Claire Armintrout, co-owner of A-1 Overhead Door Co. in Watsonville, recommends simply washing steel doors and keeping them clean. “If it’s a wood door, just have it painted and sealed like you would the siding on your house.” For automatic openers, having a service technician come out every two to three years to tighten bolts, lubricate moving parts and give the machine an overall tune-up will extend its life and help prevent failures at inconvenient times. “You can even do the maintenance yourself and save money,” advises Mrs. Armintrout. “It’s not that complicated, although most people prefer to have professional technicians do it for them.”
If you have to struggle to lift your door, then the springs are out of adjustment and possibly worn out. It’s fairly simple to check springs. If the door is well-lubricated and isn’t in a bind within the tracks, it should stay suspended in a halfway open or closed position. If it opens, the springs are probably too tight. If it closes on its own and slams to the ground, the springs are too loose or worn out. Don’t attempt to adjust the springs yourself—leave that to a professional.
Every six months, take a look at the hardware parts that make up the garage door. Look for worn metal and loose connections, and call a professional if you spot them. Remember, when a garage door is down in the closed position, the springs are loaded with hundreds of pounds of kinetic energy waiting to be released.
You should also periodically lubricate your garage door’s moving parts. Always use a lightweight oil to coat the rollers, hinge pins and track—never use a heavy oil or grease.
Mrs. Armintrout cautions that it’s easy for a contractor to get into the overhead door business, so consumers should check references and customer testimonials before hiring a contractor to install or service a garage door. “Ask how long they’ve been in the business,” says Mrs. Armintrout. “Anyone can sell good products, but just because a contractor sells a good brand doesn’t mean they do good work.”
