The damp and cold of a Northeast Ohio winter can wreak havoc on your garage door opening system. Taking time in the fall to check over the components of your door opener could save you some serious problems later.
Your professional garage door technician can provide a full inspection and provide repairs if your door opening system is not functioning properly, but there are steps you can take on your own to help troubleshoot your system if you have concerns. Consider the following issues and suggestions.
Your garage door seems excessively noisy when operating
Your garage door should not rattle the whole house when it opens and closes. If yours suddenly seems noisy or occasionally sticks when raising or lowering, it probably needs some lubricant. As temperatures drop, old lubricant can harden and metal parts may contract, making it harder for the rollers to move through the tracks and causing hinges and springs to creak and potentially crack. Applying white lithium grease or a silicone-based spray may help this.
Your garage door won’t open
You press the remote and your garage door doesn’t respond. Before you do anything else, check the batteries. Cold weather can drain a battery quickly, so if your remote is in your car, you may need to replace the batteries more frequently.
If you replace the batteries and the door still won’t respond, check the springs and tracks for breaks or damage. Provided the springs and tracks appear intact, carefully attempt to manually open your garage door by pulling the red cord to release the door from the opener. If the door feels heavy, contact a professional to inspect and possibly replace the spring.
For remotes that are broken, replacing with a universal remote is an easy and economical way to remedy the problem. Follow the package directions to easily program your new remote.
Your garage door stops part way down and/or reverses
The sensors near the bottom of the garage door provide the safety mechanism to prevent your garage door closing on an object, a pet, or a child. If something is blocking the sensors, the lenses are dirty, or they are out of alignment, it will cause the door to reverse or stop even when nothing is in the way. Spray from sprinklers, winter dirt, and condensation from the cold are common causes of dirt on the sensor lenses, so an occasional gentle cleaning is a great way to keep this safety feature working properly.
Sometimes the safety reverse on your garage door needs adjustment, especially if it is the type that must make contact with an object to reverse. Contact a professional technician to adjust the force limit on your garage door.
If your garage door opener has been damaged or it has not been inspected for the winter months, contact Above & Beyond Door Systems to schedule service. We provide the following with our maintenance program:
- Inspect rollers, cables, and bottom brackets; replace if necessary
- Inspect and tighten loose nuts and bolts on tracks, hinges, and door
- Check for proper door balance and integrity
- Lubricate all moving parts with a silicone lubricant spray
- Inspect operation of safety reverse
- Clean and adjust photo eyes as necessary
Call us today!