How to stop car in garage?

[m32825]

I've got a garage with a level (no "step up" in front of parking) layout. I'm concerned about a "gas instead of brake" incident somewhere down the road when a vehicle is coming in to park. What's a good way to stop the car and limit damage to the garage? Thanks!

-- Carl

 

[CJM8515]

4x4 on the floor so you know you bumped it.

 

[glentre]

Best way is to install bollards as is done for the same reason commercially. Easiest to install is the post that has a bottom mounting plate used to bolt the bollard to the floor.

Glen

 

[ctgoodman]

It seems you are most worried about an accidental acceleration instead of just how to align your car within the parking space. I honestly don't think you have anything to truly worry about in that case. I agree something with a large enough bump to keep the tire from rolling over it bolted to the floor. Another idea would be to sink a large steel pipe about 8 or 10 inches filled with cement 3 or 4 feet into the floor of the garage between the car and the wall.

 

[BADSIX]

Put a tennis ball on a string from the celling so it just touches the windshield when the car is were you want it. if who ever is parking in their cant stop before going out the back needs to learn to drive better, even my wife can stop in the right spot. now she has had problems backing out, one of my boys pulled the cord for manual opening. later she gets in the car pushes the door opener hears the motor run and shut off. now she puts the car in gear and backs right through the door. nice wood door , I spent several days gluing it back together.
Jay D.

 

[Kaizen]

Carl maybe you should stop driving........or whoever you are worrying about doing this. I don't think much is going to stop a fully depressed gas pedal which is what would happen if you thought you were hitting the brake. Sorry buddy

 

[dadsEH]

This is a newbie joke post..right???

 

[Z2V]

Park in the street.

 

[Stuart in MN]

A curb isn't going to stop a gas instead of brake incident.

I think curbs are a regional thing...houses in the south there they put the water heater in the garage have them, everywhere else there are no curbs at all.

 

[lakeroadster]

I've got a garage with a level (no "step up" in front of parking) layout. I'm concerned about a "gas instead of brake" incident somewhere down the road when a vehicle is coming in to park. What's a good way to stop the car and limit damage to the garage? Thanks!

-- Carl

Hide The Keys...

Problem Solved.

 

[James-W]

No offense, but if you are prone to hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, perhaps it would be best for everyone if you stopped driving.

 

[LXCam]

What prompted the question? Was it a bad day to give up drinking?, dope??.........heroin????

 

[_Stang_]

How do you normally prevent driving through the front door of the local mini mart? Do that, same principal.

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[RVDan]

A couple steel posts planted in two feet of concrete.

 

[matt_i]

A couple steel posts planted in two feet of concrete.

^^^ 6" OD round steel tube, 3/8" thick, core drill 12" hole thru floor, excavate 2 feet down, fill entire void plus fill up the tube with concrete and trowel to a radius on the top.

That one you will not run over from a standing start.

 

[aeopav]

I'm really surprised at a lot of these responses. I hope a lot of them are tongue-in-cheek and not meant to be taken seriously. Carl may not need to worry at all...he may be as good a driver as you all obviously are. I myself have never had an unintended acceleration incident, and I don't think I ever will. Do I think it is a bad idea to put some kind of stop into a garage to prevent one? NO.

I work in aviation fellas. There are highly trained individuals all around. Accidents still occur on a regular basis.

 

[NewShockerGuy]

Perhaps something like this that can fold out of the way so it's not always in the way...

But seriously... if this is a concern just get more insurance so that way when if/it ever does happen it's covered...lol

-Nigel

 

[theoldwizard1]

Best way is to install bollards as is done for the same reason commercially. Easiest to install is the post that has a bottom mounting plate used to bolt the bollard to the floor.

Glen

That won't stop a car when someone accidentally steps on the gas pedal with the same force they would use to stop the car !

Bollards, YES ! 4" heavy gauge steel tubing sunk, in concrte, at least 2-3' in the ground and then the tube filled with concrete.

NOW THAT WILL STOP A CAR FROM SMASHING INTO/THROUGH A HOUSE WALL !

 

[MushCreek]

I put in a standard concrete parking curb ($30), pinned to the floor. Yes, you could drive over it, and when that happens, no more driving. Meanwhile, it helps the wife know when to stop when parking.

 

[Morrison]

Have your wife/kids park in the driveway?

 

[m32825]

No offense, but if you are prone to hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, perhaps it would be best for everyone if you stopped driving.

I should have provided more context: this is a garage for my parents. I'm fortunate enough to still have them around and get to see them every day, I treasure that. They both still drive, but the day will come when they need to hang up the keys. This is preventative planning to limit damage if something happens, not because of a situation that has happened. Beyond the parking spot is enclosed storage... then the back wall of the metal building... then the house. I'd rather prevent damage than repair that kind.

Thanks for the responses, guys, all of them. I'm going to look into bollards (now that I know what to search for) and the parking curb stop bolted to the floor is appealing too.

-- Carl

 

[vavet]

Depending on the vehicle type, it can still roll over a bollard.

Back when my older sis was learning to drive, Mom in the front seat, I'm in the back, leaving the grocery store. She starts the car intending to pull through the empty space in front of her instead of backing out. BUT....there was a bollard. She gunned it (apparently) and got the front wheels over the bollard. It scraped the length of the car.
This was a 84 Pontiac Bonneville. If your folks drive trucks or SUVs, they wouldn't have the scraping to help arrest the momentum.
Good luck.

 

[bczygan]

 

[RECox286]

Unfortunately **** Happens, and if it does it will happen

at the worst possible time and place:

A friend of mine was on his way to the local auto parts

store to buy some brake parts...when the unthinkable

happened. He drove his car up onto the sidewalk then

continued on thru the plate glass window and into an end cap.

So, resign yourself that, at least, it won't be on purpose !

Uncle Bob

 

[Kevin54]

Depending on the vehicle type, it can still roll over a bollard.


Back when my older sis was learning to drive, Mom in the front seat, I'm in the back, leaving the grocery store. She starts the car intending to pull through the empty space in front of her instead of backing out. BUT....there was a bollard. She gunned it (apparently) and got the front wheels over the bollard. It scraped the length of the car.
This was a 84 Pontiac Bonneville. If your folks drive trucks or SUVs, they wouldn't have the scraping to help arrest the momentum.
Good luck.

It had best be a tall *** vehicle then because a Bollard is a vertical post. I believe that you are talking about the concrete parking stops instead.

 

[LX-Markham]

drop one of these in the back of the garage

http://www.belson.com/Concrete-Jersey-Barriers

 

[TK-421]

I'd be taking a long hard look at a bollard like mentioned earlier, something 8-10" thick would be what I would use.

 

[3axap]

Putting a curb in the garage would potentially create a tripping hazard. Something to consider around elderly folks.

 

[Cudajas]

I should have provided more context: this is a garage for my parents. I'm fortunate enough to still have them around and get to see them every day, I treasure that. They both still drive, but the day will come when they need to hang up the keys. This is preventative planning to limit damage if something happens, not because of a situation that has happened. Beyond the parking spot is enclosed storage... then the back wall of the metal building... then the house. I'd rather prevent damage than repair that kind.

Thanks for the responses, guys, all of them. I'm going to look into bollards (now that I know what to search for) and the parking curb stop bolted to the floor is appealing too.

-- Carl

I guess that is not a bad idea.

I also think it depends on whether you want to fix the garage wall and the car or just the car. The bollards or other methods may cause more damage to the car, depending on how big a run the car has.

To those of you think that this can't happen, mistakes happen, just ask my 17 year old daughter, who recently had her foot slip of the brakes just as she came to a stop in our driveway. Yes she hit the gas. Rear ended her moms, truck, pushed that into the garage door / door opening. Behind that door was my 74 cuda, which only had minor damage save for the bumper which was bent. Oh what was she driving, my 2016 Challenger...that I had for about 2 months. It sustained a bunch of front end damage.

So yes my new driver, 17 year old kid damaged all 3 of our vehicles and the house in one shot. It was just a simple accident, they happen!

That being said, I do think you are being a little paranoid. It may never happen! But then I don't know your folks, you do!

Good luck either way you go!

 

[SALIV8]

4" pvc buried 4' in the ground and filled with concrete is Chicago's code for my carport. They want the bollards to prevent cars from going into the backyard.

 

[SALIV8]

I guess that is not a bad idea.

I also think it depends on whether you want to fix the garage wall and the car or just the car. The bollards or other methods may cause more damage to the car, depending on how big a run the car has.

To those of you think that this can't happen, mistakes happen, just ask my 17 year old daughter, who recently had her foot slip of the brakes just as she came to a stop in our driveway. Yes she hit the gas. Rear ended her moms, truck, pushed that into the garage door / door opening. Behind that door was my 74 cuda, which only had minor damage save for the bumper which was bent. Oh what was she driving, my 2016 Challenger...that I had for about 2 months. It sustained a bunch of front end damage.

So yes my new driver, 17 year old kid damaged all 3 of our vehicles and the house in one shot. It was just a simple accident, they happen!

That being said, I do think you are being a little paranoid. It may never happen! But then I don't know your folks, you do!

Good luck either way you go!

that has to be a record!!

My sister was bad luck at 16-18 and the family would call her "crash" as a nickname for a few years. mistakes do happen.

 

[nes999]

I had a Mercury Sable that would randomly rapidly accelerate. The only way to stop it for accelerating was to shut the car off. I never could figure out what was wrong. The worst thing (and only thing) I ever hit was a concrete retaining wall. Most of time it would happen on the road so it didn't hurt to speed up for a moment.


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[LS6 Tommy]

Perhaps something like this that can fold out of the way so it's not always in the way...

-Nigel

Looks like it would make a good launch ramp in the event of an unintended acceleration...


Tommy

 

[rburke65]

Sounds like maybe you should hand over your keys......

 

[Super Sport]

My grandparents had a concrete parking curb in their garage, but did not have it bolted down. I think a car would drive over it before it would move, but I could be wrong. Grandad ended up plowing into the back of a stopped pickup at a red light and totaled the car a few years later.

Elderly driving tests should be mandatory, and if you really think this is a likely scenario it is probably time to take away the keys. You may end up protecting the back of the garage, but can you offer similar protection to that minivan full of kids?

 

[matt_i]

I like the bollard for the reason that you can see it above the hood, and you won't trip over it (as was mentioned) causing a trip & fall when the cars are out.

They do make (or you could have made) a bollard with a flat base plate that would be wedge-anchored in with 4 bolts. If the holes are drilled deep enough initially, all the way thru to the subgrade, the wedge anchors could be unbolted and driven into the ground someday in the future. Then just fill back with an epoxy or concrete filler.

The bolted versions are not quite as strong as the ones buried in the grade but I'd think enough to send the message without seriously destroying the rad support.

That said, if a person confuses the gas and the brake, it would be better to have the hell-for-solid post. The problem there is that because the driver believes they are depressing the proper pedal and not getting the intended re-action, they will press harder on the same pedal 100% of the time trying to get the expected re-action, obviously making the situation worse.

 

[B.S.A. (ret.)]

I suppose that arrestor cables at the end of the driveway and a tailhook on the rear of the car is out of the question.....

 

[nehog]

One of these should do the trick:

 

[RVDan]

If you're having concerns about them driving through your storage room and into the house, why no concern about them running over children at the park or driving through the grocery store window?

 

[vettex2]

I watched a neighbor drive though the W/D. 2 walls and plate glass window
Her hubby was so cheap duct taped a brake line...then banged out the W/R and got them to work.
The washer would vibrate so bad during the spin cycle it would unplug and end the cycle letting the whole neighborhood that their wash was done
Cheap didn't begin to really explain him
He saved every penny then lost it all of his retirement on a "too good to be true" land deal.

Anyway, you can't prevent all scenarios short of installing poles or taking the keys away.