Category Archives: Garage Door Troubleshooting

Garage Door Spring Types: Torsion & Extension

Garage door spring types

A well-maintained garage door is a safe door. Keep that as a golden rule and your chance to provide a safer environment for everybody around will be significantly better. Despite that fact, unfortunate events happen. So, when trouble knocks on the door you should call a certified professional rather than try the repairs on your own. When a dysfunction is noticed, the repairs should be done as soon as possible. There is a service call available 24/7 offered by garage door companies to answer your questions for help. Some companies offer a 24 hours repair service for an emergency situation and this option is very important for any active business.

Torsion Springs

Torsion spring of a residential garage door

One of the most useful parts of the garage door is the torsion spring because it plays a key role in the lifting of the garage door. Actually, garage springs account for over 90% of the lifting that is needed to raise a garage door, the last 10% is left to the door opener. Now it is essential to know that there are two kinds of springs used to lift the garage door.

Safety Tips For Dealing With A Broken Garage Door Spring

Safety tips for broken garage door springs

Extension Springs

Extension garage door spring

On one hand, there is the torsion spring. This one is located on top of the garage door and is safer and can be stronger. It is recommended for heavy doors. On the other hand, there is the extension spring. These other types of springs are located on the sides of the door and they are mostly used for the lighter and smaller doors.

The Cost Of Garage Door Spring Replacement

Both of these spring should always be equipped with a security cable integrated into. In this way, it will be safer if the spring breaks. The cable will secure the impact. The main reason for hiring a professional garage door technician is your safety. Furthermore, a warranty is always offered on the work done by an experienced technician. Depending on what kind of repair needed, the cost of the operation will vary from 75$ up to 600$ on an average basis.

How Can You Know If Your Spring Is Broken

Broken garage door spring in Ottawa ON

The main reasons of door repair could be as fundamental as the door won’t open or the door is uneven. In other cases, it could be as benign as the door makes a loud and abnormal noise while working. In the case of grinding and squealing noise, you can always lubricate the mobile parts and if the problem persists contact your local garage door repair service. If one of these problems occurs, you have to call a licensed professional.

The problem could come from an obstruction of the wheels or of the sensor. Otherwise, there could be a problem with the torsion springs or the wheel track is at fault. In the event of a broken garage door spring, you should always ask for the services of a professional because these springs hold up tension and can be very harmful if wrongly handled.

In the case of extension spring, it is important to know that the two springs have to be replaced at the same time because chances are high it will cause an imbalance door because the old spring won’t hold as much tension as the new one. If you only change one spring, all you do, in fact, is pushing the problem further.

To ask for the services of a certified professional is a safe investment and it guarantees the security of your home and workplace.


About AMPM Ottawa Garage Door Repair™ Spring Replacement Services

The company offers 24-hour garage door spring replacement and repair services. We highly advise you not to try fixing or manually opening/closing an overhead door with a broken spring. The is much heavier than usual and you can severely injure yourself.

GARAGE DOOR SPRING REPLACEMENT SERVICES

When A Spring Breaks, The Cables Can Come Off The Tracks

When a spring breaks, the door can be out of alignment and the cable or the tracks can snap off at high speed. don’t try fixing it yourself!

GARAGE DOOR CABLE REPAIR SERVICES

The Local Areas We Service

We are located in 116 Albert Street, Ottawa, ON. We provide our service on a 24 hour, 7 days basis, with a rapid emergency response. We cover Ottawa’s east, west, and south end. We have been serving our loyal customer all over Ottawa area including the locations of Orleans, Kanata, Gatineau, Gloucester, and Nepean.

We give a full warranty on labor and parts, and we are fully insured (Liability + WSIB)

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Garage Door Maintenance Tips

DIY | Garage door maintenance tips

Whether you have an industrial garage door or you own a residential one, you should go through a maintenance routine at least once a year. Cleanliness, Safety, and functionality are the key factors you need to keep in check. All garage door maintenance procedures should be done by an accredited professional door technician to respect safety and installation guarantees, although there are few repairing you can do on your own.

Give Extra Years To Your Garage Door

First, you want to listen to your door and know where the normal and functional noises come from. As soon as you hear something suspicious, you should check for few points. The easiest inspection you can do is to assure that the door is stable on the rail and is balanced; it should be straight on the rail and symmetrical. To know if your door is stable, lift it manually and release it halfway; when balanced the door should stay still.

Broken garage door spring

Make Sure You Door Is Balanced, And That Your Door Is Not Too Heavy When Lifting Manually

If the door is unbalanced it will add difficulties on the garage door opener and this pressure can cause damage over time. Thus, if this problem is left unfixed it could come to jam the garage door and it won’t open or worst the cable could break resulting in permanent damage.   Furthermore, an unbalance garage door will be uneven and will result in poor insulation. Finally, you can check for the weather strip at the bottom of the door to ensure maximum insulation and see if it is even on the floor.

Garage opener installation services

Another easy improvement to do is to keep your garage door in nice shape and clean. It will significantly help to prevent its deterioration and it only takes few minutes. You can clean the door in and out with soap, a brush, and water. Clean according to your garage door material.  A steel door won’t need the same care than a wooden door.

The steel door can be sprayed with a cold water pressure washer and won’t be damaged, but the same technique is not recommended on a wooden door because it could scratch the surface and remove the paint. Sometimes, the weather strip at the bottom of the door is cracked or damaged. In the case, you should change it.

Garage door rollers, new vs old, maintenance tips

Clean And Lubricate The Tracks

A practical track is a clean track! Therefore, you should look for unwanted particles and clean the track with brake cleaner. Do not put grease on the track, it won’t help.  Actually, it could cause the wheel to fall off.  The only parts of the wheels that can be lubricated are the bearings.

For lubricating the tracks, use UD40 (OIL BASED)

Garage door tracks

Another item you want to check is if the roller brackets and bolts are all well tight. To do that, take the best wrench you have and verified them all one by one, the vibration it handles though a year can cause them to loose and detached. If the roller is loose, you should call a professional because they have built in pressure and could cause serious damage.

Now that all is well tightened another simple task to do is to lubricate every moving part, but again, not the track for it could cause the door to slip and break while moving. Lubricating the moving parts once a year is easy and helps to prevent long-term damage due to continuous use. There are many lubricates you can choose from and you should ask your garage door specialist regarding which one to use on what part.

An important feature to look for to ensure your safety is the photoelectric reversal system. Every now and then when you have the chance, test it. It can save lives.

The overall maintenance of your garage door will help you save money and prevent a misfortune event. Finally, in order to avoid an unfortunate accident, the environment around the garage door should always be clear of any objects in the way.


About AMPM Ottawa Garage Door Repair™

The company located in 116 Albert Street, Ottawa, Ontario, K1P 5G3. The main services of the company are garage door repair, installation, and maintenance. We also provide new garage doors in various styles, sizes, and colors. We provide replacement parts and 24-hour emergency repair especially when you facing a broken garage door spring, cable or opener of any kind.

The company is fully insured WSIB + Liability insurance. We give a full warranty, on all parts and labor. We cover the locations of west (Kanata), south (Nepean) and east (Orleans) Ottawa, Ontario.

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