How To Repair Your Roll Up Garage Door

Garage door repair tips

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The majority of garage doors these days are either aluminum or steel. It may also go unnoticed that most people enter their homes through garage entryways compared to the front door - this of course will put more usage on your garage door mechanism. This step-by-step guide will help you find and repair common problems you encounter with most garage doors.

Step 1 - Springs

The most common problem with any garage system is the torsion springs. The torsion spring helps the motor drive open and close the door. The spring helps maintain load distribution at the heaviest points of operation.

Checking For a Loose Spring: The torsion spring will be connected to a long drive bar located across the top of the garage door frame (inside). Make sure the sleeves at the end of the spring are securely attached to the bar.

Broken Spring: The more common problem is a broken spring. A quick visual check will tell you if a spring is broken. In this case you will have to remove the spring from the drive bar and replace it. It should be noted that older doors only used one spring, and these one spring units seem to break quite frequently. This is the opportune time to replace the old unit with a two unit spring system (this is mainly for a two car garage door).

Installing a Two Unit Spring System:

1. Take the broken spring to your local home improvement center. The will assist you in finding the proper spring replacement parts. 2. There will be a center support for your motor drive attached to the front/top of the garage frame (interior). You will need to slide one spring on each side of drive bar (which goes through the center support for the motor drive), and then secure the drive bar back in place. 3. Once the drive bar is in place, then make sure springs are properly secured. 4. Spray with WD-40 and then test.

This new system should lighten the load on your motor drive. If one spring breaks you can still open the door, but replace the broken spring ASAP; you can do further damage to the door.

Step 2 - Torsion Spring Pulleys

There are pulleys at both ends of the door that are part of the torsion spring system. These pulleys assist in both opening and closing the garage door. There are also cables that wind around the pulleys - these may also need replacing.

Check Pulley Assembly: There's a lot of weight put on this system and many times the pulley comes loose. The first thing to do is check the bolts which hold the pulley to the guide plate. The fix is to push the pulley back into place, then tighten bolts.

Replacing Pulley Cables: This procedure is a bit tricky. First, release the tension in the springs. Next, lift the garage door and clamp it in place. Wind the new cable back in place (on the Pulley), then take the tension back up on the springs (use caution) and lock the tension springs in place. You probably will need a second set of hands to do this safely.

Step 3 - Worn Our Rollers and Rails

If your garage door is working, but it seems like it's rattling and straining to work, then you must check the rollers and rails.

Replacing Rollers: A visual inspection can uncover bent roller rods, damaged wheels, or even wheels that have seized. In these cases just unbolt the old wheel assembly and replace with new ones. This is a pretty simple, straight forward repair.

Repairing Rails: Generally the rail guidance system doesn't need repairing, but it just needs realigning. Again, we have a situation where with usage bolts can become loose and cause the rails to slide out of alignment. If the plates holding the rails in place are not damaged, then realigning the rails is not a hard task. It may take a few tries to get it right, but you will visually see any problems when you test the door.

At first glance it might look like a major undertaking to repair your own garage door, but as we have outlined it's not that bad - saving money by DIY isn't bad either.

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