Troubleshooting

Torsions springs play a pretty important role each time you open or close your garage door. Just like any spring, torsion springs store mechanical energy which makes them tighten. Each time the garage door is opened and closed, the springs can eventually start to wear as the door gradually becomes too heavy, causing them to be less effective. Eventually, torsion springs are bound to break if they aren’t inspected or receive annual maintenance. They can also be damaged by cold weather and rust, reducing their effectiveness. A broken torsion spring can cause a garage door to drop rapidly, potentially causing injury or death. However, torsion springs are most dangerous when people try to replace them themselves without the proper knowledge or tools. If your garage door has a broken torsion spring, it is recommended that you call in a professional garage door repair company, like Garage Door Doctor.

Symptoms

• The garage door does not fully open.
• The door’s top section is dented.
• Gaps are visible in the spring.
• The garage door will not open or close.
• The door falls too quickly.

Due to safety concerns, the government mandated garage door opener manufacturers to implement safety devices in order to prevent any accidents. These safety devices, also known an as photo eyes or safety sensors, are placed on each side of the garage door and transmit an invisible beam between them to detect if there is an object in the door’s path when it closes. If anything is interfering with the beam — such as a vehicle, a person, an object, or debris — the door will not close. If this is the cause of your garage door malfunctioning, the fix is pretty simple. All you need to do is remove any objects interfering with the sensors, realign the sensors if they become misaligned, and clean the lenses if they are dirty. If this doesn’t solve the problem, your garage safety sensors may be faulty and need to be replaced.

Symptoms

• The garage door will not close.
• The garage door lights flash when trying to close the door.
• You have to hold in the wall button to close the door.
• The lights on safety sensors are not lighting up.
• The garage door only closes a couple of inches only to open again.

Tension cables allow your garage door to raise and lower easily. These cables are usually between seven and 10 feet long, and are made of thin wires that have been wrapped and galvanized together. Each time the door is operated, the cables move. Over time, constant use of the garage door will cause the cables to fray or, worse, break. When these cables break, your garage door becomes inoperable. When this happens, it is best to call in a professional for help, as replacing broken garage door cables is not as simple as it may seem. At Garage Door Doctor, we offer repairs or replacement on frayed or broken garage door cable.

Symptoms

• The garage door is crooked.
• The garage door is jammed.
• The door opens or closes too quickly.
• The garage door is unable to open or close.
• The garage door opens and closes unevenly.

The garage door track keeps the garage door aligned properly. These tracks are held in place by brackets that are attached to the door frame. A poorly aligned track can cause the garage door to bend and operate improperly. This can be a serious issue, as a bent, loose, or damaged track can cause the door to fall. Luckily, track issues are easily repaired with the proper knowledge, experience, and equipment. Waiting too long can lead to serious issues, damages, and even potential injury. The professional technicians at Garage Door Doctor can quickly find and repair any issues or damages with garage door tracks, helping home and business owners avoid costly damages and repairs.

Symptoms

• The garage door sticks or is stuck.
• The door creates loud, screeching noises when moving.
• The garage door opens and closes unevenly.

The circuit board is the brain of your garage door opener. If your system is not operating properly, the garage door circuit board could be the culprit. A faulty circuit board can cause issues with the operation of a garage door. In fact, one fault in the circuit board can cause the entire system to shut down. If you notice that your garage door is not working the way it should, having a professional garage door expert from Garage Door Doctor inspect your system, including the circuit board, is one of the best ways to get your garage up and running properly.

Symptoms

• The garage door opener works sporadically.
• The garage door opener does not work at all.
• The garage door remote is not working.
• The safety eyes are not working.
• The garage door opener just clicks or lights up.

Garage door rollers attach the garage door to the garage door tracks, allowing the door to open and close smoothly. Like many other components of a garage door, worn out garage door rollers can cause a variety of peoples, including obnoxiously loud noises. Worn or broken rollers can cause a garage door to come off of its tracks, and can also cause other garage door opener parts to wear out prematurely. In order to ensure your garage door will not malfunction, it is important to have the rollers inspected and maintained by a professional garage door service. Replacing old rollers with new will not only stop further damages from occurring; it will significantly reduce the amount of noise created when opening and closing the garage door.

Symptoms

• The garage door does not close or open smoothly.
• The door makes an obnoxious grinding noise when opening or closing.
• The door creates excessive vibration when operating.