Refrigerator vs garage door

Think of your garage door like an appliance. This isn’t so farfetched! You clean your stove and refrigerator periodically and maintain their parts so that they look good and work as they should. The same goes for your garage door which is really the largest appliance in your home! Does your garage door face south? Try insulating it to reduce the heat transfer into the garage.

Are you using your garage space for a game room, workshop or extra bedroom? You’ll want a thermally insulated garage door with a high PR value and steel skinning on the inside as well as the outside for added durability. One of the most requested repairs on modern garage doors are the springs. Just consider these metal coils as part of the whole appliance package and treat them like any other vital part that needs to be maintained and handled with safety.

Garage door spring life expectancy

Your garage door springs also have a life expectancy. It’s typically not measured in years, but in cycles. One cycle equals the garage door being opened and closed one time. Do you have tension or torsion springs on your garage door? Yes, there’s a difference. Tension springs are located on either side of the garage door just above the tracks. They have an estimated life of 5,000 to 10,000 cycles. If your springs are mounted just above the garage door, they are torsion spring. They boast a life of between 15,000 and 20,000 cycles. Once your cycles are “used up” your springs will need repair or most likely replacement, so the more you use your garage door (just like your other appliances!) the sooner you will need new parts.

Garage door maintenance

Does maintaining your garage door sound like a big task? It isn’t! Sure, parts will wear out and need servicing from time to time, but that’s to be expected with any appliance; even from the best. Proper garage door maintenance is actually very simple and NOT time consuming.

Start by keeping your door clean. Both inside and outside of your garage door should be cleaned with water and a mild detergent. Rinse well and apply car wax to steel garage doors in the cold Duluth, GA winter months. Is your door made of wood? Paint it as soon as you notice the old coat peeling off or chipping. Wood composites don’t need that, of course.

Use a clean and dry cloth to clean the sensors. This is vital as your photoelectric safety eyes do an important job! They sense objects in the way of your garage door (think pet, child or you!) and stop it from closing directly on top of them. Also, be sure to keep the area around your sensors free from dirt, mud, cobwebs, garden tools and other sharp things that can fall on them and throw them out of alignment or cut the wires.