Looking for residential garage door repair information?
Garage doors are built to last year after year but they will require regular maintenance from time to time. Regular garage door tune-ups can help extend the life of your garage door and prevent issues in the future.
If you discover your garage door isn’t working properly, help is available. A professional will be well-versed in the many types of garage door styles and will be able to help.
In this article, we’re taking a closer look at the various residential garage door repairs might need over the years.
Residential Garage Door Repairs
Your garage door is just like any other part of your home, in that it needs maintenance and repair. If you want to keep it in good condition, you’ll need to make repairs every so often.
There’s a lot of moving parts in a garage door, so they will wear out over time. Here’s how to make some common repairs on a residential garage door, so you can keep it moving.
Here are a few of the most common residential garage door repairs to consider.
Maintenance Checks On Your Garage Door
You should be conducting regular checks on your garage door, to keep it in the best possible condition. Look for any of the issues listed below. If you spot it quickly, it will be much easier to fix. Ensure all moving parts are working as they should, and that there’s no visible wear. Also look for issues with the weather stripping on the bottom of the door, and any dents or dings in the door itself. If you can catch these quickly, you should be able to avoid any major problems coming up when you least expect them.
Check The Springs
The springs are what give your garage door the tension they need to open. If they are wearing out, then the door may not open, or stay open. Even worse, they risk snapping and causing serious damage. If you’re in the garage when that happens, you may even be injured.
Hopefully, that shouldn’t happen, as many garage door springs have cables running through them. These are designed to hold the springs in place should they break, so they won’t be able to spring away and cause damage.
The best way to test your garage door springs is to open the door halfway and see if it stays open. If it begins to slide closed, then that’s a sign the springs are wearing out. You can replace them if you’re confident, but ensure you’re using all the right safety equipment, and that you’re following the instructions that come with your new springs. If you’re at all unsure, call a garage door service professional and they can replace them safely for you.
Dents In The Garage Door
If you have a steel garage door, then dents in the door are a real concern. They can come about easily, too. A misplaced football, hailing weather, or a slight mishap with the car bumper are all risks. Luckily, if the dent isn’t too bad, you can mend it yourself.
There are a couple of different ways you can do this. There’s the method where you can use a rubber mallet and a piece of wood. Hold the wood over the dent, and then hammer it to gently pop the steel back into shape. There’s also a method where you can use a lighter, canned air, and some tin foil to pop it back as well.
It’s best to address a dent quickly. If left for long, they can start to affect other aspects of the garage door, such as the tracks. If the dent is too large, you’ll need to call on a repair service for help.
Repairing a Garage Door Opener
Your garage door opener is essential, as it ensures only you can get through your garage door and keeps it safe. If it’s not working, it undermines your garage’s security and of course, makes it harder for you to get your car in or out. There are a few reasons why this isn’t working, so you’ll narrow down the issue.
- If the door just won’t open, it could simply be that opener isn’t plugged in, or the safety release has been pulled. Also, check the batteries in the remote to make sure they’re still working.
- If the door is auto-reversing, that’s a sign that you need to look at the limit switch and the photo eyes. The limit switch is easily adjusted via the motor unit, and the eyes can be cleaned and realigned to fix them.
- If basic fixes don’t work, you’ll need to look into replacing the garage door opener. They have a life span of around 15 years, so if it’s been that long since you installed, it’s better to replace than repair.
Bent Tracks
Are you seeing that the door isn’t opening evenly when you hit the remote button? Maybe it’s making some squealing noises as it does so. That’s a sign that the tracks are bent, and they will need to be repaired. This needs to be done quickly, as again leaving it too long will create more damage to the door.
Small bends are easily fixed, again with that hammer and piece of wood. Place the wood over the bend, and gently hammer it back into place. Test the door again, to see if it works better now on the track. Be aware that if the bends are bad, then it may not be possible for them to be hammered out. Again, this will be a case where you’ll need to call on a team to help you.
Repairing Cracks In Sealants
If there are cracks in the sealant around your garage door, that’s going to be bad news for your garage. It allows all kinds of things in, from pests to water from bad weather. If you are seeing any cracks, make sure you’re resealing them as soon as possible. Is the rubber gasket or strip at the bottom of the door has cracked or dried out, it’s fairly simple to replace it and reseal the door.
If you have a wooden garage door, look for cracks. Water can get into them, forcing them open wider and causing problems. Again, seal them quickly so you won’t have to worry about them.
These are some of the most common repairs you’ll need to do on your garage door when it begins to age. Keep up to date on repairs, and most of them will be simple to do yourself. Of course, you should always call on a garage door repair person to help you, if you’re ever unsure.