Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Summer Slips Away

As summer is slowing starting to slip away in 2014 and the seasons start to change, you may notice some changes in your garage door as well. What changes you ask?

In some cases where the garage door is facing the west, the garage door may give you some trouble in closing. Why? Well it has been our experience that when the sun sits at a certain height in the sky that it reflects directly into the sensors on the garage door opening. When the sun shines into those sensors, the sensors think something is blocking the garage door opening and sends the garage door right back up. What can you do to prevent this from occurring? You can adjust your sensors a little by the wing nut on the top of the sensor. If you sensor is out of adjustment, it will blink; just adjust the sensor until the blinking stops.

The other changes that happen when the seasons change is that the metal springs above the garage door are sensitive to temperature changes. So if you have a garage door spring that is older or at it's last bit of cycles, the temperature changes could cause the metal to snap and your garage door will not open. If you look above your garage door and see that your spring has snapped in two, do not try to open the garage door with the opener, this will cause the opener to wear out quickly. Garage door openers are not made the same any longer and have plastic gears inside which wear quickly if used during a break of the garage door spring.

What can you do during the season changes? Have your garage door adjusted, oiled, and looked at for possible problems. One sign that your garage door is out of alignment is if you see light at the bottom of your garage door while the door is in the closed position. The light could mean two things, the garage door is out of alignment or the weather strip needs replaces. Either way you will need to have your garage door adjusted. Why have it adjusted? Adjusting a garage door lengthens the life of the garage door springs and opener.

If you don't want to have a professional oil your door, you can do it yourself. Grab a can of WD40 and spray the rollers, garage door springs, and all of the metal components on the inside of the garage door. WD40 is also great for removing dirt and debris off of the garage door. Just spray the WD40 on the dirt and wipe away with a towel. It is recommended to oil your garage door at least once a year to lengthen the life of the components of the garage door.

Need to have your door adjusted? Just give us a quick call to make an appointment. We charge $79.00 for a service call! That service call includes an oil and adjustment, a complete inspection of your garage door, and if we find anything wrong during the service visit we will let you know immediately what is needed to fix your garage door.

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