A Guide to Basic Garage Door Maintenance
The average garage door should last 20 to 30 years. However, it can have a much shorter lifespan if a homeowner doesn’t practice proper garage door care.
Luckily for you, you don’t necessarily need to hire professional garage door services. There are plenty of garage door maintenance steps that any homeowner can take. Read on to learn more about these.
Use Less Frequently
Some homeowners have the habit of using their garage doors more than necessary. They will enter and exit their home on foot through their garage doors. If you’re one of the homeowners that do this, stop.
Doing this will wear down the parts far faster than if you only open your garage door when backing up in your car. You’ll then need to pay for garage door replacement and/or garage door repairs more frequently.
Check Springs, Cables, and Pulleys
You shouldn’t replace the springs, cables, and pulleys in your garage door system yourself. However, you should still keep an eye on them. If they seem to be worn down, rusted, etc., contact garage door consulting and/or repair services to replace them.
The cables and pulleys should be located on the top left and right of the garage door. The extension springs will be above the horizontal sections of the track. The torsion spring will be right above the door in the middle.
Fix Nuts and Bolts
The nuts and bolts that are located throughout your garage door’s parts don’t stay in position forever. The movements of your garage door can shake them loose. You should check these and tighten them when necessary.
Nuts and bolts can also rust over time as well. While you’re checking these features, keep an eye out for any ones that have rusted away. Replace them.
Apply Lubrication
Moving parts inevitably scrape against each other. This will eventually cause them to wear each other down. You can, however, reduce the rate of wear and make the parts last longer.
Apply a lubricant spray to rollers, hinges, etc. about twice a year. This should provide the parts with some protection.
Replace Weatherstripping
You’ll usually find rubber weatherstripping around the edges of your garage door’s entrance. It acts as a seal to keep the elements out of your garage.
Nail it back down when you see it pulling away. If it’s ripped and/or worn down, you need to replace it with newer material. Most hardware and home improvement stores sell replacement weatherstripping.
Learn More About Garage Door Maintenance And Other Facts
You may have to go out of your way to get these garage door maintenance steps done. However, a broken garage door will be even more of an inconvenience. Therefore, you should keep at it.
Do you have some more spare time? If so, why not spend some time taking in some useful information? Our articles are full of it.
Check out our pieces on cars, foods, fitness, and more.