In any season, your garage door has the same job. But changes in the weather can affect your door’s performance. The beginning of summer is a great time to inspect your home and to complete seasonal garage door maintenance that can extend your door’s life.
A 6-Step Guide to Seasonal Garage Door Maintenance
At RCI Doors™, we recommend homeowners complete the following garage door maintenance checklist at the beginning of summer and again at the beginning of winter:
Step 1: Watch (and Listen to) the Door’s Movements
You see and hear your garage door in action every day, but you probably don’t notice subtle changes in the way your door moves and sounds. So as the seasons change, take a minute for close observation of your door’s movements and sounds.
A well-functioning door will move smoothly with no sudden jerks along the way. A finely tuned door will also present a uniform sound with no loud clanky or creaky sounds. If you see or hear problems, the next steps are especially important.
Step 2: Look for Chipped or Cracked Rollers—or Worn Out Bearings
Check the rollers located along the sides of your garage door. These small components have a simple job, but they can chip or crack, especially as the temperature changes.
If you see any chipped or cracked rollers, call RCI Doors™. Our trained specialists can replace them without risking personal injury or damage to other door components. Operating a door with chipped or cracked rollers will eventually cause bigger problems.
Step 3: Clean the Rollers’ Tracks
Even brand-new rollers can’t perform as well in cluttered tracks. Check the entire run of your door’s tracks. Look for dirt, rust, or other debris. If you can’t clear the debris yourself without risking injury, call RCI Doors™.
Also, over time, door tracks can shift a little, creating a crooked path for the door to travel. Repairing this will require the help of a trained professional.
Step 4: Check the Tracking Brackets
The frequent, daily motion of a garage door can loosen the door’s tracking system. Visually inspect the brackets that hold the door’s tracks to your garage’s walls and ceiling. If a bracket looks to be sagging or pulling away from the wall or ceiling, the brackets need to be tightened or repaired.
It’s best to call a professional, like the staff at RCI Doors™, for this repair. At least two brackets on most garage door models hold tension cables that could injure an unauthorized repair person.
Step 5: Garage Door Maintenance Lubrication
Adequate lubrication helps keep the moving parts of your residential garage door working properly throughout the year. We recommend lightly spraying lithium-based lubricants onto your door’s rollers and hinges. Don’t apply too much and be sure to wipe off excess lubricant.
Step 6: Check the Door’s Weather Stripping
The rubber strip on the bottom of your garage door can stretch and crack in extreme weather. If this weather stripping starts to sag, it can no longer seal your garage from the elements. On most modern doors, this stripping fits into a groove on the bottom of the door.
You can buy new weather stripping at a hardware store. However, if you’re not sure you can make this repair yourself, give us a call. Our garage door specialists can take care of it for you.
Some Seasonal Garage Door Maintenance and Preventive Measures Require A Pro
A garage door has a simple job, but it’s not a simple piece of equipment. Servicing a door without the proper training and experience can damage the door. More importantly, unauthorized service can cause serious personal injury.
Some of your door’s components are too dangerous to tackle on your own. Please call a professional garage door installer or service company before touching your door’s springs, cables, and pulleys. These components operate under high levels of tension and shouldn’t be altered without safety precautions.
Throughout central North Carolina, RCI Doors™ can dispatch safety-certified garage door service techs to your home for seasonal maintenance. Our staff will also check your door’s balance to make sure your garage door opener isn’t having to work harder than it should to lift and lower your door.
How Can Climate Change Affect My Residential Garage Door?
Any kind of extreme weather — hot, cold, wet, or dry — can affect the performance of garage doors and garage door openers. Excessive moisture promotes rust. Extreme cold can stiffen components or dissipate lubricants. Extreme heat can warp panels and stretch weather stripping. The list goes on.
No homeowner can predict or control the weather. But homeowners can help their garage doors withstand extreme weather by performing regular maintenance and inspections.
When ignored, simple garage door problems that could be fixed within hours can turn into bigger problems. A small strain on one component will usually create a bigger strain on another component, and so on.
Extreme weather can become a new source of stress for garage door systems. Keeping up with regular maintenance and performing preventive seasonal measures can soften the impact of the elements, adding years to the life of your garage door.
Seasonal Maintenance: Not Always A DIY Project
Tips and tricks to maintaining a garage door boil down to this: Pay attention to your door and look for small problems before they become big problems. Changing temperatures can cause small problems to your system.
But unlike some simple appliances and systems in your home, repairs and seasonal garage door maintenance aren’t always good DIY projects. Instead, you’ll need to call a specialist, someone who understands the nuances of your door’s components and how they interact with each other.
In central North Carolina, there’s no better service provider than RCI Doors™. Contact us today to schedule your appointment.
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