Steps To Be Considered Before Installing A New Garage Door Opener

Purchasing a garage door for your residence is as exciting as purchasing the right paint color for your new house. You got to keep in mind that the garage door goes along with the exterior decor and paint color of your house. Easing a last minute rush of picking a garage door can be avoided if you plan on picking one while you pick other items for your house. There are numerous models of garage doors available in the market these days, which make your purchasing more confusing and tedious and not to forget there are a few companies that do customized doors for their customer requirements too. So why wait for the last moment, just try purchasing the door of your choice when you have time in hand.

Now, once we are done with the shopping of the garage door our next and most important step will be to fix a garage door opener. Well, garage door openers today are more of a fashion statement for your garage door and one without a door opener is considered traditional. Well, the method of manually opening a garage door is conventional and today, we see more and more people are opting for automatic garage door openers as they are not only easy but are more secure when compared to the traditional ones.

Garage door openers are available in two types: electric overhead garage door opener and remote operated garage door opener.

An electric garage door opener is one which could be operated with the help of a key pad located either inside or outside the garage. A usual electric garage door opener consists of a power unit that encloses along with the electric motor. The power unit affixes to a track. A trolley linked to a section that attaches to the top of the garage door falls backwards and forwards on the track, thus ensuring in the closing and opening of the garage door.

Whereas a remote operated garage door opener can be operated with the help of the remote (which works just like a television or air conditioner remote).

Our next step to consider will be the motor power needed for affixing along with the garage door opener. Many of the garage doors available these days come with an overhead motor of either ½ or ¾ HP. However, the key element that helps the garage door opener to function is torsion springs connected to the motor and not the power of the garage door. Depending on your door size and weight you can opt for the overhead motor.

It is important to consider the height of the garage door while purchasing a garage door opener. Generally garage doors are available with a height measuring a maximum of 8’7 inches while we do come across custom made garage doors which are much higher than the regular ones. In such case an extension for the garage door will be required which can be got with the help of a service professional.

Our last step for choosing a garage door opener includes opting other options like mechanized lighting, extra safety breaks, super fast or noiseless opening garage doors, etc. Whatever your option is, just ensure to pick the right door for your requirement. Also, in case you plan to install the garage door all by yourself , then read the instructions carefully as per the manual before installation.

Fixing The Common Problems Of Your Garage Door

Ever wondered how to fix the problems related to your garage door? Well, I am sure many of us have and for the rest who have not tried their hands on fixing the garage door problems by themselves, here are a few tips to be followed:

Basic tools required are:
a) Screwdriver
b) Hammer

The most common issues faced while dealing with garage doors is the movement of the garage door itself. In some cases it has been seen that either the garage door does not either close up completely or open entirely or overturns before the door hits the ground level. Well, this problem can be fixed by modifying the closing limit switch or the force motor as instructed in the instruction manual that came in along with your garage door. In case if you have misplaced the manual you can always call the customer service and ask them for guidance.

The other common issue faced is either with the opening switch or the remote control. In case of an electric garage with an opening switch, check for any loose connections or wiring problems. Similarly you can also inspect the circuit breakers in the main switch of the garage. The inspection of the circuit breaker will help you rule out issues relating to blown fuse or other problems. While in case of remote operated garage door issues, your first step to check will be the batteries in the remote control itself. Replace the battery and see if it works. Try moving closer to the garage door for operating the remote and check if it works. If not your next bet will be to reprogram the control of the remote. This step resolves the issue all the times. However, in case you still fell, your garage door is not opening or closing properly either with the opening switch or remote control a professional help for the same can be taken.

The last common problems faced by owners with garage doors are the screeching noise that comes in while you open or close your garage door. This issue can be taken care by proper lubrication of the rollers and the tracks. You can lubricate them by either using silicone spray or daily household oil. Once the pulleys of the rollers lubricate it should settle the problem of screeching noise made while opening or closing the shutters of your garage door. Or in some cases it could just be the tension between the springs causing the noise, which can be fixed by adjusting the tension on the springs. Try adjusting both the springs at the same time for about 1/4 of a turn and you can lubricate the same with grease or household oil.

Well, repairing a garage door all by yourself is not a tedious job, all it requires is lots of patience and a few tools to assist. However, in cases where none of the above steps work, you can always call the garage door installation company and seek their help. Garage door issues generally cost you somewhere between $30 and $250.

Call Cali Garage Door Company Today (888) 600-4740

What You Ought To Know About Garage Door Springs

Garage door springs are the large wire coils that assist you in lifting your garage door up and down. In case of a manual garage door opening you will have to open the garage door a foot or two above the ground and the rest of the job is taken care by the springs. The same applies to an automatic garage door opener too, once you either press the garage opening switch either through a remote or other mechanism, the springs automatically do the lifting and lowering job for the garage door.

Generally there are two fundamental types of garage door springs. They are as follows:

• Torsion springs
• Extension springs

The springs that are wound-up on the rod over the garage door opening are called torsion springs. Since torsion springs are tied tightly during installation they exert lot of energy. And this puts them at a higher risk of break down as they are wound closely and tightly.

A torsion spring balancing mechanism generally includes one to two firmly wound springs on a steel tube with wiring at both sides. The equipment completely build itself up on the header wall located on top of the garage door which consists of three supports: a center putting up with the plate made out of either steel or nylon bearing while the other two end supporting plates at both ends. The springs include a steel wire with a motionless shaft at one end and a twisted shaft at the other end. The motionless shaft is attached along with the center bearing plate. The twisted shaft has lots of holes at every 90 degrees for winding the springs while two set of screws are attached to safeguard the springs attached to the shaft. Steel balance cables scamper along from the roller brackets to the underneath corners of the door to a mark in the cable drums. When the door is lifted upwards, the springs wind down themselves and the stored tension helps in lifting the door by rotating the shaft, thus spinning the cable drums, draping the cables roughly around the channels located on the cable drums. When the door is brought down, the cables untangle themselves from the drums and the springs are rewind back to full tension levels.

The second type of garage door springs available is the extension springs. Extension springs are usually used for door tracks. As the name suggests, these springs help in extending and closing the garage door. An extension spring system includes a couple of extended springs running correspondingly to the parallel tracks. The extension springs help in lifting the door through a structured pulley and this in turn counterbalances the cables operating from underneath the brackets all the way through the pulleys. When the door is lifted-up, the extension springs contract and this enables us to lift the door as and when the tension is released.

You can find these springs from any of the local home decor enhancement stores.