A garage door is a large door on a garage that can either be opened manually or by a garage door opener. Although of many designs, most garage doors are sectional, upward-acting, and self-storing. Garage doors are necessarily large to allow passage of automobiles and/or trucks easy passage.
Insulation of Sectional Garage Doors of Texas
Garage doors can be made out of many materials, but steel, aluminum, wood, and vinyl (polyethylene) are the most popular materials. Manufacturers are making energy efficient garage doors by putting foamed-in-place polyurethane insulation in the steel door.
A common material for a new garage door is roll formed steel sheet to look like a raised panel wooden door. Steel doors are available in uninsulated, insulated, and double skin steel. A design mimicking carriage house doors has become quite popular since about 2002, and many manufacturers clad the exterior of a steel door with composite, vinyl boards, or DecamTrim to give it the appearance of wood. Steel carriage doors are becoming the most popular carriage door due to weight of the door, no rotting, and a large amount of designs. A more economical alternative for garage doors is steel stamped construction.
A typical overhead garage door consists of several panels hinged together that roll along a system of tracks guided by rollers. The weight of the door is balanced by either a torsion spring system or a pair of extension springs.
Torsion spring lift mechanism
A torsion spring counterbalance system consists of one or two tightly wound up springs on a steel shaft withcable drums at both ends. The entire apparatus mounts on the header wall above the garage door and has three supports: a center bearing plate with a steel or nylon bearing and two end bearing plates at both ends. The springs themselves consist of the steel wire with a stationary cone at one end and a winding cone at the other end. The stationary cone is attached to the center bearing plate. The winding cone consists of holes every 90 degrees for winding the springs and two set screws to secure the springs to the shaft. Steel counterbalance cables run from the roller brackets at the bottom corners of the door to a notch in the cable drums. When the door is raised, the springs unwind and the stored tension lifts the door by turning the shaft, thus turning the cable drums, wrapping the cables around the grooves on the cable drums. When the door is lowered, the cables unwrap from the drums and the springs are rewound to full tension.
Extension spring lift mechanism
An extension spring counterbalance system consists of a pair of stretched springs running parallel to the horizontal tracks in all Custom Garage Doors of Texas - Dallas Fort Worth Garage Doors. The springs lift the door through a system of pulleys and counterbalance cables running from the bottom corner brackets through the pulleys. When the door is raised, the springs contract, thus lifting the door as the tension is released.
The balance of the door should be checked monthly also. One should be able to raise and lower the door without any resistance and it should smoothly roll along the tracks and should remain stationary at any point of travel. Usually a door that does not pass these tests is out of balance and should be adjusted. It is usually recommended that only a trained door technician with the proper instructions or a mechanically experienced person adjust or replace the springs.
All moving parts of the door should be lubricated monthly also. Custom Garage Doors of Texas - Dallas Fort Worth Garage Doors provides a regular maintenance for our customers. The door tracks should never be lubricated since the lubricant will only create a sticky surface on the track that can attract more dirt and grime, resulting in a door that is really difficult to operate. The bearings, hinges, and rollers should be lubricated for proper and safe operation. Torsion springs should also be lubricated with a light coat of oil to reduce the friction between the coils and to eliminate any noises and to even increase the life of the springs.
Safety
Garage doors with extension springs would normally be installed with a restraint cable running through the center of these springs. This is necessary because the springs weaken from the fatigue and stress exerted on the steel wire from opening and closing the door. If an extension spring breaks, it can seriously injure anyone present in the garage or damage adjacent property. The cable running through the center restrains the spring in the event of a failure.
Most overhead garage doors are equipped with torsion springs which do not need safety restraint cables since the torsion shaft running through the springs restrains the spring if it breaks. Torsion springs are superior to extension springs since they are easier to fine tune and balance the weight of the door more evenly.
The bottom roller brackets located at the bottom corners of the door are always under extreme tension since the counterbalance cables are attached to these brackets. Therefore, one should never attempt to remove or loosen the screws that attach these brackets to the door as serious injury can result.This also applies to other spring hardware such as the , cable drums, lag screws, center bearing plate, etc.
Fort Worth Garage Doors - Steel Garage Doors
Steel garage doors are stronger and more secure than fiberglass, wood or aluminum. Many are of the opinion, today’s steel doors rival the look of wood without the maintenance and headaches thanks to new technologies, though we will always offer steel doors just to create a less expensive alternative to custom wood doors, we will always favor real wood on a real wood frame. It simply looks better because it's the real thing.
Steel doors won’t warp, crack or fall apart because of weather conditions. Most are made of hot-dipped, galvanized steel that is vinyl clad or given a baked on finish. They won’t rust or require painting as often as wood door s do. Most warranties guarantee the door won’t rust for as long as you own the house. However, that won’t include fading. The con is steel can dent and be difficult to repair. But overall it will withstand more than that of your average wood garage door.
Usually, you can discern a steel doors quality by its thickness and by the cladding thickness. A premium door is often a full two inches thick and filled with insulation and clad in 24 gauge steel. Less expensive garage doors are usually thinner and made of 28 gauge steel (the thicker the metal, the lower the number).
Double skin construction is more durable and attractive from inside the garage than that of a single skin with a frame that shows from the inside sandwiching the foam insulation between panes both on the inside and outside.
Another measure of a quality garage is weather stripping. The best made doors have a full width vinyl bubble weather stripping that runs along the bottom edge of the garage door and conforms to the floor. Also they have rigid vinyl end caps along the sides of the door panels.
An average steel garage door measuring 16 by 7 feet. Be sure and compare the different garage types to assure that you are choosing the right one for your house.
Traditional Steel Doors by Texas Garage Doors.net - Traditional Raised Panel Non-Insulated, Insulated, and Double Skin Steel Residential Garage Door Constructed of top quality materials, highly detailed raised panel embossment, deep woodgrain texture and two coat pre-finished paint system all combine to enhance the beauty of your home.
Steel Carriage Doors enhance the value of your home with a beautiful steel carriage door. Steel carriage doors come in a variety of styles and are available in insulated and double skin steel depending on the model you choose.
Wood Carriage Doors - The wood carriage door gives you the classic swing-open appearance in a standard sectional garage door.
Garage Door and Garage Door Opener Repair in Fort Worth, Texas
We repair garage doors and garage door openers. Every technician is fully trained and insured so you can rest assured that we will get the job done right. Contact our service department to schedule your appointment.
Texas Garage Doors of Fort Worth Specializes in:
- Residential Garage Door Repair
- Commercial Garage Door Repair
- Garage Door Opener Repair
- Broken Springs
- Cables
- Rollers
- Track
- Remotes
- Gear Housings
- Anything to do with a Garage Door or Garage Door Opener
Garage Door Repair
Garage door repair can be a tricky and dangerous task if you don't know what you are doing. This is why we repair all makes and models of garage doors and garage door openers. We specialize in replacing broken springs, cables, rollers, track, remotes and anything to do with a garage door or garage door opener.
Garage Door Opener Repair
Before you call us
1) Make sure the garage door opener is plugged in and has power.
2) Make sure the circuit breaker is on.
The two steps above may save you from having to pay a service call.
Garage door openers have parts that are constantly moving during operation and certain parts wear out. If your door opener is old it maybe more worth while to replace it.
Garage Door Spring Repair
Never attempt garage door spring repair unless you have been fully trained. Garage door spring replacement is one of the most dangerous repairs on a garage door. If your garage door is raising a few inches or your garage door opener is straining while trying to raise your garage door then your spring is probably broke. Look above the door and if you see a gap in your spring then you need to have your springs replaced. Some garage doors have one spring and some garage doors have two springs depending on the size of your garage door. If your garage door has two torsion springs and one is broke it is always best to replace both springs at the same time.
If your springs stretch out along side of the horizontals then you have extension springs. Extension springs need to be replaced in pairs and ask your technician about safety cables. Safety cables go through the extension spring to keep the spring from flying off and hitting something when it brakes.
If your spring is broke do not use your garage door opener. Springs carry most of the weight and using your garage door opener with a broken spring will possibly damage your garage door opener.
Garage Door Cable Repair
Garage door cables can brake or they can come off the drum. If you see slack in one or both of your cables make sure your spring is not broke. If a spring brakes on a single spring door it will put slack in the cables. Cables will come off the drum if the garage door has been shut on something or got in a bind and put slack in the cable.
Garage Door Off Track
If your rollers are coming out of the track this can be caused by bad rollers or a cable has come off. If you have rollers coming out of the track do not try to use your garage door.