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6 Garage Door Maintenance Tips for the Homeowners

A garage door works perfectly only when all the components, mechanical and electrical, operate harmoniously. But years of regular use, local weather conditions and friction among moving parts decreases performance. Regular maintenance is necessary to keep it working in a pristine condition. So, homeowners should have some basic understanding of the door working mechanism. This way they can undertake successful 'Do-it-Yourself' garage projects in garage door repair pacifica.

How to undertake Garage Door Maintenance

A garage door is unlike any other door in your home. It's the largest electrically operated entrance to your home. Since it has both electrical and mechanical components, you should start by thoroughly reading the door's Instructions manual. It will help you get acquainted with all the basic components and their respective working mechanism. Afterwards, you can proceed to undertake some general door maintenance.

Here are 6 Maintenance tips for homeowners:

1. Inspection: Take a close look at all the components of the door - big or small. Check the door opener, metal tracks, chain-belt or drive belt, dents in panels, electrical connections, rollers and bearings etc. Look for any signs of rust on metal parts or general wear and tear. If the metal tracks are not in proper alignment, use a carpenter's scale to align them in a straight line.

2. Lubricating Moving Parts: Door components need a friction-free surface for smooth operation. Use the ideal oil grade as recommended by the door manufacturer. Do not use WD-40 grade oil for lubrication. It attracts dirt/dust and causes damage to the components. Oil or grease the metal tracks in the rolling shutter doors. Other parts that need lubrication include chain, rollers, pulleys, hinges, screws etc.

3. Garage Door Opener Settings: Modern doors work via electronic openers that can be programmed by the user. A professional technician sets the default settings as considered suitable for the daily use. Do not temper with these settings unless you understand the operating instructions as detailed in the opener manual.

4. Minor dents in the Panels: Regular use causes dents to appear on flimsy panels. For example, light-weight aluminium door panels are known to get damages quickly. Homeowners can repair them quickly. Take a small hammer and large piece of cotton cloth. With the help of another person, place folded cloth on the dent surface and a hard-board on the other side. The board acts as a support for the panel. Remove the dent using subtle hammer movements.

5. Garage door Ventilation: Garages can get quiet hot in the summers and cold in the winters. Install a suitable ventilation fan to lower the humidity. Another option is to install a freestanding exhaust fan near a window. Insulated doors help in saving electrical energy and lower heating/cooling costs.

6. Door Insulation: Polystyrene panels are known to resist variations in temperature. Homeowners can add polystyrene foam in the hollow aluminium door panels. Also, the gap between the bottom of the door and garage floor should be plugged using a rubber or fiber strip.

7. Bonus Tip - Rust Prevention: Dirt and dust accumulation can lead to rusting. Initially, rust can be removed by simply washing the aluminum and steel doors with a mild household detergent. Use sandpaper to remove extreme rust. Sand the area thoroughly and apply zinc-rich primer. Now, apply a premium 100% latex paint on the affected area.

Garage door maintenance by the homeowner can save hundreds of dollars in repairs. It is recommended that people maintain their doors to avoid costly replacement. However, serious repairs like opener replacement and garage door spring should be undertaken only by the professionals. These experts have years of experience in handling all types of doors and models. Call in a reputed garage door repair company for professional installation, repair or parts replacement.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7958919

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Garage Door Accidents and Safety Tips

Opening and closing the garage door is something that most people do a number of times everyday. There are a number of features that make this task extremely easy. Garage door openers expert repair , outside door opening keypads and even remote door access are all readily available to homeowner and renters alike.

But all these devices promote a sense of thoughtlessness when it comes to these large doors. This lack of wherewithal when opening and closing these devices is in actuality, poses a very serious threat to the lives of anyone who resides in the home or whom might frequently visit.

The Threat Posed to Children

Garage doors are the largest and heaviest moving objects that exist in the home. They are completely capable of crushing anyone who comes close to them when closing. An adult can be injured if they are not paying close attention. This can happen if someone is trying to complete a project in the garage such as a certain home or automotive improvement and another member of the household closes the door without looking to see who may be near the doors.

If someone is leaning down already when the door hit him or her, the result can be a spinal injury. Adults can also be injured if they are racing to make it back into the house after someone else presses the door closer.

But although adults can be seriously injured by these doors, their bodies are usually large enough to ward off harm. An adult who is clipped by the garage door will usually emerge with bruises. But a child is another story.

Children are small and can easily be crushed by these gigantic doors. Many doors have sensors that can detect when they hit a person. But these sensors often do not detect small children before it is too late.

Children are also much more likely to play with garage door openers as well as with the doors themselves. Racing to jump through the door as it closes is a thrilling game for them. It is incredibly important that children are made aware of the serious dangers these doors pose. Garage door opener controls should also always be kept far out of a child's reach.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3443114

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How to Hang a Garage Door on a Steel Arch Building

Steel arch buildings are a very popular building because of the wide range things that they can be used for that can include: storing equipment, vehicle garage, airplane hanger, farming activities, retail stores, government and military use, workshop, and much more. It is a pre-fabricated structure that is quite affordable garage door services.

These buildings are expandable, strong, easy to erect, and durable. When erecting a steel arch building, one will have to install a garage door. With a few easy steps, installing a garage door where you hang it on a steel arch building can be a simple task.

The following is a list of tips on how to hang a garage door on a steel arch building:

1. Prepare the Garage Door: The first step is to record the measurements of the door frame. Make sure you measure the top, sides, and bottom. After measuring the door frame, cut the sections for the frame and install the frame. The height and width should be about the same size as the door.

2. Cut the Door: Mark the pre-hung door where you are going to cut. Cut the door where you made the markings. Attach 'stops' to each side of the opening. Make sure the stops are even with the inside edge of the door jamb. Attach the hinges in the pre-drilled holes. Bolt the springs together through the hole in the bearing plate. Attach the spring caution tag. Tighten the screws to the shaft. Slide the looped cable ends onto the studs on the bottom fittings. Attach lift handles and hinges Attach weather stripping to the bottom of the door.

3. Install Hinges and Rollers: Get someone to help you hold the door up and screw the hinges into the door. You will then find the top edge of the adaptable top fixture 3" down from the top edge and then fasten it. Install the rollers in the section's roller supports. You do this by locating the top edge of the adjustable top fixture. Insert a roller into each fixture. Firmly fix the track's brackets as you insert the rollers.

4. Assembling The Shaft: To assemble the shaft, make sure you do the following in order: 1.) slip the LH drum onto the cylinder shaft, 2.) then, the right wound spring, and the middle bearing plate and the left would spring, 5.) and finally, the RH drum. Bolt the springs together through the hole in the bearing plate. Attach the spring caution tag. Tighten screws to the shaft.

5. Insulation: Apply spray foam to the spaces between the door and the wall. Make sure you fill the spaces around the nails. Cut any surplus foam after the foam dries to get rid of any extra foam that is sticking out.

There are number of benefits to having a steel arch building. This type of building is easy to construct, has good airflow and ventilation, and is easy to insulate. If you are unsure about hanging a garage door on a steel arch building, enlist the services of a qualified professional to do the installation.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/3314740

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What Should You Do In Case Of A Broken Garage Door Opener

Garage door services repair are huge and should be maintained to make sure they don't cause any accidents. If you are trying to maintain your door, you may want to pay special attention to the openers since an improperly fixed opener may cause a good deal of problems.

While the openers don't always cause problems, but if they do, you may want to call a professional who will figure what actually is wrong with the door. In some cases, the problem is not serious and the door is not working properly just because of a minor technical fault.

How To Get The Door Opener Replaced?

Usually, a garage door opener is replaced as a last resort. Before you go and get the door opener replaced, you may want to inspect the minor pars that might be causing problems for the other parts. For instance, you can take a look at the hinges, springs and rollers. Once you have made sure all of the components are working properly, you can go ahead and get the opener replaced.

Aged Openers

In most cases, openers tend to become defective after a decade of use. As a matter of fact, the openers made 10 years ago don't meet safety standards of today. So, if your door opener is more than a decade old, you may want to get it replaced with a newer one, which will make sure your family is safe. The cost of the opener varies based on the brand and style you want to go for, but you can get them at any local store.

How To Buy A New Garage Door Opener?

Before you go for a new opener, what you need to do is consider a lot of factors, such as security, safety, noise level and power. You should make certain that the opener you choose contains enough power for bearing the load of the door.

Noise Level And Cost

Besides, it's important that you go for a quiet opener. Noisy openers may give you a lot of trouble, especially if your bedroom is located not far away from the garage.

Mechanism carries a lot of importance. Usually, belt drives make almost no noise. Direct drives, on the other hand, are a new addition and have few moving components. So, the chances of them getting damaged are slim. Typically, screw drives make a lot of noise and require to be maintained on a regular basis. But if noise doesn't matter, you can go for chain drives. But they make a lot of noise.

The installation of a new unit takes around 2-3 hours, which is something you may not be able to do. Therefore, you may want to get in touch with a professional. Don't try over and over again to fix things yourself as it can do more harm than good.

The takeaway

Repairing a garage door is not a piece of cake, especially if the problem is beyond minor technical faults. If you have no idea how to go about fixing a garage door, you may want to turn to a professional for help.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9330813

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Safety First When Repairing Or Replacing Overhead Garage Door Spring

There's one garage door repair job that most people shouldn't even attempt to do without professional help. That's to repair or replace the spring that operates the door. Since these springs are loaded with a lot of pressure, if you don't handle them properly, they could basically explode.

People have been severely injured or killed by garage door springs, so you should consider them very dangerous and handle them with care. If you have the right skills and tools, however, it can become a DIY project in order to save yourself a bit of cash.

There are two different types of springs that are used to operate overhead garage doors. These are torsion springs and extension springs, with torsion being the least common but the safest. There will be two of them, and you'll find them located on a shaft over the door opening.

Keep in mind that if one of the springs has already exploded, you'll need to replace both of them, because the second one will soon follow. It will save you both time and money to replace them both at the same time. If your door operates on extension springs, there will also be two of them, but they'll be located one on each side of the door.

The appropriate tools mentioned earlier are:

1. vise grip pliers in the proper size 2. winding bars, also in the correct size 3. socket wrench 4. adjustable wrench 5. ruler 6. rags 7. steady ladder

You'll be able to do the safest, most secure job as long as you have these tools. Never try to make do using the wrong size of type of wrench or winding bar, because you're only asking for trouble if you do.

Another safety rule for working on garage doors is to keep in mind that a garage door is a very heavy item. Good, heavy-duty models can weigh several hundred pounds. At the same time, the springs that operate the door are under several hundred pounds of force when they let the door fall. Torsion springs are safer to use than the common extension springs are. They do not expand or contract, so they don't move as the door operates. Torsion springs are recommended because they operate the door more smoothly and are much safer to have in your garage in garagedoorTujungacal.com.

It's never worth a human life to tackle a dangerous job without the proper skill level. If you have any doubt about your abilities, call a garage door professional who has been trained in the safest ways to handle the job.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7348790

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Garage Door Repair Tips

Welcome to garage door repair help, your ultimate resource to learn about garage door repair, do it yourself repair, and garage door repair services. With our economy in a recession many people don't have the money to shell out for a door repair service and are too scared to tackle the daunting task themselves. We are dedicated to helping you with this process and make the door repairing simplistic and easy.

The diagram above is a great trouble shoot map for anyone interested in repairing their garage door themselves. The first step we recommend for you to do is print out this diagram. Look at your garage and circle on the diagram what the problem areas are. This will help you to pinpoint certain areas of the entire door opening mechanism and be able to know if you have a bad motor, door tracks, door panels, or winding tube.

Once you have circled some trouble areas on your diagram you can start pricing out parts. We recommend looking at places like Home Depot and Lowe's for specific parts, and many people get excellent deals off of eBay and Amazon.

If you can't find the specific parts you need at these locations you may need to call a garage repair service and see how much they would wholesale you the parts for. Once you have prices on the parts you need you can begin to price out the garage door repair total.

Once you have the total repair price the most important step is to take that total and compare it to what garage repair services offer. What we mean by this is that if your total repairs total $500 dollars to do it yourself and a local repair company will do a door repair for $450 and cover all those parts, why not just let someone else handle it? Often times you can get a better deal using a service company if you need to replace the motor and the door coils. If you need to just repair rollers and bracketing it is almost always cheaper to do it yourself.

When doing the actual repairs you will only need instructions on installing a new motor and the door winding coils as they are more complex. Everything else is really just replacement, and very easy to understand as it usually involved unscrewing something, taking it off, and screwing the new part in.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2537968

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Universal Clicker and Garage Door Parts

Nowadays, car parks built for commercial and business purposes are built as a part of a large building or underground in the basement. These garages protect the cars from rains, hot summer sunshine that leads to the rise in the vehicles interior temperature. Apart from providing personal privacy, garages come with door opener and security code for access, which prevents burglary. With many companies offering a wide array of garage door openers, they all come with a clicker or a remote control.

These remotes are available in different colors and sizes and are compatible to only to that particular door with which they come. To know whether a particular clicker is compatible with one's garage or not can cause unnecessary hurdle. The solution to all this is a universal garage clicker.

Most of the universal garage clickers are compatible with almost all types of doors. This powerful gadget is lightweight and comes in small packages and is of the same size as regular clickers. Few of these clickers are designed to fit into the car's remote department or can be attached with its clip to the cars visor. One can choose the clickers according to his preference. From the security perspective, these clickers use the roller code generation technology and are more efficient than regular clickers.

One of its best functions is that they can be used to open two garages at the same time. This eliminates one from having two different remote controls for two garages. With easy programming, this modern miracle has saved the fortunes of numerous families who have lost the first remote control that came with their door opener. Like many mechanical structures, garage doors also demand regular maintenance.

For the smooth working of one's door, the garage door parts should be repaired or replaced as and when the need arises. The type of garage door parts depends on whether it is operated manually or automatically through clickers. A typical overhead door has several panels hinged together that roll along a system of tracks guided by rollers.

The weight of the door rests on extension or torsion springs. These springs consist of cable wires, winding cones and much more. Basically, there are numerous components that enable proper functioning of the garage door. It is advised to lubricate the door parts regularly for hassle-free working. Presence of stores globally providing high quality, cost-effective parts and easy accessibility has made life easy for people.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7039335

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Adjusting Tension on Garage Doors

Why should you go about adjusting tension on garage doors? Well, you have to realize that this factor has a lot to do with your overall satisfaction in using the product. Did you know that the garage door tension affects how easily the door opens and how safely it closes?

Adjusting the tension could do a lot more than assure your safety. Undue tension can actually make the motor of a door opener work harder. This means it consumes more power. As a result, you might end up paying an unnecessary huge electricity bill.

The first step would be to test the tension on the door if it really does need adjusting. What you should do first is to disconnect your door opener. This should be a pretty easy task, considering how a lot of garage door openers have quick disconnect features.

You should then position the door so that it is half open. For this task, you might need a platform to support the weight of the door. When it is halfway open, try to see if the door is leveled. If the tension is balanced, it should be. You should then try to lower or raise it. If it does so quite easily, then you have just the right amount of tension. If not, then it's time for the actual adjustment.

First, up, open your door fully. This is so that the springs are relieved from all tension. This makes the task a lot easier for you. After this, you need to use a pair of pliers or a block just bellow the rollers on the side track to lock the door into place. Make sure that the door is fully locked. A slip may cause it to come crashing down and could lead to an accident.

The lifting cable should then be disconnected. This is disconnected from the bend of the track, at the brace. You will see a lot of similar holes. In order to go about adjusting tension on the garage door, you can move the cable to a hole that is farther from or closer to the door. Moving it closer will increase the tension while moving it farther will decrease the tension.

Remove the stops. Try to raise or lower the door. If it still is not level, then you should adjust one side. When it is level, then you should make sure that you adjust both sides equally. Try it and readjust it until the door operates the way you want it to.

Here are a few tips to help you make sure that the process goes smoothly:

1) Have someone help you when you adjust the spring. Have him or her support the spring while you are disconnecting or connecting it. This makes sure that an accidental slip on your part will not cause an accident.

2) Get a professional to help you if you want the torsion springs replaced or adjusted. Replacing and adjusting these parts have been known to cause accidents. Cases often involve maiming and even death. DIY of this part of the door is taboo.

3) Wear safety equipment - it is always important to make sure that you wear the proper safety equipment, even in performing such seemingly simple tasks as adjusting tension on garage doors. Gloves and goggles are essential, as the spring can pinch your hand and could strike your eye.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2950113