Check these 4 things every 3 months

Keep your garage door running optimally by regularly maintaining it. Might sound like a lot of work, but it’s not! All you need to so is check these 4 things every 3 months.

Visual Inspection

The first and easiest check should always be a visual inspection. Step inside your garage and close the door, how do the rollers look? Are they still in top shape or do they look worn out? What about the lifting cables? Make sure they’re not frayed. Look at the torsion spring (above the door), is it broken? Make sure the extension springs are in place. And last but not least, tighten any screws or bolts that have come loose.

Check If the Door Is Properly Balanced

A well‑balanced garage door is crucial to the safety of your family. Make sure it’s still balanced properly by pulling on the red emergency release cord to deactivate the electric door opener. Then, open the door manually, you should be able to lift it with one hand. If you can, open the door just halfway and check to see if it holds itself in position, it should.

If you either can’t open the door one‑handed, or if it doesn’t hold itself open, it will need checking by a garage door professional. It’s more than likely that you have an issue with the spring system.

Is the Mechanical Reversal system working?

Garage door systems have two reversal systems, we’ll cover the mechanical reversal system now and the other one in the next point. The mechanical reversal system stops the door from closing if there’s something in it’s path. Really easy to check this one, just place something in the way of the garage door, like a piece of lumber, and then try to close the garage door.

The garage door should automatically reverse when it makes contact with the item in its path, if it doesn’t you’ll need to adjust the door opener’s sensitivity by turning the limit adjusting screws a quarter turn counterclockwise until the mechanical reversal system, works as it should.

Is the Photo‑Eye reversal system working?

Next up is the photo‑eye reversal system. Again, this prevents the door from closing on something in its path, but this time it’s a light beam that detects if something is in the way, rather than actual physical contact. Easy to check once again, just pass your hand or foot in front of the light beam unit to break the beam as the door is closing. If the door doesn’t automatically change direction and open, one of the units might be misaligned or a wire may be broken, you’ll need to get that checked out!

How can we help?

If you’ve not been regularly maintaining your garage door, it will no doubt need tuning up, luckily for you we provide a tune‑up service. Get in touch with us at 905-684-8161 for more information. We’re also here to provide advice if you’re thinking about changing your garage door, we’ll even come out to your home to help you choose the best fit for you! Request a quotation here.

There are some great examples in our image gallery if you’re thinking about changing your garage door but have literally no idea where to start. You can even try them out using our Design Centre to see how they would fit with your home’s style.