Even a garage that has been properly and regularly maintained, may need some repair work from time to time, and while you should always call a garage door technician to fix them as soon as you spot them, there are a couple of things you can do yourself to keep your garage door functioning as it should. Just make sure that if you are completely inexperienced, or not confident with any of the hacks mentioned below, that you seek professional help, as you could end up making the problem worse:
- Assess and repair the tracks
If your garage door suddenly stops working as it opens, or stops suddenly and reverses direction without any warning, this may signal a change in the upward or downward force, and you may need to increase the force adjustments on the garage door opener.
Firstly, check to see if the door is running smoothly on the tracks; if the tracks are damaged or have moved, this could be the cause. If you pull the emergency release rope, you can check how smoothly the door is traveling by lowering and raising it manually. If the door gets stuck halfway, you might be able to determine where the problem is.
If you don’t know what you’re doing (and most don’t!), ask a garage door expert to come out and fix the problem for you; it will probably be quicker and a lot more reliable than doing it yourself.
- Adjust the garage door opener
For any other issues involving the smooth opening and closing of your garage door, it might be necessary to increase the downforce of the door. This is achieved by turning the adjustment screw clockwise, then turning it a quarter turn at a time, before retrying the door.
Then, using the opener, close the garage door and grab it at the halfway point to make sure the downward force isn’t too great; if you can stop the door like that, you’ve probably hit the sweet spot and no further adjustments will be needed. If you can’t stop it, however, you’ll need to adjust the screw until the door closes completely without your help, but will stop if you grab on to it halfway.
- Make upward force adjustments
If your garage door opener suddenly stops and doesn’t open fully, you may need to increase the upward force. In this instance, you can turn the adjustment screw a quarter turn at a time, clockwise. Retest the door after making each adjustment, and remember that the upward and downward force of your garage door are critical elements of its operation, and that a door which doesn’t open or close properly, could be a risk to anyone using it.
Many homeowners like to carry out their own garage door repairs to save money, and while this is perfectly fine if you know what you’re doing, if you don’t, you’ll likely end up making the problem worse, or even creating a hazard for those using your garage. To get your garage door working again, schedule a visit from a local garage door technician, at the earliest.
