Garage Door Troubleshooting 101

Automatic garage door openers are modern wonders of invention. They work so smoothly and conveniently we hardly stop to consider these devices are raising a several hundred pound garage door with ease and efficiency. But when they break, the world comes to a screeching halt. Suddenly, this becomes an emergency garage door repair because so much of your life stops to function. You might even have trouble getting your car out of the garage. Should you call a professional or repair the garage door opener yourself?

Luckily, garage door troubleshooting is something that homeowners are usually able to tackle themselves, but it is also important to know when to call in the professionals. There are a lot of safety measures to take when working on a garage door, especially when working on anything involving the spring coil system. These systems also require leveling which is instrumental for safe use of your garage door.

Squeaky or Screeching Garage Doors

Small issues, such as squeaks and screeches, are fairly straightforward and can be tackled by most folks in a relatively short period of time.

  • Squeaks are best fixed by applying motor oil on the hinges and rollers until the source of the friction is detected.
  • Screeches, and other scraping sounds, can be alleviated by attention to the bearing plate. If it is properly aligned, it may require some reinforcement.

If these methods do not yield results, you may need to look at the spring system as another possible cause, as are worn-out pulleys.

Issues with Opening and Closing

Another common problem is having to hold the door opener button down continuously to get the door to open / close; this is attributable to defective or dirty sensor eyes which probably just need a quick cleaning or realignment.

  • If your door is not closing all of the way, check the track which may need to be realigned or replaced.
  • If the door will not stay open, an adjustment to reset the springs should do the trick.

If none of these quick fixes works, you may have a more serious problem on your hands, and it might be time to call in the pros, as problems caused by a faulty spring system are much more involved and complex.

Problems with Garage Door Springs

The problems described above, are fairly straightforward and easily handled by the homeowner with some attention to the basic workings of the garage door. It’s when there are issues with the spring cable that things get tricky and become projects that are not recommended for DIY enthusiasts.

When your door is closing at an angle, the door opens very slowly, or starts to close and then reverses itself, the culprit is usually the spring cable. Replacing a torsion spring cable is something that requires multiple steps and can be dangerous, therefore it is considered a project that is not undertaken by the homeowner, but by a garage door professional. It is important to understand the potential dangers in replacing these springs and how to reset the leveling drums, and is a time when professionals are your best bet.

Garage Door Repair Roseville Can Help

If you have identified a problem with your garage door that requires the assistance of a trained professional, we would love to help. Proudly located in and serving Roseville, CA, we accept calls 24/7 from homeowners like you. Give us a call at 916-347-0211 to schedule your appointment now and we’ll have your garage door in working order in no time!

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