Well the wife hit the door pretty good tonight. I think I can bend it back, but geeze... [ Truth be told, I whacked it myself *lightly* about a year ago, but let's keep that private, ok? ]
Anywho's -- is there some sort of a bumper or low-cost crush thingy that would make a racket as you back into it with the door down?
Seems to me there's a market in there somewhere. Surely the worlds got enuff idiots, like me, to warrant a solution!
Posted a picture for you in alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking.
You could replace the rear view mirror with one since she does not look into it ;)
How about hanging something on the track that would be visible right in front of the windshield with the door down and retract as it goes up? Maybe a pulley and rope deal to move it.
If you drive into your garage door, I doubt there is any product that will be idiot-proof enought to stop you. (except maybe new headlights or glasses.)
Not to mock your pain here, but who starts a car without opening the garage door first?
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+ A wheelbarrow! Why didn't you say we had a wheelbarrow; you should have included that in our list of assets! Westley -- Princess Bride +------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+"patrick conroy" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@armada.sprintco.bbn.net:
Whatinthehell is the car doing in the garage anyhow? That's where all the power tools go! Cars are waterproof.
Of course, when SWMBO hoses off the roll-up garage door, about 5 minutes before I open it, the cabinet saw gets a bath. It needed cleaning anyway. The door AND the cabinet saw.
My condolences regards the door.
Patriarch
I was teaching the oldest son to drive a manual transmission a dozen years ago, stopping and starting on the street to get used to the clutch. He had it mastered good enough to call it a successful training opportunity, so I told him to park the truck in front of the garage, in my normal parking spot... I hope you see the problem I didn't see. He idled the truck down the incline of the drive toward the desired parking spot, I guess we both thought it not under power till that loud noise. The V8 engine refused to stall and the rear tires skipped on the pavement a few times, sort of like a jack hammer. He creamed the brick veneer wall next to the door as well as pushing the door, framing lumber and track in about 6 inches. I pulled out the pushed in parts, and did a little tuck-pointing. The only way to keep him from doing it again was to ban him from the driveway. He parked on the street through college and till he was into his mid twenties and still hesitates when turning in...
Jack
Too low tech. I'm thinking maybe an interlock between the opener rail and the ignition switch in the car. A simple solid state relay (on its own
220V, 30A circuit ((4 wire, just in case you might want to do "something" in the future)) of course, with PVC conduit and ground braid wrapped around it) in series with the ignition such that the car will not turn over until the door is opened. Use Bluetooth technology to eliminate the nasty tanble of wires from the door opener to the car. Of course, since it's a "power-anything" the owner should unplug it and shut off the circuit breaker before leaving the garage and heading into the house at night - just to be safe.
I think you may be onto something, if you're looking for a good idea... I know I've seen plenty of steel shop garage doors maimed by the tops of forklifts to make such a product useful... (No, they were not maimed by me- I just always seem to be working near the loading dock when it happens!)
Aut inveniam viam aut faciam
-- is there some sort of a bumper or low-cost crush thingy
There is a very simple NO-TECH solution that I have been utilizing for many years. It also has the advantage of being a safety feature in case of an emergency. I don't drive front end into the garage when I come home. I BACK IN to the garage (carefully.) If there is ever some catastrophe like a fire in the house, I want to be on my way quickly without looking into mirrors in a darkened smoke filled chamber. Each time that I depart the garage, I am looking straight ahead in the direction that I want to go.
Godzilla
On Thu, 28 Apr 2005 22:39:39 -0700, the inscrutable Mark & Juanita spake:
"Female Logic" 'Nuff said?
Pat, look for an automotive radar or ultrasonic backup alarm system.
--== May The Angst Be With You! ==-- -Yoda, on a bad day --
Do a Google search for "automobile proximity sensor". It's an add on device that sounds a warning if you're about to back into something.
Well, if you have any relatives or kids you don't like, you could tie them in front of the door. They really squeal when hit.
The Amazon catalog (#550, Spring 2005) has a device called Park Zone that looks close to what you want. It is illustrated as an ultrasonic device that senses the distance from your bumper to a wall. There is a display, green, yellow, or red to indicate distance. It is only $25. It may still take some imagination to set it up for your ppurposes.
Dick
Oversized whoopi cushion?
You think that some broad that bashes into a garage door is a good enough driver to back in? C'mon!
"Mike Marlow" wrote in news:6b755$4272028c$a22701e6$ snipped-for-privacy@ALLTEL.NET:
Ooooooooooooooo! Nerd woody approach. Coooooooooooooooooooooool! :)
Mark & Juanita wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
Me. When I lose the will to live. I hear CO isn't too bad of a way to go out...
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