. On the exterior face, there is a keyed lock that releases the pull cable.
This can be a DIY project, or any garage door installation company can do it for you. Here’s an example:
https://www.amazon.com/RI-KEY-SECURITY-Universal-Emergency-Disconnect/dp/B01AOREGHQ

Also, if your local electrical utility is unreliable and you are concerned about power outages, you can replace your garage door opener with a newer model that has a built-in battery backup. In California, retailers are only allowed to sell openers equipped with battery backup. The requirement was enacted after a wildfire swept through a town, and there were people who had lost power and were not physically able to manually lift their garage door, so they were unable to self-evacuate via their own cars.

I have yet to find a garage door "too heavy to lift"... the springs take all the weight off of them. More likely the people were not prepared and had no clue as to how to open the door manually, AND they didn't think to open the door BEFORE fire killed the power. Requiring battery backup is stupid, as the battery is never tested and fails.. Planning/Training, an emergency counterweight, and a pull rope that doesn't hang over the middle of the car would be a better idea.

Which fire was that "The camp fire" which is really a story about Government Officials who belong in Prison for mass manslaughter. More than even the Palisades or Altadena fires.

 

[Yikes]

I have yet to find a garage door "too heavy to lift"... the springs take all the weight off of them. More likely the people were not prepared and had no clue as to how to open the door manually, AND they didn't think to open the door BEFORE fire killed the power. Requiring battery backup is stupid, as the battery is never tested and fails.. Planning/Training, an emergency counterweight, and a pull rope that doesn't hang over the middle of the car would be a better idea.

Which fire was that "The camp fire" which is really a story about Government Officials who belong in Prison for mass manslaughter. More than even the Palisades or Altadena fires.

I didn’t say “too heavy to lift”. I said “not physically able”. That could include, for example, people in wheelchairs.

I had to replace my opener a few years ago. Power has shut off several times - - this is California in the 21st century - - and the built-in battery backup has worked great.