Maintenance of Your Garage Door - By: Andre Issey

There are a million different styles, sizes, colours and brands, from manual to automatic, from cheap to costly. The one thing that all garage doors have in common is that they all need a little TLC every once in a while. Whether it’s the convenience of storage a garage gives you, or the sense of security a good quality door offers, if you don’t take care of it, you’re prone to rust, sticks, creaks, leaks or plain old meltdown, and it certainly isn’t going to perform either of those requirements to a very good standard.

‘Why bother?’ we hear you cry. Number one; it’s going to cost you to call someone out to fix it. Number two; if it stores your car, you’re not going to be driving anywhere. Number three; if you use your garage for secure storage, then it might not be as secure as you think it is. Number four; it’s dead easy to do.

We’re not talking weekly checks here either. A check every year (maybe every sixth months if you truly love your garage door) should be enough to understand and potentially correct the general wear and tear that’s been happening since you last checked. There are three things you should be looking at, and a fourth thing you should do to make sure everything is running at tip top condition.

Firstly, check the springs. If these are showing signs of wear or rust and look like they’re on their last legs, it isn’t going to matter how the rest is doing, because without springs, your garage door isn’t going to function well at all. More importantly, we’d recommend you call out a professional as soon as possible, because problems with the springs are tough to fix.

If the springs are OK, it’s time to have a look at the mounting brackets. Have a feel, and check for any motion. They should be stuck firm. Any movement and it’s likely to be a loose screw. A tighten here and a tighten there should get the brackets back to their best.

The third and final thing to do is to sneak a peak at the tracks. If it’s been a year, then there’s no doubt that a little dirt and dust has accrued, and that should be dealt with first. Give them a clean, as built up dirt can affect the smoothness of the doors movement. If the tracks have some dinks and dents and you feel confident enough, then they can be set right with a rubber mallet and a bit of effort. A final thing to check is if they’re aligned properly. Over time the tracks can shift position slightly (generally due to loose mounting brackets), and fixing them is simple enough. Loosen the mounting bracket and shift the position until the door runs smoothly.

Last phase; oil it up. Use plenty of good quality lubricating oil.

And that’s it! Look after your garage door, and it’ll look after you.

About the Author

The author of this article works for a company that specialises in Up and Over Garage Doors and Garador Garage Doors .

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/Andre-Issey/54899

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