10 Maintenance Tips To Make Garage Doors Last Longer
Being an important appliance used in almost every next home, garage door calls for some maintenance to last longer. Garage doors are used very often with minimum two times and maximum eight times a day. Durability merely depends upon its use, but there is one thing that we call maintenance. Maintenance is supposed to increase the life of the object.
Observing your garage door on a daily basis can alarm you about the possible maintenance calls. Be aware of its noise and pace of motion to observe is it working as smoothly as it was on day one or there is some stiffness that needs to be treated. In case, if you find any, following are 10 Maintenance Must-do’s To Make Garage Doors Last Longer. Adapt them and save bucks by making, them last longer.
1. Listen to the odds
The very first must-do to maintain your garage door is to listen and look for any odds in its operation.
Be aware of the noise it makes and its smooth movement.
In case, if you observe excess sound or jerky movement, call out a professional right away to look for the overall maintenance of your garage door.
2. Tighten up the hardware
If your garage door is having jerky movement while opening or closing or if there is some extra noise from its operation, quickly look for the hardware.
Check if those bolts and roller brackets are tight or not.
Use a socket wrench to tighten up the loosed hardware due to excess use.
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3. Check for the balance
Garage doors often go out of balance, but this is not an apparent drawback to occur. Despite being unbalanced, they seem to be perfect.
Try pulling out the opener and then make the door move manually upside down, notice where it lands.
If the door does not land on its balance, then it is unbalanced.
Hire a professional to fix it otherwise your door will go out of service soon.
4. Inspect and replace rollers
Inspect your garage door rollers at least twice a year to be aware of any damages and prompt maintenance.
Moreover, make sure you replace these rollers after every seven years or earlier if you use the door multiple times a day.
5. Lubrication
Lubrication is an essential thing for any machine to work in proper order.
Try greasing the moving parts of your garage door once in every six months to prevent them from rust.
You can use white lithium grease to lubricate chain, screws, and a spray lubricant for the overhead springs.
Lubrication ensures smooth operation and durability.
6. Replace that cracked weather-stripping
Look for the side and bottom rubber weather-seal on your garage door.
If it is cracked, replace it as soon as possible.
Otherwise, it may jam your door any time soon and reduce its durability.
7. Examine those high-tension cables
One should never take these high-tension cables for granted.
They are responsible for the overall up and down movement of garage doors.
Examine cables periodically and call out a professional immediately if you find any wire torn out.
Otherwise, it may cause severe injuries and may affect the door life.
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8. Inspect the safety features
A garage door has two types of safety features: the mechanical safety feature and the photocell safety feature.
Try placing some object in the way of your door and observe if it stops closing or not.
In case, if it does not, call a professional to fix the problem.
9. Remove Rust
If its appearance is right, it is maintained.
Rust tends to accumulate on steel garage doors that make them look bad from the appearance.
Sand, prime, and paint your steel garage doors to give them a maintained look every time rust seems to settle down.
10. Clear the tracks
Look for any debris in the tracks present on either side. In case, if you find any, try hiring a professional garage door cleaner to get it cleaned otherwise, it will give your door a jerky movement.
Do not use grease or any random cleaner on these tracks.
Try using above-mentioned tips to maintain your garage doors. Maintenance adds to the door’s life. Moreover, it save high repair cost that may pop-up in case of ignorance.