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Cleaning Garage Door Rollers and Tracks
We all definitely experienced this: You went home in the middle of the night, and then suddenly you hear a squeaking and rattling noise on your garage door.
And it wakes everyone up in the house, even disturbing your neighbors.
Annoying, isn’t it?
Well, if this is the case, your garage door tracks may be the culprit as it needs cleaning and lubricating.
Because when it comes to your rollers and tracks, you need regular attention to allow for a smooth operation. Inspect if the rollers are wearing out or need lubricating, or if the tracks are properly aligned or need cleaning. Problems in lubrication and misaligned tracks make the movement your garage door really tough.
And we want to avoid an overhead door repair, right?
So, get your materials ready and say goodbye to your noisy overhead door.
Things you Need Before you Start
Before you proceed with cleaning your garage door, prepare these following tools:
- Old toothbrush
- Clean towel or rages
- Step ladder
- Adjustable wrench
- Level
- Mallet
- Disc Brake Cleaner
- Wood Block
A word of advice, you also need to wear rubber gloves when cleaning the tracks.
Maintaining and Cleaning the Tracks
Before proceeding to the actual cleaning and maintenance, you should clear out your garage from materials and park your car somewhere. Doing this can make it easy for you to clean the tracks and rollers. After you have done this, close the garage door once you are inside.
Then, follow these steps:
- Set up the step ladder by your garage door for easy track inspection.
- First, examine if the rollers wear out and need replacement. If it is a metal type roller with exposed bearings, use an old toothbrush to clean the bearings to remove the grease and dirt build-up.
Wipe away the accumulated dirt and grease with a clean towel or rag. Spray the bearings with silicone spray oil and the surrounding part of the rollers. However, lubrication is not necessary if the roller is a nylon type with sealed bearings.
- Inspect the nuts and bolts which hold the track mounting brackets and roller hinges. If it is loose, tighten it. Then replace it if it is worn out or rusted.
- Using an old toothbrush, clean the tracks’ insides to remove any dirt, grime, and dust. Spray the tracks with a disc brake cleaner, then wipe it out with a clean rag to remove the dirt.
- Check the alignment of the horizontal track. Position the level at the top of the tracks. The tracks should be in a slanting position from the opening towards the garage’s back wall. It must also hang the same distance from the ceiling. If you think adjustments are necessary, loosen the bolts and tap the track into place with a rubber mallet. Lastly, tighten the bolts.
- To check the vertical track’s alignment, hold the level on each track and check if there is a plumb. To adjust, loosen the bolts, place a wood block against the track, and tap the block. Inspect again for plumb and if the track is in the right position. Then retighten the bolts if necessary.
Summary
Cleaning the garage door tracks only requires a beginner level to do it. Make sure to clean it every couple of months to avoid grease and dirt build-up for a smooth operation. If you do not clean and maintain it every often, it can create more problems.
If problems arise, you might need professional help to fix it. Calling a garage door repair company in your area is the way to go.
If you live in the Greater Toronto Area, you can rely on Fixadoor Garage Door Services for your needs, whether it’s cleaning, repair, replacement, or installation.
With over 15 years of experience, they provide efficient and quality services to ensure customer satisfaction. So don’t hesitate to contact them right away. Besides, it’s worth the price when you avail of their services for your garage door repairs and other needs.
More About How To Clean Garage Door Tracks And Rollers
Whether we open our garage door manually or own an automatic garage door requiring remote control, we still need to maintain and check our rollers and tracks regularly.
We use our garage door daily, and it may require repair or retouch if we don’t know how to clean garage door tracks and rollers professionals at GRG garage door services are available to do the job for us.
We are assured that our garage doors are in the right hands.
How do our rollers work?
Our rollers are the ones who run through the metal tracks at each side of our garage doors.
When we lift our garage door, the rollers go up to the way to lift the garage door.
When we close our garage door, the process of raising it is in reverse.
The rollers come with a metal rod and wheel that are in the garage door frame.
If our rollers are not aligned with the track, or if we don’t lubricate them, It will be difficult for us to open the garage door without it sticking, making excessive noise, and jerking.
The different type of garage rollers
The rollers in our garage will be different depending on the material the manufacturer used for its wheels.
Here are the different kinds of rollers just in case we need to describe to GRG garage door service what type of rollers we want them to repair.
Plastic Rollers:
If we are looking for the most affordable rollers, we can pick the plastic rollers as they are affordable rollers we can get in the market.
But we should keep in mind that they don’t last for a long time. The plastic rollers will only support the limited weight.
That is why they are only recommended for garage doors that are single-panel; these garage doors are usually used for our residential homes.
Steel Rollers:
If we are looking for something that will support more weight, we can choose the steel material rollers.
Though they make the noise louder than plastic, the steel roller is still a durable and reliable option for our garage doors.
Nylon Rollers:
Many experts in garage doors recommend us garage door owners buy garage rollers that consist of nylon.
Rollers that come with nylon are light in weight, just the same as the plastic rollers, but they can support heavier garage doors.
If we are looking for a garage door roller that slides quietly and fluidly, these nylon rollers are perfect for us.
Our rollers’ cost and quality will depend on if the wheels come with a ball bearing.
The ball bearings are small metal balls that are responsible for separating axles to reduce friction.
If we own plastic rollers, they won’t come with any of their ball bearings, and only a few steel rollers come with ball bearings.
If our rollers don’t have any ball bearing, they can wear out more quickly because there is no responsibility for limiting the friction.
What is the best way to keep our rollers running?
Our rollers can last long as long as we know how to clean garage door tracks and rollers.
We must care for them properly to keep them in good shape, and we must apply a lubricant that is lithium-based at least once every year.
We should also clean its metal tracks using a rag to eliminate debris or dirt that can build up over time.
We also must keep in mind that we must maintain our rollers carefully.
How can we tell if there are any problems with our garage doors?
If we notice that our garage doors are already making unnecessary noise when we lift them and close them, it gets stuck or lurching, so maybe it’s time for us to call GRG garage door services.
They can pinpoint the problem in no time, and they can find solutions right away.
It might be that our garage doors are damaged, we need to replace them, were just not properly installed, or we need to lubricate it.
Now we can save money and time by calling the experts.
Takeaway
If we need to have our garage doors inspected, replaced, repaired, we must not hesitate to call experts in them as they are well trained and know the best solutions for our garage doors.
