When was the last instance you completed regular precautionary upkeep on your garage door or your garage door opener? Even though your garage door opener is a enormous convenience and works properly, virtually all house owners take it for granted.
According to a current US study, 45% of homeowners who have a garage utilize the garage door as the main point of entry into their house. In addition, a separate review indicates that 71% make use of their garage door openers to go into their homes. That means that the successful operation of your garage door and its opener can be extremely important in your every day life.
Just like all mechanised devices there comes an occasion when your garage door opener will fail to work. Sorry to say it will most likely take place at the most inconvenient time. That's why a little anticipatory upkeep can be a excellent way to make certain that you notice problems with your garage door before something breaks.
This appears like enough evidence to convince anybody about the significance of regular maintenance for their garage doors and openers. An important thing to remember is that a garage door opener can without difficulty raise a four hundred fifty pound double residential door. Therefore, if a door reverses as it is closing, it is rational that the door opening apparatus ought to be completely checked out.
Children have a way of becoming enchanted by the operation of garage doors. Left to their own devices they can stress a garage door to the breaking point by pushing the remote or wall button during the movement of the door. Therefore it's necessary to keep remote controls away from children and do not allow them to play with the wall control panel.
Here are a few important routine preventive upkeep tips.
Twice a year, you should disengage the automatic opener while the door is closed. This can be accomplished by pulling on the red cord or pull rope.
Then perform a equilibrium test. Once the door is in "manual mode" verify if it is properly balanced. Open the door half way. It should remain there without you touching it. If this is not the situation, you may have a cable or spring malfunction. Get in contact with a garage door company so that they can further diagnose your problem.
Visually inspect rails, chain/belt and mounting brackets on your garage door opener. Horizontal rails should always be parallel to assure that the door operates suitably.
Oil all metal parts two times a year with a proper metal lubricant. The same applies for weather seals. Make sure to apply a silicone based lubricant. This will add years of worry-free operation to your garage door.
Do a reversal test. Make certain that the reversal mechanisms of your garage door opener are working. Since 1996, all garage door openers are outfitted with two safety systems. The primary one is a photocell system that will stop and reverse the movement of the door when a person or thing passes through the light beam. The second system will stop and reverse the door automatically if it senses any resistance while the door is closing.