The amazing garage door opener – as much as you use your Wildwood garage door opener, you bet it needs maintenance

Have you ever stopped to think about how many times your Wildwood garage door will go up and down? If you park your car in the garage, which is one of the primary uses for a garage, you probably use the garage door opener at least twice each day. That’s up twice and down twice. But, on weekends, when you’re busy running to and from stores, taking the children to soccer and football practice, and to ballet lessons, you’ll use it more than that. Then, in the evening, up and down it goes, a couple more times, while you finally relax with dinner and a show.

If you and your spouse both use the garage, the normal up-and-down usage can easily double. Let’s say that, on average, you operate your garage door three times each day, taking into account weekends and everything. This is probably a modest number. Also, by operating the garage door, we mean one trip up and one trip down equals one full operation.

Using this, admittedly arbitrary formula, you’ll operate your garage door 1,095 times in a year. That’s 1,095 trips up and 1,095 trips down or 2,190 trips altogether.

Your garage door runs on wheels and bearings that fit inside tracks on either side of the door. A pulley and cable, torsion spring, hinges and a curved door arm are essential parts of your garage door and garage door opener. And the entire assembly is suspended from the ceiling and front wall of your garage.

Some garage door openers have direct-drive mechanisms. Others have belts. But, whatever the case, the operation of your garage door and garage door opener puts wear and strain on the system. To imagine that it doesn’t require maintenance runs counter to logic, the way a single leaf might fight its way into a gale-force wind.

In spite of this obvious common sense, some of your neighbors may allow their garage doors and garage door openers to go for years without any maintenance. These people might tell say: “Maintenance? What maintenance? My garage door and garage door opener don’t need no stinkin’ maintenance.”

OK. But, the next time you’re in their Wildwood garage, take a look at their garage doors and garage door openers. Look at the tracks, the roller bearings, the hinges. In fact, give the entire garage door and garage door opener a thorough overview. Now, compare it to your well-maintained garage door and garage door opener.

After comparing the two, which garage door and garage door opener do you think will fail first? And, who is more likely to need the services of a garage door repair service?

Tips for not hitting the garage with your car

It’s late and you’re in a hurry. You jump in the car and start backing out. Suddenly, you hear a scrapping noise and realize you’ve rubbed the car against the garage door opening. You pull forward again and, with your heart in your throat, jump out to survey the damage.

There it is – a big scrape along the side of the car. Just when you’re thinking how bad this is – how much it will cost to fix your car – you notice that the you’ve also damaged the opening around the garage door.

Of course, this has happened many, many times before. Drivers have hit the side of the garage door opening, they’ve hit the garage door before it was all the way up, whether pulling in or out, they’ve hit objects in the garage and they’ve pulled too far forward running the car into the back wall of the garage. But, what can you do to avoid these kinds of problems?

Avoid pulling into the garage door. The best defense to avoid hitting the garage door before it is opened is patience. Of course, when you’re in a hurry, it’s sometimes difficult to remember to be patient. When leaving the garage, you can make a habit of waiting until the garage door is all the way up before you start the car.

You can also mount a small bump on the ground outside of the garage so you know when the front or back of the car is approaching the point where either bumper intersects with the path of the garage door. Park the car one way and hold a level upright at the point closest to the garage door but short of the path of the garage door. Mark that spot on the ground. Then turn the car around and do the same thing. Glue or mount the bump on the pavement at the furthest of these two points from the door.

To avoid scrapping the side of the door while coming in or out, you can mount a piece of pipe-insulation foam so that it extends into the garage from both sides. Mount a short piece of pipe off the wall beside the garage door opening perpendicular to the floor and facing the garage door opening but keep it back further than the opening. Then, pull the car into the garage door opening so that it is as close to centered as possible. Measure from both sides and attach a piece of foam insulation on the pipe on both sides so they just touch the car. You might even wrap some reflective tape on the insulation so you’ll see them easier in the dark.

To keep from hitting the back wall of the garage, pull the car in to the distance you usually park. On a piece of string, hang a tennis ball so that it just touches the windshield. You should then notice hitting the ball when pulling into the garage and know that it’s time to stop.

Another simple tip is to use your headlights when you’re in the garage or pulling into the garage. The better you can see around you the less chance you’ll hit something.

Why won’t your Spring Grove garage door opener open the garage door?

That garage door opener in your Spring Grove garage is a wonderful convenience. It’s pouring rain. No problem. You press the button, pull into the garage and stay perfectly dry. It’s freezing cold, the wind is blowing and, once again, a press of the button and you’re out of the garage. Another press of the button and the garage door closes behind you. But, if the garage door opener fails to work, a convenience becomes an aggravation.

Good garage door maintenance is the best way to ensure that your Spring Grove garage door opener continues to operate properly. But, even with good maintenance, your garage door opener can break down leaving the garage door stuck – leaving you climbing in and out of your car to operate the garage door manually, no matter the weather.

When your garage door opener stops working there are a number of potential problems that could be responsible. Here is a list of several problems you should consider as the potential culprit behind the problem of a garage door opener that won’t open the garage door:

• Your remote control isn’t operating correctly.
• Something is in the way and blocking the garage door.
• The garage door opener isn’t receiving electricity to operate.
• The garage door opener photo eye is blocked. 
• You have a snapped or loose cable.
• Some of the garage door opener settings need adjustment.
• The manual disconnect hasn’t re-engaged.
• The garage door has come off its track.
• The torsion spring is broken.
• The garage door is locked.

With a little effort, you may be able to remedy some of these problems. For instance, if the door is locked, or if something is blocking the garage door, the problem with your garage door opener is easily solved. However, some of these other problems require and garage door professional’s expertise to effect a proper repair of your garage door opener. In fact, if you aren’t a trained professional, it’s even potentially dangerous to try to repair your own garage door.

On the one hand, performing unfamiliar work from a ladder can put you in harms way. But, the real problem is that garage doors rely on high-tension springs to operate effectively. If that tension is unloosed, you can lose a finger or worse. There is the possibility that you could be grievously injured, even killed, trying to fix a garage door and garage door opener if you’re not trained to do so.

This is why it’s a good idea to call in a professional if your Spring Grove garage door opener won’t open your garage door. Take a look and make sure the problem isn’t something simple, such as something blocking the garage door, but take care before going too far trying to fix your garage door opener yourself.