How to Take Good Care of Your Garage Doors

When it comes to the moving parts of your house, the garage door is the one that works the most – after all, you are opening and closing the garage multiple times a day. And since it’s not a cheap investment, it is only natural that you want your garage door to last as long as possible.

As experts from GarageDoorNation.com stress, if you take care of your garage doors as you should, they can last even as long as three decades. So, how do you maintain your doors so that they would serve you for years to come? That’s what we’ll be exploring in this article.

Watch and Listen to Your Door

While it might sound silly, the truth is that your door will always tell or show you when something is wrong with them and they need to be repaired. That’s why it’s important that you pay attention to them.

Are they operating quietly or do you hear them squeaking when you open and close them? Are they opening and closing smoothly? Do they look symmetrical or is one side lower than the other? All those things can mean that your door needs to be repaired.

Clean Your Door Regularly

Cleaning your garage door regularly has a few benefits. First of all, it helps with the curb appeal, as clean doors definitely look better than dirty and rusty ones. It also prevents rust from forming, which means that your door will serve you for longer – doors full of rust need to be replaced a lot sooner than those that don’t have it.

So, how do you clean your door? Just grab some water, a cloth or a sponge, and a soap and scrub it down. That’s it – this simple activity can prolong your garage door’s life by years.

What should you do if you notice that your garage door is not in the best condition as far as the aesthetics go? Well, in that case a good idea would be to repaint the door so that it looks as good as new. Remove the peeling and chipping paint, sand the door and put a new coat of paint.

Tighten Up Any Loose Parts

As we already mentioned, the garage door gets opened and closed at least a few times a day, which can lead to some of the parts loosening up. Check all the elements that are at risk of becoming loose because of the movement, such as the brackets that hold the door tracks to the wall and ceiling, as well as the fasteners that anchor the garage door opener to the framing. If you find that any of the parts is loose, use a socket wrench to tighten them up.

Lubricate the Moving Parts

Lubricating the moving parts of your garage door will prolong the life of rollers and garage door openers – and it takes just a few minutes yearly.

Buy a high-quality lubricant – could be white lithium grease for example – and grease the hinges and the rollers, making sure that you wipe off any excess. Do the same for the pulleys if you have an extension-spring opener, or for the bearings if you have a torsion-spring garage door opener. Keep in mind to not use grease if you have a belt-drive garage door opener.

If you notice that a part seems stuck, then you should use a penetrating solution on it first, and then proceed with the lubricant. Do it twice a year, and your garage doors will be like new.

Check the Weatherstripping

Weatherstripping is the rubber material placed at the bottom of your door that helps keep the cold, dust, dirt and water from entering your garage. Some doors, aside from the bottom, also have it at the sides, so keep that in mind when checking its condition.

Since damaged weatherstripping would just add more work for you, as you’d have to clean what gets into the garage, it’s important that you check its state at least twice a year. If you see that it is damaged in some places, you can easily buy a replacement in any hardware store.

The Bottom Line

The garage door is probably one of the most overlooked parts of your home, especially when it comes to regular maintenance. However, taking good care of it can extend its life even by a few years – and considering the fact that buying new garage doors can make a dent in your pocket, you probably want them to last you for as long as possible.