Why you should install a safety edge on your garage door.

Safety edges, also known as sensing edges, are essential devices that ensure the safety of individuals and machinery from potential accidents or harm caused by closing doors.

These devices are sensitive and quickly react to unwanted contact with obstacles preventing any injury to persons or damage to machinery.

How does a safety edge work on a garage door?

The safety edge is a rubber strip that is connected to the bottom of your garage door. They exist in two variations, either as a resistive sensing edge or an optical sensing edge (OSE).

Resistive Safety Edge:

These safety edges comprise of a ribbon switch inside a durable rubber outer housing that is fitted directly onto your door or with the use of a plastic or aluminium mounting channel. When the edge meets an obstruction, the rubber housing profile deforms, forcing the normally open ribbon switch connectors to short circuit. This initiates a signal to stop and re-open the door. We stock these safety edges already made up of various lengths ready for installation.

Optical Safety Edge (OSE):

This type of safety edge is also fitted with a rubber profile containing a hollow chamber. The OSE sensors are then inserted into each end of this round chamber, creating a light beam between the transmitter and receiver. Compression of the rubber profile breaks the light beam between transmitter and receiver generating a signal that is used to stop and re-open the door. Ellard offers a choice of profile designs with hard door stops used to protect each transmitter and receiver from mechanical damage.

Wired Safety Edge

The wired safety edge is an affordable solution that is quick and easy to install. Compatible with both our Simple panel and the TVNRG, wired safety edges are a highly functional choice for numerous applications. Here are some great points to consider before choosing wired:

● One of the most essential factors in installing any safety edge is that it will aid you in ensuring that you are compliant with current UK rules and regulations.

● With the wired option, there is no need for battery changes, saving you time and money.

● The wired safety edge has continuous and uninterrupted communications between the panel and the sensor.

As mentioned previously, the wired edge is suitable with the Simple and the TVNRG panel. The Simple panel is one of our most popular solutions for controlling your roller shutter motor. Here are some top features of our Simple panel:

● Safety edge exclusion zone for uneven floors

● Secure bi-directional radio control for door status (open and close position)

● Encrypted 868 Mhz rolling code technology

● Front cover open and close buttons

● Motor limit and transmitters that can be programmed from the front cover buttons

● Holiday mode

Wireless Safety Edge

Choosing a wireless safety edge kit for your installation opens users to numerous benefits:

● With the wireless option, you have a control panel and a bottom-slat transmitter. This means there are no potential obstructions that may be hazardous in busy areas which may occur with wired solutions. Going wireless keeps your space clean and tidy, making for a safe environment.

● The wireless safety edge is made up of the rubber strip, the transmitter and the receiver. These components are simple to set up, making for quick and easy installations.

● Long battery life, up to 5 years using our Lithium batteries.

● The system has an optional built-in alarm sensor that triggers a 90dB alarm when an attempted break-in is detected.

The TVNRG is operational with both a wireless or wired resistive or optical safety edge. Below are some of the TVNRG panel’s top features:

● Internal push buttons to aid limit setting.

● Security door status: Using Bi-directional radio communication to determine the status of your door

● Holiday mode: Placing the control panel into holiday mode disables the front cover control buttons preventing the operation from within the garage.

● Courtesy light: Fitted with a low-energy use LED bulb.

● Alarm function used to detect excessive force and alert the homeowner through the optional 90dB alarm

● Safety edge exclusion zone: Deactivate the safety edge up to 50mm from the floor to prevent false safety signals from stopping your door from closing.

Get in touch!

If you have any questions about our range of safety edges or the rest of our garage automation collection, our customer service centre is more than happy to help! Please contact us by following the link here.