How To Repair A Garage Door: Faults, Fixes And Safety

A garage door is the largest and heaviest moving part of most houses, and for many Johannesburg families it is the way in and out every day. When it fails, the car is stuck inside or the house is left open, so it pays to catch problems early. The good news is that many faults are simple, and a regular look at the door stops most of them becoming expensive.

Safety first: springs and cables

A garage door is held up by springs under very high tension, which carry most of the door's weight. A spring or cable that snaps, or is released by someone who does not know how, can cause serious injury. Never adjust, remove or replace springs, cables or the brackets that hold them yourself, and do not use a door with a broken spring, because the motor and the rest of the door then take the full weight. Everything in the "check yourself" section below can be done safely; spring and cable work cannot.

How a garage door works

Every garage door has two parts: the door itself, and the mechanism that opens it. The door is a one-piece tip-up door, a sectional door that runs up in panels along tracks, or a roll-up door that coils above the opening. Each is balanced by springs and, on an automated door, moved by a motor (the opener). A fault can be in either part, so the first job is to work out which: does the door move freely by hand when the motor is released, or is the motor the problem? Our overview of the types of garage doors explains how each design works.

Signs your garage door needs attention

• Noise: grinding, squealing or banging when the door moves.
• Jerky or uneven movement: the door shudders, sticks halfway or runs crooked.
• The door drops or will not stay open: usually a spring or balance problem.
• The door sits skew in its frame or a roller has come out of the track.
• The motor runs but the door does not move, or there is only a click when you press the remote.
• The door reverses for no reason, or does not stop when something is in its way.
• Gaps at the bottom or a perished rubber seal letting in water and dust.

Common faults and their causes

• Tracks dented, dirty or out of line. Rollers bind on a dent or a build-up of grease and grit, and a track that is not straight and level makes the door stick or run crooked.
• Loose hardware. Bolts on the brackets, hinges and spring plates work loose with daily use. On sectional doors, loose hinges between panels make the door sag and jam.
• Worn rollers and hinges. Dry or worn bearings make a door noisy and heavy to move.
• Broken or tired springs and frayed cables. The door feels very heavy, drops, or opens unevenly. This is a job for a technician.
• Motor faults. A failed capacitor, worn gears or a faulty circuit board stops the motor, and power surges and lightning damage the electronics. A flat backup battery stops the door in load shedding.
• Remote problems. Sometimes the door is fine and the remote needs a battery or reprogramming.
• Weather damage. Rubber seals perish in the Highveld sun, steel rusts and wooden doors swell and crack if water gets in.

What you can check and fix yourself

With the door closed and the motor switched off or unplugged, these checks are safe for most homeowners and solve a lot of minor problems. You will need a screwdriver or spanner, a spirit level, a household cleaner and a garage door lubricant.

1. Look at the tracks. Clean out dirt and hardened grease. Check for dents and crimps, and for loose track brackets. A badly bent track should be replaced, not hammered straight.
2. Check the alignment. Use a level to check the tracks are straight and parallel. If a bracket has moved, note it for the technician unless it is only a loose bolt.
3. Tighten loose bolts and screws on the hinges, track brackets and handles. Do not loosen anything connected to the springs or cables.
4. Lubricate the moving parts: rollers, hinges and the opener's chain or rail, with a product made for garage doors. Do not grease the tracks themselves; clean tracks run better.
5. Check the bottom seal and replace it if it has perished. On a wooden door, fill small cracks around hinges with exterior wood filler.
6. Test the safety reverse. Place a block of wood under the door and close it: the door should stop and reverse when it touches. If it does not, stop using the motor and have it set.
7. Check the remote and the emergency release, so you know you can open the door by hand if the power is off.

If the door is still sticking, heavy or noisy after these checks, or you find anything wrong with the springs, cables or motor, stop there and call a technician. A regular routine, covered in our guide to basic garage door maintenance, prevents most of these faults in the first place.

Jobs to leave to a technician

• Replacing or adjusting springs, cables, drums and spring brackets.
• Refitting a door that has come off its track.
• Replacing bent tracks or damaged panels.
• Motor repairs, circuit boards and setting the force and auto-reverse.
• Rebalancing a door that drops or opens unevenly.

Repair or replace?

Most faults are worth repairing: a spring, a roller set, a panel or a motor part costs far less than a new door. Replacement makes sense when a door is badly rusted, warped or damaged in several places, when parts are no longer available, or when an old door and motor keep failing one after the other. Think about how often the door is used, where it faces and how much upkeep you want: a steel door needs less care than timber, but a light door is easier to dent. If you are weighing it up, our guides to garage door prices and modern garage door openers explain the costs and options.

Choosing a garage door repairer

1. Ask whether they repair doors they did not install. The original installer knows the door, but a good company can work on any make.
2. Get the fault and the price in writing before work starts, with the parts listed.
3. Ask about the guarantee. Repairs should be guaranteed in writing. Ours carry a 24-month workmanship guarantee.
4. Check reviews and ask whether they look after doors like yours, including complexes with many doors.
5. Be wary of anyone who wants to replace the whole door before they have found the fault.

For complexes and estates with many garage doors, a maintenance contract keeps every door serviced on schedule, with one contractor responsible. See our garage door installations and repairs for the doors and motors we work on.

If your garage door is noisy, sticking, dropping or will not open at all, we can find the fault and quote the repair in writing, including springs, cables, tracks and motors. Call Tyson on 071 846 7554 or request a free written quote.