Your garage door is an essential part of your home. Used every day, it serves as a shelter, recreational area, extra layer of security, and even an accessory to your homes overall facade. Unfortunately, the wear and tear on this important gadget often gets overlooked. If you want to ensure the warning signs don’t get missed, check out our top indicators that something is wrong with your garage door! 

DELAYED OPERATION WHEN USING THE REMOTE

Once you have pressed the button on your garage opener, the door itself should begin opening within a few seconds. If there is a delay – or worse, no response at all – there could be an issue with your garage door. First, change the batteries on the remote. If there is still a delayed response, your garage’s opening mechanism likely needs repair. 

THE GARAGE DOOR OPENS VEEEEERY SLOWLY

All things take time…but if your garage door is taking too much time to open, it could indicate the need for repair to the torsion springs. Because of the high tension these springs are under, it’s best to let the pros handle this problem! 

YOUR GARAGE DOOR IS MAKING A RUCKUS

Has your garage door suddenly become vocal? While some level of noise is normal, it’s important to keep an ear out for sounds such as squeaking, scraping, and rattling. These noises could mean that some of the various moving parts of your garage door need a tune up. If your garage door is rattling, be sure to have the screws and rollers repaired immediately.  

THE GARAGE DOOR IS SAGGING

Little by little, day by day, your garage door relaxes a little more. Until one day, it’s suddenly sagging to one side and you have no idea how it got this far. Sagging garage doors happen gradually, but are often overlooked until they’re obvious! This is typically caused by worn springs or dull tracks. But you should try to have the door checked by a professional before attempting to tighten bolts or other maintenance on your own.

Don’t miss the signs! When it comes to catching problems ahead of time, four eyes are better than two. Hire a professional to help with a garage door inspection, and together we can ensure your garage door is operating smoothly and safely. Contact our reliable and professional repairman at 905-602-6550 (Mississauga) or 416-502-2212 (Toronto).

A high-quality garage door should have a smooth and quiet operation. But over time, even the highest quality doors will experience wear and tear that could result in unpleasant noises. If you find yourself wondering whether these noises are indicative of a bigger issue, this blog is for you! Read on to find out why your garage door may be making noise.

Squeaking Noises

A squeaking sound could signal a loose roller or hinge. High pitched squeaks can normally be silenced with a bit of lubricant! Grab your favorite grease and apply it to the rollers and tracks. Use a silicone-based lubricant around the frame, between the panels, and along the weather stripping.

Grinding Noises

A garage door grinding noise could be from a loose roller or hinge. If the grinding continues after applying some lubricant, it’s most likely time to call in the professionals. You may need to replace your rollers or hinges. While some homeowners prefer metal, if you are replacing your rollers you may want to opt for nylon ones. These rollers are both quieter and require less lubricant than their metal counterparts.

Rattling Noises

Your garage door is the home to dozens of nuts, bolts, and screws. Over time, all these little parts can become loose, and you may begin to hear some rattling. Luckily, a wrench and socket set makes it easy to tighten all those nuts and bolts! Just be sure to avoid hardware and parts that are connected to the garage’s spring system. Other times, rattling may indicate the garage door has come off it’s track.

Popping Noises

In many cases, popping noises indicate one of your torsion springs have snapped. For this particular noise, you will want to call a professional. Torsion springs are under a high amount of pressure, and inadvertently messing with them while trying to fix them can result in serious injury.

Our local professionals are experts in garage door troubleshooting. If you have concerns about your garage door, we will help you eliminate any existing noises and prevent future issues. Don’t hesitate to call us at 1-888-602-6550.

Nothing will test your patience quite like a loud, noisy garage door. But more than the irritation, unusual rattling, squeaks, pops, and other noises can be indicative of an underlying issue. Luckily, we’ve put together a few troubleshooting ideas you can do at home that will help you get to the bottom of that “talkative” garage door. 

Remember, you should always disconnect the garage door opener when trying to source an issue. And never perform any tasks that could put you at risk for injury. If something seems difficult or dangerous, it’s always better to call in a professional!

Is Your Garage Door Squeaking?

High pitched squeaks can normally be silenced with a bit of lubricant! Grab your favorite grease and apply it to the rollers and tracks. Use a silicone-based lubricant around the frame, between the panels, and along the weather stripping.

Is Your Garage Door Grinding? 

Once again, this could be a lubrication issue or point to worn out rollers. First, try applying lubricant. If the grinding continues, it’s most likely time to call in the professionals to replace your rollers. We recommend nylon rollers, which are quieter and require less lubricant than their metal counterparts. Grinding may also indicate worn out hinges. Inspect the hinges for any cracks or signs of age. If they seem damaged, it’s time to replace them. But please note: adjusting, repairing, or removing hinges is absolutely a  job that should be left to the pros.

Is Your Garage Door Rattling?

Your garage door is the home to dozens of nuts, bolts, and screws. Over time, all these little parts can become loose, and you may begin to hear some rattling. Luckily, a wrench and socket set makes it easy to tighten all those nuts and bolts! Just be sure to avoid hardware/parts that are connected to the garage’s spring system.

Is Your Garage Door Popping?

Call a professional. Popping noises come from torsion springs that have begun to lock up. Because these torsion springs are under a high amount of pressure, and must be handled to be fixed, it is best to never attempt this repair on your own.

You probably haven’t thought much about your garage door springs…until one breaks. You can call a professional, or try to replace the garage door yourself. Just know that this DIY project comes with hazards, especially if you are not that experienced with tasks like this. To help you tackle this problem, our team has compiled the following helpful tips. Read on to learn how to replace your garage door springs yourself!

Understand The Types of Garage Door Springs

Residential garage doors have one or two types of springs – torsion or extension. Heavy-duty torsion springs are mounted around a metal rod that runs parallel to the door. Extension springs are the long, lighter weight springs that run perpendicular to the door above the tracks. Be sure to purchase the right style spring, with the same length and diameter as the old springs.

Replacing Extension Springs

1. Remove all spring tension by opening the garage door and clamp it in place. Once in place, disconnect the garage door opener.
2. Mark the current placement of the pulley with tape so that it can be reinstalled at the same place.
3. Disconnect the spring from the track bracket and the spring pulley. A safety cable is threaded through the spring to hold it in place. Disconnect the safety cable from the bracket and remove the old spring.
4. Thread the safety cable through the new spring, attaching the spring to the track bracket.
5. Reattach the safety cable and the pulley. Make sure the wire from the pulley is kept away from the safety cable. Use the piece of tape that you attached before removing the pulley to make sure that the pulley is in the correct location.
6. Remove the clamps and connect the garage door opener.
7. Test the garage door to be sure that the replacement worked. If it doesn’t close all the way, or closes too quickly, inspect the location of the pulley and the extension spring hardware, adjusting as necessary.

Replacing Torsion Springs

1. Unplug the opener and clamp the garage door to the track so that the door cannot open when the tension is released on the springs.
2. Using a sturdy ladder, climb beside the winding cone at the end of the spring. Insert a winding bar (available on Amazon) into the winding cone to hold the spring in place. Test the force that you will be working with by pushing the winding bar up one quarter turn and then bringing it back down. Once satisfied with the grip on the winding bar, loosen the screw set. Keep one bar in the cone at all times to prevent it from rapidly unwinding and potentially injuring you.
3. Lower the winding bar to the top of the garage door, then insert a second winding bar. Remove the first winding bar and lower the second bar to the top of the garage door, then insert the first winding bar into the next hole. Repeat steps 4 and 5 until the spring is completely unwound.
4. Loosen and remove the torsion hardware that secures the center stationary torsion cones to the spring bracket.
5. Remove the springs, cables, and cable drums.
6. For torsion springs, measure the wire size, inside diameter of the spring (most springs have a 2-inch inside diameter), spring length, and determine the winding orientation (whether the spring is left-wound or right-wound).
7. Slide the new left spring onto the torsion tube with the stationary cone facing the center bracket, then reinstall the cable drum.
8. Install the center bearing and the new right spring and then secure the cones.
9. Thread the cables and tighten the drums. Make sure that the tension is equal on both sides to prevent the door from opening unevenly.
10. Using the winding bars, begin winding the spring in the opposite direction as it was unwound. Ensure that at least one winding bar is in the winding cone at all times. Wind the spring as many turns as is recommended by the supplier.
11. Using a hammer, tap the winding bar to stretch the spring out ¼-inch.
12. Tighten the set screws on the winding cone.
13. Lubricate the spring with garage door lubricant, then remove the clamp from the garage door.
14. Test the spring by lifting the door about 3 feet. If the door remains in place, the replacement was a success. If the door falls, you’ll need to tighten the spring by a quarter turn until it stays open on its own. If the door opens, you’ll need to loosen the spring by a quarter turn until it remains in place.

We hope these tips help! When in doubt, contact a professional at Info@adamsdoorsystems.com!

(Source: Bob Vila)