Tag Archives: Garage Door Maintenance
Want a Smooth Operating Garage Door?
With regular care and occasional professional maintenance, your commercial or residential garage door will work smoothly. However, you may find yourself in a situation where you cannot properly open or close your garage door. There are a number of different reasons why your garage door may not be operating properly. Here are a few tips to help you identify the source of the problem:
Problems Closing
Faulty Garage Door Sensors: One of the most common reasons garage doors have trouble closing is that the safety sensor’s beam is obstructed. Make sure there is nothing under the garage door and that the sensors are pointing directly at each other.
Door Closes, then Reverses: If your door begins to close, but stops and reverses, then you may have to adjust the door’s sensitivity settings. Your garage door opener is designed with a safety feature that reverses the door if there is too much resistance under the door. Bumps in the door track may set off the sensor.
Problems Opening
Opener Runs but Door Doesn’t Move: If the garage door opener is running, but the door does not move, then the door may not be connected to the track. Check the emergency rope to see if it has been pulled by [more]
When is it Time to Replace The Garage Door?
Garage doors are designed to last many long years. Products are available to help maintain the operation and beauty of garage entries, with a bit of annual maintenance. Many homeowners only think to replace garage doors when something happens that makes it necessary, such as being hit with a car or lawnmower.
Even without accidental damage, garage doors do suffer wear and tear over time, especially from the elements. Waiting too long to replace worn out doors and openers can create a serious safety hazard. Doors and openers that are worn cease to operate properly, and accidents can occur.
Energy efficiency is yet another reason to upgrade existing garage doors. Over time, the seals that help stop air loss around the garage doors weaken and wear out. Once these seals become too worn, air loss begins to occur, which creates an expensive power concern. For old doors that do not have insulation, replacing them with new, well insulated doors is an investment in energy conservation that can pay for itself in energy savings over the life of the door.
Signs to look for that a garage door is at the end of its useful life include lack of insulation and modern safety features, [more]
Extend the Life of Your Garage Door
The better you maintain and clean your garage door, the longer it will last. The best way to get the most out of your garage door is to maintain it regularly and when you notice a problem, to address it immediately before further damage can occur.
You can easily perform garage door system safety and maintenance tasks yourself. For starters, perform a monthly visual inspection. Stand inside the garage with the garage door closed and look over the door springs, cables, rollers, pulleys and mounting hardware, such as hinges, for signs of wear or damage. Look for cable wear or fraying. Is the mounting hardware becoming loose? If something doesn’t look quite right or doesn’t sound quite right it could be the symptom of a more serious issue. Have the garage door system inspected by a trained service technician.
Then go outside and visually inspect the surface of your garage door. Is it dirty? Are there chips in the paint? Protecting your garage door surface, whether it is a metal or wooden door, helps to ensure your door’s longevity. Begin by cleaning your garage doors with a mild detergent and a soft car brush. Some people remember to clean their doors whenever [more]
Ways to Look For the Best Garage Door Repair Man
Sometimes we are not aware that we are using our garage doors every day. It doesn’t even come to our minds that we do not need to get out of our garage door already when we need to open it. In other words we fail to know the condition of our own garage door maybe because we are pre occupied with so many things to do. Nevertheless, we still need our garage door to continue working the best way we want to.
In such case, there should be someone to do the checking for us. But how do we find the right technician for our garage door? What should therefore, be the important things that we must see in a good technician?
1. Talk to your home builder:
The garage door you have purchased is still on a warranty if you bought a new one or if your house is just newly built. So that when there will be a future problem regarding your car port door, you can just talk it over with your home builder and be sending you a technician to repair or fix your door. Surely, they will send the best man to repair your door because they would [more]
Have Your Cake and Eat It Too!
Did you ever think that a new garage door could almost pay for itself?
Garage door replacement ranked No. 2 in “cost recouped” on a list of 35 common home remodeling projects in Remodeling Magazine’s 24th annual Cost vs. Value Report.
The average midrange garage door replacement cost was estimated at $1,291. Resale value of the project averaged $1,083 – an 83.9 percent return on investment (ROI) at resale. In some cities, such as Charleston, W. Va., Honolulu, Providence, R.I., and San Francisco, the ROI for a new garage door was more than 100 percent.
Upscale garage door replacements were estimated to provide a 69.8 percent ROI – No. 4 among the upscale projects listed in the survey.
What does that mean to homeowners? You can have your cake and eat it, too. A new garage door can add to the beauty of your home as you live in it and enjoy it today, while also providing a high level of payback – nearly 84 cents of every dollar spent on the garage door replacement – when it’s time to sell.
What’s more, garage door replacement was one of the least expensive projects listed in the survey. That means a new garage door may be [more]
Deciding Between Garage Door Repair or Replacement
On an older home, a homeowner may find a need for garage door replacement. Sometimes the door has reached a state that will require such a replacement, but sometimes the problem can be fixed with garage door repair. Knowing what problems can be repaired while what other problems will require replacement can help a homeowner have an easier experience in their efforts to maintain the value of their home.
Some problems that can arise can be easily remedied with garage door repair. If the door is not moving well on its track, sometimes the fix can be simple. Though it is often best to call a professional service to address these repairs, working to diagnose the problem can save time and money for the homeowner. Looking to make sure the brackets that mount the track to the wall are not loose, and checking for dents in the track is a good place to start. Cleaning the tracks to remove dust and grease can also help the door run more smoothly. Loose bracket bolts can be tightened, and small dents can be fixed with a rubber mallet, but severely damaged tracks will require a garage door replacement service to replace the tracks.
With [more]
Garage Door Safety Needs To Be A Priority
Many families use the garage door more than the front door. Armfuls of groceries and the kid’s bikes and toys all go in through the garage door. The potential for an accident is high with so much activity swirling around. That is why garage door safety needs to be a priority in every household.
The first question homeowners need to ask is how old is the garage door and opener? A garage door over 10 years old is due for an inspection by a qualified garage door specialist. The specialist will test the springs for any weakness, inspect the opener, and track system for any signs of wear and tear. The homeowner should never attempt to adjust the springs or tension devices. The components are under a great deal of tension, and serious injury can occur.
As a homeowner, there are tests that can be conducted to test the safety of the garage door. First off, if the garage door does not have a reversing feature it is recommended that the door be replaced. New safety regulations require all new installations have this feature. To test the feature place a block of wood under the door as it closes. The door should [more]
Garage Door Spring Tips
An important component in the mechanical make-up of garage doors is the spring system.
Without springs the doors would not rise and fall. These components should be in good, strong working condition at all times for the doors to function properly. The counterbalance springs do the actual lifting and closing.
When the doors rise the springs unwind. This provides the necessary power to do the lifting. When the door closes, the weight of the door winds the springs back up until the door is entirely shut. At this stage the springs are fully tensed again.
The springs need to be adjusted periodically.
When the typical door weighs about three hundred pounds and involves the co-ordination of pulleys, cables and springs, this is inevitable. It is not difficult to do a cursory check up. With safety glasses on one can pull on the red emergency release cord so that the doors are opened manually. By lifting it halfway and observing if it stays in place or falls, one can determine if it is out of balance. If it falls, then it is not in balance.
There are other assessment suggestions described on the site for testing the poor performance of the doors. When the doors need [more]
Garage Doors: A Home Improvement Trend
What is one of the hottest home improvement trends?
Garage makeovers, because the right garage door will not only enhance the beauty of your house, but increase its value too. Just as much as having the wrong garage door, a damaged or unkept one will decrease the value of your home.
Garage doors are often the single largest feature for the front of the house and will play a major factor in complementing the overall style of your home. Consumers often consider the garage door as just something to cover the opening where you park your cars. But this should never be overlooked. Garage makeovers will make a difference and bring undeniable advantages to your home.
So, what is the right door for your home?
First and foremost, it is to select a design that can be well-integrated to your existing architectural style. You don’t want your new garage door to stick out like a sore thumb; you want it to appear as if it has always been a part of your property.
Quality is next. There are many garage doors in today’s market with varying degrees of quality. Martin Garage Doors offers you the finest quality for your money. Keep in mind that quality [more]
Paint It!
Garage doors often suffer from wear and tear. In order to make sure that your garage door stays in top shape, you need to paint it periodically.
All aspects of the weather from sun to snow can be harmful to the appearance of your garage door. Discoloration of the garage door is mainly because the sun directly falls on your garage door, the rain soaks all the metal parts of the garage door which will cause it to rust over time. Also, there are chances of snow getting freeze into your garage door during winter which melts due to the heat from your house and then re-freezes. All of the above can harm the state of your garage door.
When you first install your garage door, take a photo of it so that you can compare its condition. the photo you take when the door is new will remind you of how your door really should look. But if you have taken another and more recent photo of your door, you will easily be able to see the wear and tear your door has suffered. This is a sure indication that you should do the necessary maintenance work as early as possible [more]