Does your Ingleside garage door have a case of the jerks?

Remember when your Ingleside garage door used to ride up and down in its tracks when you pressed the button of your remote for the garage door opener. It was the pride of Ingleside.

No, your Ingleside neighbors probably never thought about your garage door one way or the other. And, in fact, you probably don’t remember your garage door going up and down in its tracks smoothly because you probably never gave it a second thought.

The only reason you’re thinking about it now is that your garage door is not going up and down smoothly in its tracks. It jerks its way up and jerks its way down. The garage door moves a little then stops before jerking back into motion. And, overall, the process takes longer than it would if your garage door was still going up and down smoothly.

So, why would your garage door suddenly change from smooth operation to this jerky nonsense?

First of all, it probably didn’t happen all that suddenly. In reality, your garage door probably became less-and-less smooth in its operation over time. It’s the old story of the frog that slowly boils. You didn’t realize the garage door was getting jerky until it was jerky enough that you couldn’t help but notice.

Until the garage door got bad enough, you were focused on other things: thinking about where you were going, things you had to do or the conversation on your cell phone. But, one day you realized. You asked yourself, “What’s wrong with the garage door.”

What’s wrong with the garage door? It could be a number of things:

• Something could be coming loose – hinges, bolts, the tracks, etc.
• Something is out of alignment or needs adjustment
• A lack of proper lubrication has finally taken its toll

In some cases, it may take years before you notice the problem – notice because the garage door goes up and down with a jerky motion. It could also happen in less time, for instance, if a bolt or a hinge breaks. Whatever the case, this jerkiness, and its cause, are usually causing additional wear, tear and strain on your garage door opener and garage door.

The solution when you notice your Ingleside garage door has gotten a case of the jerks is to call a qualified garage door technician (there is a spring loaded with considerable tension that could cause harm to someone who isn’t used to working on garage doors). Better yet, don’t wait until your garage door has the jerks; have a garage door technician come by once a year and do a little maintenance – check things out, tighten things up and apply some proper lubrication.