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Home Advice Garage door maintenance checklist: 12 th

Garage door advice · Alabama

Garage door maintenance checklist: 12 things to do twice a year

A twice-yearly garage door maintenance checklist: balance test, safety reverse test, lubrication, roller and cable inspection, seal checks. Prevent the call-out before it happens. Call (877) 230-8979.

Most emergency call-outs we attend were preventable. Twenty minutes twice a year, spring and autumn, catches nearly everything.

Safety first

Never touch the torsion springs, the cables or the bottom brackets. Those are under tension. Everything else on this list is safe with the door closed and the opener unplugged.

The checklist

  1. Watch and listen

    Run a full cycle. Note jerking, uneven movement or new sounds.

  2. Balance test

    Unplug the opener, pull the release, lift the door halfway. It should stay put. If it drops or flies up, the springs need adjusting.

  3. Safety reverse

    Lay a 2x4 flat under the door and close it. It must reverse on contact.

  4. Photo eye test

    Wave a broom through the beam while closing. It should stop and reverse.

  5. Tighten hardware

    Every hinge, bracket and rail bolt.

  6. Inspect rollers

    Replace any that are chipped, wobbling or not turning.

  7. Inspect cables

    Look for fraying near the bottom bracket. Do not touch, just look. Fraying means call now.

  8. Lubricate

    Hinges, rollers, springs, bearing plates, opener rail. Not the track.

  9. Clear the track

    Wipe out grit with a damp rag.

  10. Check the seal

    Cracked or flattened bottom seal lets in water, dust and wasps.

  11. Check the door itself

    Rust at the bottom section, cracked stiles, delamination.

  12. Test the manual release

    Everyone in the house should know where it is and how to use it in a power cut.

What to leave to a technician

Spring tension, cable replacement, drum alignment, track straightening and anything that requires the door to be held open by something other than its own balance.

Need this fixed rather than explained? Call (877) 230-8979 for same-day service anywhere in Alabama.

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