3 Most Common Types of Garage Door Repair
Cars and homes require maintenance. It’s just a fact of life. Over time, things wear down and break. Consider your garage door. How many times does it go up and down over the course of a year? That constant movement means that parts are going to wear out. However, unlike other home items, you can repair a garage door which is good news for your pocketbook. To give you an idea of what you might run into, we have detailed three of the more common types of garage door repair.
3 Common Garage Door Repairs
1. Weather Seal Replacement
Weatherstripping is a standard garage door repair that is not too complicated and can be done by almost anyone. Weather seal replacement in your garage keeps the cold or warm air inside (depending on the season), and dirt and pests outside.
Open your garage to measure the width of the replacement seal, remove the old seal, and install the new seal one nail or screw at a time. Make sure during installation that the sloped edge is toward the outside of the garage door and the flat part is at the bottom of the door. Cut off any excess material and give yourself a high-five.
Be sure to test the garage door to make sure it opens and closes smoothly, and make sure it is not catching. If you notice that it is, carry out the appropriate adjustments.
Installing garage door seals helps you have a warmer, cleaner garage during wintertime and a cooler garage in the summertime. Use it on insulated garage doors to fully secure your garage against outside temperatures.
2. Spring Replacement
Coiled springs will make raising and lowering a heavy garage door easier. The spring is not a part of your garage door opener, but rather a component of the door assembly itself. When they wear or break, you can replace just that one component. You can also upgrade your spring if your door sees a lot of use
Typically, you will know you have a broken spring in one of two ways. If your door is hard to raise or if it makes a lot of noise then it’s likely a spring issue. The other indicator is a bit more dramatic. Springs may break when they are fully loaded down, twisted or stretched. When they break, it sounds like a gunshot. If you’re sitting at home when this happens, it’s not likely that you will miss it.
Replacing a spring yourself is highly discouraged, as working with springs under tension and big heavy doors are inherently dangerous and can cause serious injuries if not handled properly. A solid metal winding bar is required to remove a torsion spring, and two solid metal winding bars are needed to install it.
The standard recommendation in garage door repair when it comes to replacing the springs: leave it to the professionals.
3. Broken Cables
Just like with garage door springs, cables are an essential part of the garage door. Garage door cables come from individual wires wrapped together to make thicker strands, which are then put together to create the cable. By using the tension provided by the springs, the cables pull the weight of the door up, which is what makes it an integral part of the garage door.
Over time, wear and tear on the cables cause them to weaken and fray, and eventually snap. A good indicator that a garage door cable needs repair is the garage door hanging at an odd angle, or the door getting stuck halfway.
Like spring repair, incorrect replacement can cause severe damage and injury. You also need to be careful or the and entire door will fall. If you do not have the knowledge or the appropriate tools to perform this type of repair, hire someone who knows what they’re doing. It will pay off in the long run.
When You Need Reliable Garage Door Repair
For more than 70 years customers have been putting their trust in Nofziger Doors. If you find yourself in need of garage door repair or garage door installation, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. You will receive prompt service from a professional that has on average, eight years of experience. With our reputation for dedication and excellent products, we are the garage door repair team you can rely on.
