Many commercial industries use garage doors in their facilities. These doors protect vehicles and serve as storage spaces, among other uses. It’s crucial to use proper maintenance techniques for your commercial garage door to extend the life span of your garage door and ensure safety for users. By learning about these techniques, you can make sure your next maintenance inspection proceeds correctly.
Why Do Garage Doors Need Regular Maintenance?
Regularly inspecting and performing maintenance on your commercial garage door is important for many reasons. Here are a few examples:
- Security: Garage doors are extremely heavy, making them potentially dangerous if not in the right shape. Features like sensors and springs hold the garage door up and make sure it only moves when instructed. With regular maintenance procedures, you can check the security features and ensure they’re working properly. In turn, you can keep your employees, customers and other users safe during use.
- Lower cost: Regular maintenance can also lower your overall costs. By conducting regular inspections, you can resolve small issues before they grow into larger ones. For instance, you could notice the early signs of a panel about to fall off during a maintenance inspection. Then, you could reconnect the panel before it becomes detached instead of having to purchase an entirely new panel. Beyond simple fixes like these, you could notice potential issues with sensors or the overall system. Then, you could solve these problems before they grow into major replacements.
- Enhanced appearance: As a commercial business employee, you want your properties to be attractive and engaging for potential customers. Even your garage door can impact someone’s impression of your business, so it’s important to maintain a well-composed appearance. Regular maintenance can prevent rust or other growth from forming on your door, allowing you to keep a well-maintained appearance.
4 Garage Door Maintenance Tips
Garage door maintenance is important both for safety and company success. It’s essential to follow the right procedures during maintenance. Following a commercial garage door maintenance checklist can help you make sure that you follow all the necessary steps.
1. Lubricate the Springs
The springs are essential for the proper functioning of a garage door. Torsion springs and extension springs help hold and lift the door. Because torsion springs use torque to pull the door up and down, they rub against one another and cause friction. If you don’t treat them properly, they could start squeaking or produce rust.
To keep torsion springs in working order, you should add lubricants. You can spray lubricant intended for garage doors around once or twice a year. If you hear squeaks while using the garage door, spray lubricant as soon as possible.
If you’ve never lubricated your springs before and aren’t sure where to start, contact a trusted service provider. Professionals can inspect your garage door and apply lubricant safely to ensure everything goes as planned.
2. Inspect the Weatherstripping
Weatherstripping consists of sealing openings around your garage door to protect against weather, reduce noise and save energy. It enhances insulation by stabilizing the temperature indoors and preventing outside temperatures from settling in. You typically place weatherstrips on the garage’s exterior and by the door connecting the garage to the building.
You should inspect the weatherstripping seal during commercial garage door maintenance. Regularly check the seal for cracks or damages. If you find any damages, you should replace the stripping to ensure your garage stays protected from the weather. A garage door service provider can help you complete a thorough weatherstripping replacement.
The seal could also build up dirt or grime during use. During maintenance, be sure to clean the seal. You can use an all-purpose cleaner to wipe down the material and prevent any problems.
3. Examine the Door and Track Alignment
Door and track alignment examinations are also important to check during maintenance. To inspect these, you can stand outside and watch your garage door move up and down. Listen for any unusual sounds, like squeaks. You should also watch the door’s movements and make sure it doesn’t get caught anywhere. If you hear or see anything abnormal, inspect these components more closely.
A garage door professional can provide a thorough door and track alignment examination. They can use their expertise to notice motions or sounds others might miss. If something does appear wrong with your door, a service expert can advise you on the best approach for repairs and complete them properly and safely.
4. Test the Safety Features
It’s always crucial to test the garage door’s safety features during maintenance. You should regularly test and examine these tools to make sure they work correctly. As mentioned, a garage door service professional can help you test your safety features and give you an expert opinion.
These are a few examples of safety features you should inspect:
- Emergency release feature: Most garage doors come equipped with an emergency release function. The tool allows you to quickly turn off the engine. Usually, the emergency release is a ripcord with a red handle you can pull. During maintenance, you should test the emergency release. Make sure you and other employees know how to use it and the cord works properly.
- Photo-eyes: Photo-eyes are small cameras that face opposite one another in your garage. Once activated when the garage door is “asked” to close, one camera sends a laser beam to the other. The beam scans the surrounding area for movement or obstructions as the garage door closes. If it detects anything in the path of the door, it stops the door’s movement or reverses it. Photo-eyes are crucial for the safe use of your garage door. Regularly test them and ensure they can stop the door safely.
Contact Marvin’s Garage Doors Today
Regular garage door maintenance is essential to keep your employees and customers safe and prevent costly repairs. At Marvin’s Garage Doors, we understand the importance of preventative maintenance for commercial garage doors and are here to help you maintain a safe and operational business environment.
We provide high-quality commercial garage door maintenance and repair services for North Carolina’s Piedmont region. Our technicians can ensure your door works correctly and provide expert repairs if needed. We also offer 24/7 emergency services for Winston-Salem, Wilkesboro and East Bend.
To get started with Marvin’s Garage Doors, contact us today.
