The garage door in your home is most likely the largest moving part on your property. It may be used several times a day and it is used in all kinds of weather or seasons. It never gets a ‘break’.
Naturally, you want your garage door to last for a very long time but for this to happen, it needs regular maintenance work on your part. This can help to prevent any problems, or at least keep it at bay so that if a problem occurs, it isn’t a big one and it will be few and far between. Here are several maintenance and preventative tips to help to keep your industrial door running smoothly for decades.
1. Observe
Whenever possible, you should try to look and listen every time it is used. Make a habit of it. It doesn’t really take that much to do this. That way, you will get used to seeing it and you can spot subtle changes. Check to see if it operates smoothly or if it has jerky movements in certain spots. If it is relatively quiet and it starts making a different, louder, grinding noise, you know there is a problem. Check to see if the system is symmetrical.
2. Tighten Up
Since it is used numerous times in a year, it is bound to have so much vibration that there could be some loosening of the hardware. Check out the roller brackets and tighten it along with other parts that could do with some tightening.
3. Door Balance
It is important that the garage door is balanced because if it is not, then it will have to work harder. If this happens, then it is very likely that it won’t last as long as you would like. You can test the balance yourself, however, the spring adjustment to help correct the balance problem should be done by the pros, so give them a call.
4. Lubricate Moving Parts
A simple thing you can do which will likely add years to your garage door is to lubricate the moving parts. It just takes something like ten minutes a year, so that’s not too bad! You can use a white lithium grease on the chain. Use a spray lubricant and coat the overhead springs. You can get this from a garage door specialist.
5. Checking Cables
You can check the cables, but do not do anything though. These high-tension cables that lift the door have the power to take your life, so never actually do anything other than to inspect it visually. If there is damage or broken strands especially around the bottom roller bracket, then you know it’s time to call in the professionals.
6. Change The Weatherstripping
Sometimes, the weatherstripping at the bottom of the door may be cracked or brittle. If you notice this, you should replace it in order to keep the elements out. You can cut these to size and insert them into the grooves.
There are definitely several things you can do and others you can’t. However, by checking, you know when you need to call in the pros and this regular maintenance and inspection can catch things early and enable your garage door to function properly for many years.