How long can you expect your garage door to last before you have to replace it? Most professionals will tell you that it will last between fifteen and thirty years. That’s a difference of fifteen years. One thing that makes a big difference is how often the garage door is used. Another factor that affects the lifespan of your garage door is how often you perform simple maintenance on it. Let’s take a look at some of the regular maintenance you can do or should call a professional to do, to make your garage door last longer.
Clean Your Garage Door
Clean the inside and outside of your garage door every six months, using a gentle solution of dish soap and water. Protect wood surfaces by making sure these areas are clean and that the paint is in good shape. You’ll want to repaint the wooden panels every year or so to make sure the wood is safe from weather, chipping, and peeling.
Check for Worn Out Parts on Your Door
Sometimes, when parts to your garage door wear out, you can simply replace the part. If you ignore problems with the parts on your garage door or fail to inspect them regularly, you run the risk of diminishing the lifespan of the door. Once a month, someone should check the hinges, track, chain, rollers, springs, and cables to make sure everything is in good working order. If this is something you’re not comfortable doing yourself, call us at Door Tech in Gambrills, Maryland, and we’ll come out and do the inspection for you.
Keep the Garage Door Lubricated
The hinges, springs, and rollers on your garage door are all essential moving parts and should be lubricated several times a year. Use a light oil, such as spray graphite, or WD-40 to keep from attracting dust and dirt like heavier oils can do. Lighter oils will also work better in colder weather. Keeping the parts to your garage door lubricated can extend the lifespan of your garage door.
Make Sure the Door Stays Closed
When you leave your garage door open for any length of time unnecessarily, you expose the door and opener mechanisms to dust, dirt, and inclement weather. When you’re not going in or out, or you don’t need to keep the garage door open… Close it! This can help your garage door to last longer.
When to Call For Help!
At Door Tech in Gambrills, Maryland, we sell and service garage doors and can help you maintain yours and keep it in tip-top condition. You should reach out and contact us when your door has sustained damage, when it repeatedly fails to operate correctly, or when it looks bad or won’t close properly.
Contact us today and make an appointment to have one of our friendly, efficient techs come out and inspect your garage door.