Garage Door Repair & Maintenance

"Repairing an extension spring is not as notoriously dangerous
as that of repairing or replacing a torsion spring, but can still be very dangerous."

Many people look at garage door repair as the untouchable do-it-yourself home repair because of the dangerous lift springs that help raise and lower a garage door. While lift springs are dangerous, there are many repair and preventive maintenance tasks that can be handled by do-it-yourselfers.

For most homeowners, their garage door is one of the most heavily used mechanical devices in their home, often opening and closing more than 1,000 times per year. With that much use, proper repair and maintenance are essential and should be on your annual or semi-annual preventive maintenance list along with gutter cleaning, chimney sweeping, etc.

Following are some of the most common garage door repair and maintenance items along with links to more information on each task when additional space is necessary.

Garage Door Repair

Garage Door Hinge Replacement
If your garage door hinge is broken, your door may work poorly or not at all. For those who don’t know, the garage door hinge holds the individual door sections together and holds the shaft of the garage door roller in place. Replacing a broken hinge is not nearly as involved or potentially dangerous as replacing a garage door torsion spring; however, there are specific steps that should be taken to do the job properly and safely. Read More...

Replacing Garage Door Rollers
Garage door rollers are an integral part of the door hinge assembly as well as the lift bracket at the bottom of the door and the top roller carrier at the top of the door. Depending on the type of roller used on your door, this part will often wear out or become damaged before a hinge and may hinder the operation of your door if it not properly aligned and lubricated. Read More...

Garage Door Torsion Springs Repair and Replacement
Broken garage door torsion springs make it nearly impossible to use your garage door. If you want to replace the torsion spring on your door, read this first. It may save you a lot of time, money and potential injury. Read More...

A majority of do-it-yourselfers will steer
clear of Garage Door Torsion Spring repairs.

Garage Door Extension Springs Repair and Replacement
Extension springs (the other kind of garage door springs) run alongside the upper garage door tracks (the ones that run parallel to the ceiling) and stretch or “extend” out and back to help lift the garage door. Repairing an extension spring is not as notoriously dangerous as that of repairing or replacing a torsion spring, but can still be very dangerous. Keep in mind that a long metal spring is being stretched to the point that it will lift your entire garage door, which can weigh several hundred pounds. Read More...

Garage Door Maintenance

In addition to common garage door repair items, regular maintenance is also important to the long term health of your door. If your garage door doesn’t seem to be operating smoothly, you first need to determine whether the problem is with your door or with your garage door opener. If you don’t have a garage door opener, it’s obviously the door. If you do have an opener, the first step is to disconnect it and see if your door opens properly.

If disconnecting the electric door opener allows the door to operating smoothly, your problem is with the opener. If the door is still difficult to operate, you may have one of several problems with the garage door.

Garage Door Track Maintenance
Proper garage door track maintenance will keep your garage door operating smoothly, extending the life of your rollers, hinges, springs and garage door opener. A misaligned door track may lead to binding, dragging and a generally stubborn door. Read More...

Garage Door Opener Repair and Safety
Is garage door opener repair and maintenance a do-it-yourself task? YES. Most homeowners can and should perform basic garage door opener maintenance tasks.Read More...

Garage Door Balance
A properly balanced garage door should stay half way open (or closed) on its own. If your door becomes and stays out of balance for any length of time, premature damage may occur to the door hardware, including springs, hinges, rollers, cables and the electric garage door opener if you have one. Read More...

Lubricating Garage Door Parts
Garage door lubricant should be regularly applied to your garage door’s moving parts to keep them free of rust and corrosion, and to keep them from squeaking and sticking. Semi-annual or annual inspection and lubrication should be on every homeowner’s periodic maintenance list.

For most parts, including rollers (except for plastic or vinyl rollers), use silicone spray, light weight oil such as 3-IN-ONE® Multi-Purpose Oil, or Professional Garage Door Lube, also from the 3-IN-ONE® company. If you choose to lubricate the garage door track, do not use WD-40, grease or oil as they tend to attract dirt, which leads to a caked-on mess. Instead, use powdered graphite or fast-drying garage door lubricant such as 3-IN-ONE® Professional Garage Door Lube.

Garage Door Repair and Maintenance is Time Well Spent

While there are other repair and maintenance items that may need to be addressed over the life of your door, those listed here are the most common. Learning to recognize problems or potential problems, even if you hire a professional to do the work, will go a long way toward extending the life of your garage door. You may even be preventing a serious future injury, or worse.

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