Keeping Your Family Safe by Knowing These Garage Door Danger Signs

While it is true that garage door accidents can happen suddenly, in most cases your garage door was showing signs before anything had happened. As much as it seems like it sometimes, a garage door doesn't break without a few warning signs first. By knowing the danger signs of your garage door, you can help keep your family safer by fixing the issue before it becomes a danger. Below are some detailed warning signs to have on your radar.

Your Garage Door is Loud

Garage doors aren't necessarily quiet, but there is a difference between being normally loud and LOUD. Furthermore, if you hear any abnormal noises like screeching or grinding, this is an issue as well. The best case scenario is that your door needs lubrication.

No Reversal System

If you have lived in a house for a long time or purchased an old house, it likely has an old garage door as well. If it was installed prior to 1993, then the garage door lacks the automatic reversal features that keep families safe. This reversal system makes it so the garage door will reverse if it comes into contact with something solid instead of continuing to go down.

Dipping or Sagging

If your garage door is noticeably sagging in the center or dipping down to one side, something is definitely wrong. This shouldn't be ignored as the condition is only going to get worse and it can ultimately make going anywhere near your garage door a dangerous place.

Rust

A little rust isn't a big problem. However, if you continue to ignore rust, especially on sensitive places like the cables or the spring, it can make for a dangerous situation. Having said that, always clean rust when spotted or replace components that are overly rusted.

Have you spotted any of these danger signs around your garage door? If so, it is time for garage door repair or even replacement. If you have a dangerous garage door, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

Have you Experienced Changes in your Garage Door’s Keypad?

Having a keypad for your garage door can be a great thing! By inputting a code, it can allow the people you trust to gain access of your garage, and likely your home, while keeping everyone else out with a sturdy lock.

Side note: they are particularly useful while you’re on vacation and didn’t have the time to have another house key made beforehand to give your neighbor that has agreed to water your plants.
However, a keypad, just like your garage door opener remote, runs on a battery. While that battery can last quite a long time, eventually it will need to be replaced. Nevertheless, many people run into the same issue when they do replace the battery - the code no longer works. Don't panic if your key code doesn't work after replacing the keypad battery, it happens to a lot of people and it is easy to fix!
 
While every keypad is a little different, most will have a learn button somewhere on the device. In many models, you simply need to hold the learn button, release, and then type in your code.
Afterwards, hold down the enter button and it should store your new code with no issue. However, it is best to find the manual for your keypad for learning how to specifically reprogram it since, as a rather glaring security flaw, every system is different in order to protect you and your home. Many manuals are found online these days if you cannot find the physical copy, or a repair technician will have the knowledge to help you reprogram the device.

However, it is important to remember that while this is common, if you reprogram the keypad and is still doesn't work, it can mean other issues with your garage door. We encourage you to contact us so that we can help to ensure that all is running as it should.

How to Tell if a Garage Door Spring Has Broken

When it comes to garage door repair, typically you don't realize it needs repair until it actually stops working. While there are many issues that can contribute to a broken garage door, one of the more common ones is that of a broken garage door spring.

In most garage doors, there are only two types of springs that it will use - extension springs and torsion springs. In both systems, they use springs attached to cables so that the springs extend when the door is closed and that energy is released when the door is lifted. It is this energy that helps lift the door. The difference between the two systems is the placement and the set up of the cable and spring system. They both function in a similar way and if those springs break, it can be devastating.

Typical signs of a spring pre-breakage are that your garage door will be harder to lift and your automatic garage door opener will struggle as well as create much more noise than the usual racket. As a noisy garage door can be the sign of a number of different problems, it should never be ignored. However, if left unchecked and a spring has reached the end of its lifecycle, you need to be careful. Typically springs break one at a time, and if one has broken, your garage door will suddenly feel like you are lifting the full couple hundred pound weight that it actually is.

Usually the tell-tale sign that a garage door spring has broken is the noise. Since the springs are more likely to break when they are extended and filled with stored energy, a spring breaking in your garage can be as loud as a gunshot. Unfortunately, the force of that spring snapping can cause it to fly off, making it not only loud, but it has a huge potential to do big damage to anything it hits. This is why ideally when your door starts to become heavier, move a little slower, and makes a lot more noise than usual, you want to address the problem before this happens.

If you’re concerned about your garage door springs, contact Roadrunner Garage Doors. We’d be happy to set up an appointment to get your garage door in tiptop shape.