Garage Door Repair

Garage door repair is inevitable for any home owner who uses his garage with regularity. Whether you're replacing a damaged panel or some hardware, basic garage door repair is simple. These days, garage door panels are sectional and the doors are retractable, meaning they open up and into the garage, folding at each panel and rolling up on a track, as opposed to the older canopy model which opened up in one panel and hung out about a third of its length over the driveway. Sectional panels make it so you don't have to replace the entire door. One down side to this is that most modern garages are automated, so unless it’s a panel you're repairing it's going to involve getting into the mechanics of the automation. In other words, it can still be expensive.

Fortunately there are only a few kinds of garage door repairs you will need to make as there are only a few styles of doors out there. The styles are retractable, canopy, side hinged and sectional. Side hinged doors are probably the least encountered garage doors in residential homes. They open out like two ordinary doors and are more antiquated in style if nothing else. Your most difficult repair would be to replace the entire door. Nearly every modern garage door opens in to the garage on overhead tracks.

A retractable door lifts up and slides fully into the garage using a system of counter balances. These are made up of extension springs that contract or expand when opening and closing, respectively. The door is a single framed unit usually made of some kind of wood.

A canopy door is exactly the same but a portion of it hangs out over the driveway, hence its name. This is so you can leave your garage open during bad weather without rain or snow encroaching in on your garage floor. The kind of overhead garage door repair for these two doors usually includes basic tracking replacement, changing out some stripped bolts, replacing rollers and brackets or hinges. Simple DIY garage door repair that isn't very costly.

The sectional door is the most common type of garage door today. Like the others it opens on a track into the garage, but it is made up of sections attached by hinges that give the door a fluid-like movement when opened or closed. When it comes to repairing the sections, it's a piece of cake. Each one can be dismantled easily. Many are automatic doors and they open on a torsion spring located just inside the overhang at the entrance. When it comes to repairing these springs it's advised that you seek the aid of a professional as the spring is a high tension coil that can cause fatal injuries to someone inexperienced with them. As far as the mechanics of the motor go, you may be able to properly make any automatic garage door repair without calling a professional. Your owner's manual will often have exploded diagrams of the motor so all you need to do is order the garage door repair parts and dive in.

The need for most repair comes mostly from lack of maintenance. Negligence is the fastest way to garage door damage. First you should make sure the door is balanced. If it doesn't open evenly at both sides, it needs to be adjusted. Examine the springs for cracks or flaccidity. Make sure your tracks aren't bent, that your rollers turn properly and that they show no sign of wear. Tighten any loose nut or bolts. Order all garage door repair parts from the same manufacturer of your door. Ideally you want to do some routine maintenance a couple times a year. It's a quick hour and will ensure your garage door functions properly for a much longer period.

With automatic doors you may want to take more time to examine or lubricate the motor. Here's a video illustrating a Genie garage door repair. Genie is a popular garage door manufacturer that specializes in automated garage doors. This should give you an idea of what to expect.