Those of you who live in hurricane or tornado country may be aware that the garage door is the weakest point in your house. The big flat door is poorly braced, and if it fails, can allow the wind to enter ito the airtight space beyond and lift the roof off your house. Studies made after Hurricane Andrew showed this was one of the major causes of home loss in high winds,

I just installed this little item which can hopefully solve this problem,. It is available from Secure Enterprises, and is marketed by Loew’s for about a $100. No doubt there are similar items from other vendors, as well.

http://www.securedoor.com/images/garagedoor.jpg

The strut is a telescoping bar of heavy gauge aluminum channel that is fastened to metal fittings bolted to the garage floor and wall. It is placed at the center vertical metal strip, and held in place laterally by steel straps sevured to metal pins that pass through the hinges in the accordion pleats in the door. After installation, the door is braced not only by the wheels on either side’s track rails, but by the bar, reinforcing the weak spot in the very center of the door.

The whole unit, once installed, can be assembled and disassembled in 10 minutes with no tools (the mounting hardware is all heavy-duty wing nuts).

If you’re interested, here’s Secure Door’s website: www.securedoor.com.