Overhead Door of Permian Basin Blog!

Have you ever thought of the anatomy of your garage door? Probably not BUT knowing the parts of your door and how they work could really benefit you in long run. When there is a problem, you’ll know how to easily identify it and fix it or call a specialist when the job gets too big.

 

Follow along as we take you through the 7 aspects of your garage door.

 

Torsion Spring : This is used to counterbalance the doors weight in order to be lifted easily. This is the most dangerous part of your garage door. This spring is under constant tension. Tampering with it can cause serious injury so give an expert if you think the torsion spring is causing the issue.

 

Track : Guides the door up the ceiling and back. The track is one of the main aspects of your garage’s daily use. Preforming a seasonal check to make sure they are working optimally is beneficial. Make sure the track is clear of any debris or parts. If you are located in a salty area, corrosion can occur so be sure to give your specialist a call to insure you are using the right materials.

 

Roller : Rides inside the track, which move every time you open and close your garage door. Sometimes these rollers can become warn. Contact a specialist to learn more about how to properly replace them.

 

Hinge : Connect the horizontal sections. Sometimes these hinges can become noisy. A simple lubrication or oiling can fix it. If the problem continues, you may need to replace your hinges.

 

Section : The sections of your garage door are linked to the hinges and help fold the door as it is raising and lowering. Every garage door style has a different type of sectioning. These normally hold up well over time.

 

Lock Bar : Engages with the track to prevent the door from opening. This is used as a security measure to insure no one can enter your garage while it is closed.

 

Weather Stripping : Seals the door edges to prevent air flow. This prevents the inside of your garage from being subject to the elements

 

 

Being in the garage door and garage door opener business, we hear a lot of stories from customers about old doors and openers that practically wake the neighbors with their noise every time the opener starts. Parents of newborns have told us of their frustrations with loud openers, especially after having just gotten their cranky baby to sleep (though parents of teenagers who break curfew don’t seem to have a problem with loud openers).

In nearly all the stories we’ve heard, the homeowners have an old opener that needs to be replaced. If your opener is more than 15 years old, it’s probably one that can be heard every time the remote button is pushed, causing a loud start at the beginning of the opening cycle; a shuttering, rattling sound as the opener moves the door up and down; and, a jolting stop when the opening cycle is complete. These noises, you’re no doubt aware, can often be heard in rooms surrounding the garage, too.

Older openers are often noisy because an underpowered motor is straining to open a heavy door with an outdated, chain-drive system. Fortunately, today’s openers have come a long way from those built one or two decades ago. Options include a belt-drive, screw-drive or a quieter chain-drive run by motors that are appropriately matched to the type of door on the garage.

The drive system and motor aren’t the only aspects that determine if an opener will operate quietly, though. Internal components make a difference too. Overhead Door’s Odessy and Destiny openers are good examples. Both have internal components that are entirely electronic. This allows them to incorporate DoorDetect™ monitoring and diagnostic technology, a system that helps the openers deliver the right amount of power at every stage of garage door operation for quieter starts and stops. The DoorDetect™system also continuously monitors operation of the door and, if necessary, stops operation when significant changes occur to prevent damage and improve overall safety.

Overhead Door’s Odyssey® and Destiny® openers run onDC power instead of AC power, found in older openers. This allows the openers to operate quickly and efficiently, and run quietly. Instead of the loud noises, Odyssey® and Destiny® openers emit only a very low hum.

Safety, security and convenience features are more reasons to consider a new garage door opener. While old openers require a homeowner to open the garage door to turn on a light, many Overhead Door openers come with motion-activated lights that turn on when entering the garage. This is not only a great convenience and safety feature (no more tripping in the dark) but a great security feature, too.

Further security comes thanks to the CodeDodger Access Security System, a digital code changing system used by Overhead Door® garage door openers to prevent someone from “grabbing” a radio signal that opens your door. With Odyssey® and Destiny® openers, homeowners can also choose to purchase additional safety accessories including a battery backup that will keep an opener working during a power outage, or accessory remotes that will send an alert if the door doesn’t properly close.

Thinking about changing out that old opener? You can find more information about Overhead Door® garage door openers here, and by visiting us at overheaddoorpermianbasin.com.

 

We know choosing a new garage door and system can be a daunting task. Between considering a style, selecting a color and worrying about price, it’s easy to get distracted and forget about one of the most important aspects – safety. It’s something that homeowners too often overlook. Luckily, Overhead Door does not, and we build many safety features into our doors, openers and accessories that will help to keep your home and family safe. Below are just some of the many safety features you’ll find in Overhead Door products.

Lighting
One of the most important safety features to consider when remodeling your garage or purchasing a new garage door and opener system is garage lighting. All Overhead Door  openers feature a lighting system that activates when you open your garage door and then switch off after a set time. And some, like our Destiny® and Odyssey® openers, even include motion detection lighting that will turn on the lights for you so you aren’t fumbling for a light switch in a dark garage.

Accident Prevention
Our Safe-T-Beam System®, standard in all Overhead Door openers, stops and reverses a closing door when an object passes through its infrared beam, helping to prevent accidents when your garage door is closing.

Battery Back-Up
Power’s out? No problem. The  Overhead Door Battery Back-up unit allows you to continue to operate your garage door during a power outage. This system reaches a full charge in 48 hours and gives you up to 50 cycles of use in a 24-hour period after the initial power outage.

Security
Part of keeping your garage safe is keeping it secure. That’s why we use the latest in CodeDodger® technology on all our openers, which prevents piracy of the radio signal that opens your garage door. This technology chooses a code from one of billions of combinations, keeping it encrypted for maximum security.

For further security, Overhead Door developed the Door Report remote, a garage door opener remote control that answers the nagging question, “Did I close the garage door?” When your garage door closes, the Door Report™ remote flashes a green light and emits a beep for confirmation. If for some reason the garage door does not close properly, a warning tone sounds and a red light flashes to alert you. This innovative accessory eliminates uneasiness because you will never have to wonder, “Did I forget to shut the garage door?” again.

By visiting overheaddoorpermianbasin.com you can find more information on our products and accessories that enhance garage safety, as well as locate a distributor near you to discuss updating or adding these options to your system.

For homeowners, June is often a month filled with to-dos preparing for days spent outdoors and summer get togethers with friends and family. It's the idea time to add inspecting your garage doors for safety.

June is "National Garage Door Safety Month". According to LiftMaster, a leading manufacturer of commercial door components and garage door operators, more than 70 percent of homeowners enter and exit their home through the garage door, relying on it as "the new front door." The garage door is the largest moving object in most people's homes, and its use often increases in the summer months, when children are home from school and homeowners head in and out of the garage to get lawn and garden equipment, bicycles and more.

Just a word of warning; If incorrectly installed or not performing properly, a garage door can exert strong forces that can lead to injury and even death (even with new guidelines for safety, there are an average of three deaths per year from garage door accidents). That's why industry professionals and manufacturers are teaming up to educate the public about the importance of performing inspections at least one time per year.

Many homeowners are slow to adapt to the changes or aren't even aware of the new standards until it's time to replace an old unit. Studies show approximately 1 in 15 homes have garage doors that are not up to current safety standards. When it comes to keeping family, friends, small children and even pets safe, those numbers are simply not acceptable.

Whether you decide to perform the safety check yourself, or you'd like to have a professional check it for you, here are a few tips to keep your garage door operating safely:

Keep an eye on it:

Does your garage door have a set of photoelectric eyes with lit green and yellow LED lights on it? Since 1993, when Federal Law UL-325 was enacted, all manufacturers have only sold units with these safety devices on them. The photo eyes detect motion and any objects in the way of the door and then reverse the direction of the door if they pick up on either. All garage doors without this device are considered inadequate from a safety standpoint.

Follow the rules:

There are established safety standards on where photo eyes and push button operators should be mounted. For instance, photo eyes should be installed six inches off the floor and no higher. Otherwise, or a person or a pet can pass under the beam undetected, creating an unsafe situation. Be sure there are no obstructions between the photo eyes on either side, as any item that blocks interferes with the unit's ability to communicate. Even cobwebs can affect photo eyes, so be sure to check for those, too.

Also,there is no need to guess where to place your interior pushbutton. The rule of thumb is to mount it at least five feet from the floor and out of the reach of little ones.

Perform a test:

The only way to be certain the reversing mechanism is functioning as it should is to try it out. We tell customers it's a good idea to test the reversing mechanism on a monthly basis, if possible. A simple way to do this is to place a two-by-four piece of wood or a stick under the door, press the button and see if the door reverses when it hits the object. If it doesn't, it's time to call in a professional.

Make maintenance a priority:

Like any item you use regularly, parts can wear out and break. In this instance, that can cause a safety issue. Perform a regular inspection of your springs, replacing them if they show signs of wear and of your cables, keeping in mind that they should only be replaced by a trained technician because of the dangers associated with the high tension of the springs.

Check out another blog on garage door maintenance tips HERE

Talk about safety:

If you have children in the home or get regular visits from friends or family who do, it's wise to review the basics of door safety. Remind them that garages are for cars, not for kids; avoid moving doors and keep hands and fingers away from the door and its components; to not play with garage door opener buttons (they are not toys) and to only operate a door if you can see it.

Overhead Door offers performs free on-site assessments to make sure you and your loved ones are safe — not just in June, but year-round. Give us a call at (432)570-9206

The sad truth is that garage doors do break over time just like automobiles and others devices that make our life easier throughout the day. However there are some do it yourself tips that you can use to prolong the life of the door and prevent a service technician to come to your house for repairs.

What issues do our technicians look for?

The first issue that people have problems with are photocell cameras. The cameras are located at the bottom corners of the garage door opening and are used to prevent the door from crushing items that are in the path of the moving garage door. A good tip to keep these cameras in good condition is to check and see if the wires are fasten to the cameras. There are instances where loose or corrosion on wires my cause the cameras to not receive the proper power in order to work. To fix this just cut off the bad section of the wire and strip off the section of the plastic coating to expose copper wire. Then attach the exposed wire back to the corresponding terminal the wire broke off of. Another important thing to check on the camera is to see if dirt or spider webs are in the lenses. If this is the case, apply a brush to the lenses wiping away the dirt and webs so that the cameras can see each other clearly.

If you have an older opener that doesn't have photocell cameras. A safety reversing sensor is applied to the opener so that if an object is in the path of the opener. The moving door senses the object when touched and returns back to the open state with damaging the object or the door. As part of maintenance a safety test should be conducted where you take a standard wood 2x4 and place it flat on the ground where the 2x4 is in the path of the moving door. If the door reverses with the 2x4 in the way of the opening then the test is complete. If the door doesn't reverse, the closed sensitivity need to be adjusted and you should call a overhead door technician with the model of the opener for further instruction on how to resolve the issue.

The last thing for our maintenance plan is to lubricate the moving parts of the garage door. You can get garage door lubricant at your nearest hardware store. With the lubricant in hand spray the lubricant on the small wheels in the inside track of the garage door. Also the other important thing to lubricate is the spring which will be located as a long black coil along the top of the opening or along the sides of the track. This will prolong the life of the spring by preventing friction between the coils of the spring.

You should do this maintenance plan every six months for best results of your garage door and opener. If you have any questions or have some other concerns while performing maintenance contact your nearest overhead door technician for assistance.