Don’t let automatic gates disrupt your life
Lengthy power outages occur in the Portland area from time to time. Equipment failures, car accidents, and fierce weather can trigger them. For example, a massive winter storm brought snow and ice to the city in late 2008. The Oregonian reported widespread damage, road closures, and electrical outages across the region. Such storms may cause major problems for home and business owners with automatic gates. Without the right equipment, you could have difficulty entering or leaving your parking area.
A Solution
Many access gates prove difficult to open manually. In fact, some units weigh over 1,000 pounds. The good news is that sophisticated residential and commercial gate openers have electrical backup systems. They charge powerful batteries and use this energy to operate automatic gates when the normal electric supply is interrupted. This prevents a blackout from completely disrupting your life or business activities. It also ensures that police, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel can reach your property. This is important because many injuries happen when people use alternate lighting or heating equipment after the power goes out.
Energy Options
Most backup systems charge their batteries with power from the electrical grid. This configuration works well in many situations. Nevertheless, a battery could run out of energy before Portland General Electric restores power. This might occur if an outage persists for several days or you open and close the gate repeatedly. One solution is to connect the opener to a gas or diesel generator. Gates will remain operable as long as you have sufficient fuel.
Another option is to power the battery charger with renewable energy. You can set up a small wind turbine or photovoltaic panel and connect it to the gate opener. This may require a significant investment, but it reduces your electric bill and is friendly to the environment.
Upgrading
If you want to obtain a reliable opener with a battery backup system, look no further than the Overhead Door Company of Portland. We sell and install several high-quality models that operate swinging and sliding gates. Some units feature special wireless communication or entrapment-prevention technologies. Our company also installs durable access gates on residential, industrial, and commercial properties. For over eight decades, the people of Oregon have trusted us to supply top-notch equipment at affordable prices. Visit our website to learn more about our products and services, or contact us today.
