Garage Door Service: Keep Your Garage Door in Perfect Condition
Even the best garage doors require maintenance from time to time to keep them in perfect working order. When you buy a new door, you will want to make sure it lasts you many years, so follow these tips to make sure you spot and fix problems when they arise.
DIY Maintenance: Basic Checks You Can Do Yourself
Some people decide to carry out maintenance on their garage doors themselves, and this is sometimes possible. However, you should only really focus on the most basic of maintenance tasks and leave the other jobs to the experts – especially if you have an electric garage door.
Carrying out regular visual inspections is a good idea. Every few weeks, check over everything, especially the areas you do not normally look at, including the rollers, springs, cables, pulleys, etc. This can alert you to problems early on and then you can call out a specialist to deal with them before they become too serious.
Another test you can do for automatic doors is the automatic reverse test. This is a safety feature to prevent doors from crushing anyone or anything. Place a plank of wood underneath and close the door, checking that it stops when it makes contact with the wood. If it does not, get it fixed.
Another thing you can do is lubricate your door. Ask your seller about which lubricant is the best to use when you buy your door, and then simply apply it to the tracks, rollers and hinges about twice a year.
When to Call Out a Specialist
Although these are some simple ways to carry out very basic maintenance on your garage door, be careful about trying to fix anything yourself. Garage doors can be very complex, and you could easily damage your door or cause yourself an injury if you don’t know what you are doing.
The better option is to hire a garage door specialist to fix your garage door whenever you spot any problems. If the motor stops working, the garage does not lock properly or you simply notice that it is not as efficient as it used to be, call out a specialist.
Arrange Regular Checks to Avoid Problems
As well as calling out a specialist to fix any problems that arise, the best thing that you can do is arrange for an expert to check your garage door every once in a while. There is no rule about how often to get yours looked over, but once every few years is a good idea. Ask when you buy your door because the seller should have a good idea about how often to get it checked.
Get it checked even when there is nothing obviously wrong with your door. Problems can occur without you seeing them, and minor issues inside the door can turn into more serious problems if they are not dealt with – making them more expensive to fix.
Ask Your Garage Door Seller for Advice
When you buy a new door, make sure you ask your seller about maintenance and servicing because this is very important if you want your garage door to last as long as possible. They may provide you with ideas about some simple maintenance you can do yourself, or they may provide you with some problem signs to look out for that are specific to your door. Then make sure you look after your door and check it over regularly, and get a specialist to look over it from time to time to ensure everything is in order.
