Frequently Asked Questions
We value educating our customers and we are here to help! See the list below where we have answered some of the FAQs we receive.
Garage Door Maintenance FAQs
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Depending on how much experience you have with garage doors, you may be able to trouble shoot minor issues such as safety sensor alignment, battery issues, do a visual diagnostic to see if a spring is broken, the door is off track, etc. Feel free to check out our troubleshooting tips page here! We highly recommend calling a professional to perform work on the garage door, unless you are very experienced, as it can be very dangerous to be working on the garage door with all the weight, torque, and pressure of the moving parts.
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Ideally, the garage door should be fairly light when lifting manually. If it is heavy, this may be a sign that the springs need to have tension added or may need to be replaced. If you have an automatic garage door opener and your door is heavy, it will put a lot of stress on the garage door opener causing it to burn out sooner.
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Is your garage door noisy, heavy, or jerky when it operates? Your garage door probably needs a tune-up! Your door can benefit from a tune-up even if you are not having obvious problems. We recommend a tune-up once a year to keep your system operating smoothly and efficiently and to catch any potential problems early on.
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A comprehensive tune-up will include lubrication of all moving parts (with proper garage door lubricant), checking the safety reversal system for proper functioning, inspecting all parts of the garage door system, tightening any loose hinges, bolts, etc. We recommend a tune-up yearly whether you choose to do it yourself or have a trained professional come to examine the garage door system. Often times, our customers report what a difference a simple tune-up made to their garage door. Should you choose to have our technicians out, we will go over helpful tools to keep in mind to keep your garage door system operating optimally for many years to come!
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We recommend lubricating your garage door tracking and moving parts once yearly with a specific garage door lubricant. Please note, garage door lubricants will be different than many garage door opener lubricants.
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We recommend having general maintenance (a tune-up) performed on the door at least once a year. General maintenance will not only keep the garage door in tip top shape, but it is also a great time to evaluate the system for any potential problems. Catching potential problems from the start may help to avoid much larger repairs down the line!
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You may use WD-40 for your garage door’s moving parts, but it needs to be a specific silicone-based garage door lubricant. The garage door opener lubricants will vary. Check out our detailed information on the below FAQs about lubrication for garage doors and for garage door openers.
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There are many different types of lubricants on the market today. The garage door and its moving parts (ie: hinges, spring, tracking, rollers) will need to be lubricated with a specific silicone based garage door lubricant such as 3-IN-ONE Garage Door Lube, WD-40 Specialist Silicone Quick Drying, and Blaster Garage Door Lubricant. If the incorrect type is used, it may cause dust and particles to clump up in the tracking and create a problem for smooth operation.
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For chain drive and belt drive garage door openers, you can lubricate the chain or belt with a regular garage door or chain silicone-based lubricant. For the rail itself, where the trolly rides, use a low temp grease. If you have a screw drive opener, you will want to use a low temp grease. **Please note, garage door openers do not need to be lubricated very often. Recommended every 5-8 years. If they are lubricated too often, they may start to drip and leave marks on the garage door.
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The moving parts of a garage door and opener will need regular maintenance. We recommend a tune up once per year: lubrication of moving parts, tightening of hinges/bolts, checking for proper balancing. Routine maintenance will help the door to operate smoothly and catch any potential problems that may become larger in time.
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The cost to repair a garage door and/or garage door opener will vary depending on what problem you are having. There is a wide array of repairs that may need to be done. Some examples may include, spring replacement, putting the door back on track, roller replacement, changing parts in the opener such as gears, limits, sprockets, or simply making adjustments.
Garage Door Spring FAQs
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If your garage door spring is broken, it must be replaced. If the garage door is heavy, but the spring is not broken, this may be a sign that the springs are not tensioned properly. If you have extension springs on the side of the door, more than likely they need to be replaced. If you have torsion springs on top of the door, you may be able to add tension and they may continue to last. It is important to note, however, that when tension is added to a spring, it may cause it to snap soon after, sometimes in the process of re-tensioning! We always recommend hiring a professional to repair (add tension to) or replace your garage door springs due to the high amount of torque and pressure the springs carry. Serious injury can result, if not trained properly.
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Our professionally trained technicians generally change torsion springs in between about 20 minutes and an hour and a half depending on the set up. Average time for our technicians is about 30-45 minutes. Since our technicians have spent years performing this repair day in and day out, they will be able to do this repair much faster than someone that is not as experienced.
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Unless you have quite a bit of experience with garage doors and the varying spring systems, we highly recommend hiring a professional to perform this repair. The springs come with an enormous amount of torque and pressure, and repairing/replacing them can result in serious injury. On top of the safety concern, every garage door is very unique in what spring or combination of springs it requires. Our professionally trained technicians will arrive with the proper tools and then evaluate the size, weight, and manufacturer of the door to put the exact springs/combination of springs on your garage door. There will also be quite a bit of other components to the repair such as balancing the door, making sure the cables are wound properly, etc.
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We do generally recommend replacing both springs if you have one broken spring on a two spring system. This is because, in most cases, the springs were installed at the same time. If one spring breaks, the other spring is probably pretty close behind it because they have the same lifecycle. It will be much less costly to replace both upfront than to come back out for a second visit, as the labor fee and service call will have to be charged again.
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In terms of torsion springs, two springs is always better than one. If two springs are sharing the work, they may last longer than the one. Also, if one breaks, there is a second one there to help pick up the work. If you have extension springs, you will have to have at least two on either side of the door. Some specialty, larger, or heavier doors require more than two!
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Torsion springs are located at the top of the garage door, and extension springs are located on the sides of the door alongside horizontal tracking. Torsion springs coil and uncoil as they lift and close the door, and extension springs extend and contract. Most high-quality garage doors will come with a torsion spring system. At least one on a single car door, and two on a double car garage door. We prefer torsion springs. When they break, they remain in place on their torsion tube. When an extension spring breaks, unless it has a safety cable running through it, it can fly off into the garage with enormous force and may potentially cause serious injury or damage to belongings.
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We very highly advise against using the garage door with a broken spring. The spring is what does the lifting of the door, so if it lifts when it is broken, the door will be very heavy. This can cause severe damage to the garage door opener. The opener is only there to gently assist the opening and closing. If too much stress is put on the opener, it can cause it to burn out/strip gears/snap the rail, etc. Secondly, if the door opens/closes with a broken spring, it is not balanced properly and can come off its tracking, cables off/snap, etc. This can cause severe damage to the door itself as well.
New Garage Door FAQs
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When choosing a garage door, quality matters! There is a wide range in the market today when it comes to quality. At O’Brien, we install leading manufacturers that are known for their durability and longevity. Some key features of our garage doors are a dual torsion spring system (on double doors), steel ball bearing rollers with a nylon coating for smooth operation, heavy-duty steel tracking, steel oversized hinges binding the panels together, excellent insulation, and top quality paint finishes.
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When purchasing a new garage door, there are many options to consider! Do you need insulation or no insulation? Would you like decorative or plain windows, or no windows at all? Do you prefer a traditional raised panel or a carriage house style? What color matches the style of your home: a classic color or a faux wood finish? Would you like decorative hardware on the door? What size is the garage door(s)? Are you in need of a new automatic garage door opener as well? Feel free to check out our step-by-step guide to choosing the right garage door for your home here!
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It is possible to install a new garage door on existing tracks if it is the same type of door being installed as the existing door and if the tracks are in excellent shape. However, our garage doors generally come stock with all new high-quality tracking unless our customers specify otherwise.
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There are many factors that will be at play when it comes to how long a garage door may last: quality of the product (the door itself and all its moving parts), how often the door is used, if the door is regularly maintained, if the door was ever damaged. The material of the garage door is important as well. A wood door will require regular maintenance such as re-sanding, re-staining, and re-sealing in order to maintain its condition, whereas a steel door is almost maintenance free in this regard. At O’Brien, we install leading manufacturers that can last for decades if maintained properly.
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Whether you should repair or replace your garage door or opener will vary from person to person. Our aim is always to repair. Some instances when we will recommend to replace instead of repair will be: if the cost of the repair is close to or more than a replacement, if the garage door or opener is not repairable or the replacement parts are no longer manufactured, if the customer would prefer to replace from the start because they are looking for particular upgrades or a change in style of the garage door.
New Garage Door Opener FAQs
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Yes you can! You may purchase a garage door opener of your choice and we can definitely come and install it. We do, however, carry manufacturers that are professional grade such as Liftmaster Professional and are not sold at most retail stores. When you consider the price of an opener and then hiring someone to install it, the cost will be close to purchasing a professional garage door opener from an authorized garage door dealer and having it installed by them. **Please note! When searching for a garage door opener, many times they will not include the garage door opener rail that goes from the unit to the door. If the price seems low, this could be the reason! A garage door opener NEEDS to come with a rail, (unless you are replacing it with the same unit that will fit the rail) preferably a solid steel rail. These can be tough to find because they are difficult to ship due to their size.
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Most professional grade and professionally installed garage door openers should come with a one year warranty on parts and labor. If you purchase an opener elsewhere and have a company install it, it is common for a warranty on the install to be about 30 days. Depending on the make and model of the opener, many manufacturers like Liftmaster Professional will offer extended warranties on certain parts in the opener such as the belt.
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Professional grade garage door openers such as Liftmaster Professional and Genie will always be our recommendation. Their professional lines will be sold through authorized garage door dealers and not found at most home improvement stores. The openers will have many upgrades that make them ideal for your home in terms of strength, durability, and longevity. Most models of the professional grade openers will come with a solid steel rail that goes from the unit to the door vs a pieced together aluminum rail. There will be many options to choose from as well when it comes to upgrades such as battery backup, built in wifi capabilities through the myQ® app, HomeLink programming, motion sensor light activation, and more.
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Both the chain drive and the belt drive are excellent garage door opener drive mechanisms, especially in the professional grade options like Liftmaster Professional. The belt drive openers are known for being very quiet, and may be a great option if you are looking to limit noise. Perhaps you have a room above the garage that you’d like to remain quiet? Although a little noisier, the chain drive openers are known for durability and may be a better option for a larger, heavier door. They will also be a little more cost effective, as they are a less expensive option than the belt drive openers.
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½ horse power for a garage door opener is a good general rule of thumb for most standard size and weight garage doors. All of our professional grade garage door openers come with a minimum of ½ horse power. There are options for upgrades on the horse power, but are not necessarily more beneficial unless you have an oversized or above average weight door. In this case, you may choose to go with a DC motor (comparable to a ¾-1 HP motor but not rated by HP). Springs are what do the lifting of your garage door, so if your door is bigger or heavier, you will have stronger or more springs. The opener is there to gently assist in its raising process.
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Whether you should repair or replace your garage door or opener will vary from person to person. Our aim is always to repair. Some instances when we will recommend to replace instead of repair will be: if the cost of the repair is close to or more than a replacement, if the garage door or opener is not repairable or the replacement parts are no longer manufactured, if the customer would prefer to replace from the start because they are looking for particular upgrades or a change in style of the garage door.