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Garage Door Maintenance
Tips to Extending the Life of Your Garage Door
Tip One:
Protect all garage doors from water, especially runoff and splashback from roof eaves. Direct water away from the door via gutters and eaves, allow a drainage area in front of the door that deters splashing or bouncing water from hitting the lower section of the door, and keep kid traffic from using the door as a backstop.
Tip Two:
Look For Signs of Wear and Tear on your Garage Door
- Parts can wear out and break over time, creating potential safety problems. You should either have the company service it once a year or check your hinges, rollers and springs to make sure they are working properly.
- Eventually, all springs will wear out and break, even high quality steel springs. A breaking spring that is not properly contained could lash out and strike property or people.
- How do I know if they are worn?
- They will be frayed or you will have worn strips hanging loose.
- A door that is out of balance and doesn’t go up and down smoothly could cause wear and tear on your door’s hardware.
- Test to make sure your door is properly balanced
- The door should stay in place where you stop it when you raise it in 1’ increments.
- It should lower in a controlled manner and not slam
- It should raise at a controlled pace
- The bottom of the door should align with the bottom of the header when the door is in a raised position.
- When not to worry?
- It is NOT a safety concern if you hear squeaks or a chattering noise. This could be the spring coils rubbing against one another. All you need is a spray-on lubricant like W-40 to spray on moving parts at least once a year.
Tip Three:
There are a number of things you should check on your garage door; it can prevent accidents and let you know that you need a new door.
- Tighten all nuts and bolts. Because a garage door is constantly moving, vibrations and rotations can loosen joints and eventually cause severe structural damage.
- If you have a sectional roll-down door, check the rollers on your door. Because they are constantly running up and down your garage on a metal track, they can begin to show signs of wear and tear. Nylon rollers are known to crack as they age, and worn bearings in steel roller cause the roller to bend and tilt.
- Check the condition of the cable that lifts the door when it opens. It can fray and cause your door to come crashing down if it eventually snaps.
- The chain that runs from the door opener to the door should be frequently oiled. Without lubrication, tearing and scratching can occur.
These common problems that affect garage doors should be done to ensure that your door isn’t wearing down, but make sure that you use safety when working closely with it. Remember to unplug the door opener so that it can’t activate without you realizing it. Do not attempt to repair or remove any springs under tension on your garage door. They can whip out and injure you if improperly manipulated and should only be handled by professionals.
Ready for a Free Estimate
Garage-Doors offers a quick and easy quote form for consumers to use when they wish to request an estimate for their garage door.
Further Consumer Info
For an in-depth guide to garage door tune-up, visit the Reader's Digest website.