How do you clean your Richmond garage door the right way?

Your standing in the kitchen looking into the backyard of your Richmond home when you notice, ‘Boy, that garage door is really dirty!’

When it was new, your garage door was the pride of the neighborhood. Well, maybe that’s going too far. At the very least, it wasn’t an embarrassment. Now, the white panels are dingy and there are streaks where water dripped through the dirt to create humiliating rivulets that seem to accentuate the cruddy lack of cleanliness.

This weekend, you’ll have to get out there and clean that baby

Have you ever cleaned your Richmond garage door before? Admittedly, it’s not on the level of rocket science. Still, it doesn’t hurt to prepare yourself so you can do the job right and, most importantly, not cause any damage.

The first point is that most garage doors are relatively solid. You don’t have to be afraid to use a little elbow grease, within reason. In other words, if you’ve been pumping iron for a few years, you may have the muscles that would be too much for the garage door.

Another thing to remember is that there are two sides to every story and there are two sides to your garage door. You many not worry about the inner side of the garage door. After all, your neighbors aren’t as likely to see that side. But, if you are a little more persnickety about things, you may also want to clean the inside of your garage door, too.

If you are going to clean the inside of the garage door, remember that some garage doors are insulated. In some cases, the inside of an insulated garage door is covered by a thin-plastic sheeting. This is where you really want to be careful not to apply too much pressure. Rip that cover, compress that insulation, and you’ll reduce the effectiveness of the insulation.

So, what should you use to clean the garage door? 

A garage door is best cleaned with a mild soap and a soft cloth. However, there are often some nooks and crannies that are hard to get at. In those cases, you may want to use a soft toothbrush. It’s recommended that, once you’ve used the toothbrush to clean the garage door that you don’t use it for brushing your teeth anymore (that’s just yucky).

Make sure you don’t scrub too hard. Even if you have some difficult to erase outlines of rivulets, too much pressure could take the paint off the garage door. If you do that, you’ll want to read our next blog about painting your Richmond garage door.

Time for some Springtime maintenance of your Gurnee garage door and garage door opener

It may not feel like it yet, but winter (not the official season but the actual season) in Gurnee is drawing to a close. With the advent of Springtime, you may feel inclined to start your Spring Cleaning – air things out and put them in order in preparation for the summer ahead. You may want to put garage door maintenance on your Spring Cleaning to-do list.

Winter can play havoc with your garage door and garage door opener. Snow is piled up and is pushed against the door. The cold frosts over moving and electrical parts, temperature changes cause parts to expand and contract. Winter can also cause parts to rust or corrode. The cold breaks down lubricants intended to reduce friction between parts and ease operation. All-in-all, winter is not a friend to your Gurnee garage door and garage door opener.

Garage doors can be surprisingly heavy. Thankfully, large springs are used to counter the weight and make a heavy garage door easy for a garage door opener to move up and down. If the spring breaks or loses its tension, the weight of that garage door falls heavy on the garage door opener. In other words, a bad garage door torsion spring will put a strain on a garage door opener that it is not designed to handle.

Maintenance of your Gurnee garage door and garage door opener starts with a visual inspection. Is anything broken, bent or otherwise damaged. The next step is to listen to your garage door and garage door opener. Run the garage door up and down a few times listening carefully.

In general, garage doors are quieter when they’re new. Has your garage door grown louder as it opens and closes? If so, why?

A need for lubrication is a common explanation as to why a garage door or garage door opener is louder. However, damage to any part of the garage door or garage door opener can also cause the garage door to make more noise while going up and down.

Next, watch the garage door. Does it roll up and down in its tracks smoothly? When first installed, if properly installed, a garage door will move up and down seamlessly, as though floating in its tracks. But, after a while, as it comes closer and closer to the need for maintenance, you’ll start to notice a jerky motion in the operation of your garage door.

Once the inspection of your garage door is complete, and any repairs are made, it’s time to lubricate appropriate parts. A qualified garage door technician will know best wish parts take lubrication, which don’t and what kinds of lubrication are best to use.

If you maintain your Gurnee garage door and garage door opener now, not only will it take care of you through the summer ahead, it will also last longer into the future.