Garage door repair lasts a long time if well maintained, but like all mechanical devices, they can develop issues from time to time. A quick troubleshooting can often save the cost of a service call.

Uneven Door Movement

A sagging or off-balance garage door may indicate misalignment, an improperly installed door or uneven spring wear. To check this, disconnect the opener arm and lift the door halfway on its tracks. If the door sags, loosen but don’t remove the screws or bolts that fasten the track brackets to the wall and carefully tap the tracks into position with a rubber mallet. Once the tracks are back in place, tighten the screw or bolt at each bracket.

If the problem is more serious, a broken garage door motor or a faulty switch can also cause the door to stop operating properly. Replacing these parts can be difficult and time-consuming, but the repairs aren’t impossible.

Misaligned Track

If you hear a grinding noise every time the door moves, this indicates that the tracks aren’t aligned. This is an easy fix. Just loosen the bolts or screws that hold the track to the frame and gently tap it with a mallet until the tracks are in line with each other. If your garage door opener has safety sensors on either side of the track, make sure they are clean and correctly aligned. These sensors detect when something blocks the door’s path and are a great safety feature when working properly. If the lenses are dirty or obstructed, they can send a false signal to the opener.