4 Quick and Easy Garage Door Fixes

One of the most overlooked, but often used, part of your home is your garage. Everyday we open and close it and never give it the care and attention it needs so that it lasts our entire life.

Eventually, due to wear and tear, your garage will start to act up. The door may stick when you open and close it, or it might not open at all anymore. Your first thought might be to buy a new garage door, but hold off before you make that big purchase.

There are 4 quick garage door fixes you can do yourself before you buy a new garage or hire a contractor to repair your garage door:

Step 1: Clean the Tracks

This is the most frequent cause of garage door problems. Over time, the lubrication that was applied to the tracks to make the door open smoothly has simply worn away and a layer of dirt built up over the years.

Here’s how you can fix this situation quickly: a bucket of warm water, liquid dish soap, sponge, and WD-40. Simply wash the tracks, let them air dry, and liberally apply WD-40 to the tracks.

Step 2: Lubricate the Tracks

Focus the spray lube whare the two halves of the hinge pivot, wipe up any excess with a rag and repeat this process on all hindes.

to keep the roller stem of this hinges free of corrosion and rust - spray into the hinge tubes that contain your rollers and turn the stem so that the lube is evenly applied, repeat this process on both sides for all hinges that contain roller stems.

Step 3: ​Check for Dents on the Tracks

If washing the tracks doesn’t work, check the tracks for dents. This is the second most frequent cause of garage door problems. Climb up on a ladder and stand at the front of the garage door; now look the tracks and see if there are any dents or if the tracks are leaning to the left or right.

If you notice any dents, grab a block of wood and a hammer and get to work. You’re going to press the block of wood against the dented portion of the track and “lightly” hammer the dent back in-line. Do this for any dents you find on either side of the tracks.

Step 4: Check the Track Positioning

This is also very important. If your tracks aren’t properly aligned your door will be incredibly hard to open and close.

Simply loosen the bolts and screws and slightly tap the tracks back into place. Use a level to ensure that the tracks are aligned and level before tightening up again.

If none of these fixes work or you notice that the problem is actually to do with the garage door springs then it’s time to call a repair person. This is often very much cheaper than purchasing a brand new garage door.