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What Can Be Repaired On A Garage Door?

What Can Be Repaired on a Garage Door?

Sara Foutz, National Overhead Door

Sara Foutz, National Overhead Door

We sat down with Sara Foutz who works tirelessly behind the scenes at National Overhead Door to make sure your garage doors are serviced and installed quickly and professionally.

One of the topics that Sara is frequently asked about is, “What can be repaired on a garage door?”

Are there things on a garage door that an average homeowner or business owner can fix themselves?

Sara Foutz:  It all depends on the homeowners abilities and knowledge. We have customers that call us for everything (squeaking, clicking noise, safety sensors, disconnecting/reconnecting openers, etc) and then we have others who come in and buy parts to fix the issue themselves.

I believe that in this day and age, it is a lot easier to determine what is wrong by looking it up online first and then deciding if it’s a project you’d like to take on or hire someone for.

We are here for either!

How fast can a National Overhead service technician arrive at my home or business to help me?

SF: We advertise same day service so that any customer that finds themselves in a bind day of, they can count on us to be there.

If it is a non-emergency, we will schedule for any day that works for them Monday-Saturday. We also have a 24/7 emergency service line that averages a response time of less than 2 hours.

Does National Overhead stock replacement parts?

SF:  We have an over 7,000 Sq. ft. warehouse fully stocked with every part you can think of for a garage door/opener repair or replacement.

If we do not have it, we can order it! Our warehouse has walk-in hours 8-4 p.m. Mon-Fri and Saturday 8:30-1 p.m.

What are the most common fixes on residential doors?

SF:  We see a lot of broken springs come through every day along with broken cables. In order to get the longest life possible out of springs and cables it is very important to lubricate them at least twice a year.

For the spring, you should lubricate the entire length of the coil and for the cable, lubricate the loop at the bottom that is attached to the bracket on the door. We also have a lot of customers call in the the door will not close, it moves a few inches and goes back up. A lot of the time it is found to be a cause of the safety sensors either being obstructed or misaligned.

We try to talk customers through this fix over the phone prior to scheduling a technician to come out. Customers are normally very appreciative of this and know what to look for in the future.

What are the most common fixes on commercial garage doors?

We get a lot of commercial customers that schedule quarterly and annual preventative maintenance. We will go over each door carefully to lubricate and adjust as needed. We will also check the weather seal and cables to check for any fraying.

Also, believe it or not, we get a ton of calls for garage doors being struck by vehicles and fork lifts in which we have to replace sections for!

What is the average price to fix a garage door?

SF:  Our average residential service is anywhere from $80.00 to $400.00 but the majority are around $80.00-$200.00 depending on the issue.

Should I repair or just replace my garage door?

SF:  I would say that as long as you lubricate your garage door twice a year as I mentioned, your garage door should last 20+ years. That being said, if you have a builders grade door, it may need to be replaced much sooner.

I suggest adding reinforcement struts to any door over 12′ wide to help keep sections from splitting. If more than two sections are damaged, or if everything is rusted and beyond a normal repair, I would suggest getting an estimate on a replacement door.

What preventative maintenance do you recommend to avoid repairs?

SF:  Lubricate with a silicone based lubricant on all springs, cable loops, rollers (where the pin goes into the head), chain on operator, and all hinges.

You can also add reinforcement struts to avoid double car garage doors from splitting down the middle.

Additionally, keep the door clean and dry on the inside in order to avoid rust. And as silly as it sounds, check to make sure your garage door is completely open before pulling in or out to avoid hitting it!


Call National Overhead Door at 716-667-3500 for your residential or commercial garage door needs or, you can conveniently book an appointment online.

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