OVERHEAD DOOR BLOG

Frayed Cables in Your Overhead Door

Posted by Debbie Ditta on Mon, Mar 16, 2015 @ 03:01 PM

Topic: Safety and Cables for Your Overhead Door Sectional Doors

The lift cables at each side of a sectional overhead door should be visually inspected periodically for “fraying” of broken stands, severe twisting of strands, any other abnormalities or rust.

We suggest careful inspection frequently as a frayed, severe twisting, rust or other abnormal cable conditions is a warning that the cable strength has diminished and could break or fail at any time.

Effect of a Broken Cable: A broken cable leaves the door inoperable and has the potential to cause serious damage and injury, particularly if the cable breaks when the door is fully open or part way open.

How to Check for a Frayed or Severe Twisting of Strands of Cable: It is best to check and carefully inspect the cables when the door is in the down or closed position. Carefully check along the full length of the cable for any fraying or severe twisting. Prevention of failure or breakage can save inconvenient costly down time which can be disruptive to the operation and reduce repair expenses.

Just a little visual inspection can increase safety, operational efficiency, reliability, decrease downtime, extend useful life of your operating system and lessen service maintenance cost.

 A quick visual inspection prior to operation could have avoided this very costly problem. The price of a new cable vs. a complete new door?

Inspect the cables. The cables should be tight and secured to the bottom fixtures. The cables should not rub against the door, track or any other objects. Cables with frayed or broken strands should be replaced by a trained door system technician.

 Please, schedule those visual inspections and call us if we can assist in your department goals for improved operational efficiency and reliability while keeping that budget in check.

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Tags: Custom Garage Doors, Handyman garage doors, Overhead Doors, garage door replacements, how do I find a new garage door, Fix garage door, Garage doors, OHD garage doors, Sectional Garage Doors, Self Repair garage door, Diagnostic Door

DIY GARAGE DOOR REPAIRS

Posted by Debbie Ditta on Thu, Nov 1, 2012 @ 11:10 AM

 Many garage door repairs may be relatively simple, but some are definitely not advisable for all homeowners.  Here are some garage door repairs you can do yourself: 

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~ ~ ~ Dusty garages can contribute to dirt build-up on your garage door parts,

            so clean tracks and all moving parts with household cleaner and dry cloth. 

~ ~ ~ Tighten all hardware, including hinges.

~ ~ ~ Check for dented tracks or broken rollers that can cause sticking.

~ ~ ~ Lubricate tracks, rollers, pulleys with wD-40, then silicone spray rollers.

Garage door opener repairs is not beyond your ken, as long as you know how to plug things in and lubricate them.  Garage door openers are simple devices that rely on little more than a motor and a track to raise and open your door.  If you're having problems with the garage door, this is what you can check:

  • Garage Door Won't Open or Close
  • If your garage door won't open or close, the first thing to check is the electricity. Sure, your garage door is plugged in, but has there been an interruption of power somewhere along the line? A blown fuse or a tripped circuit breaker? You can test to see if your garage door opener has power by pressing the hardwired button that sets the machine into motion. If nothing happens, check the power.
  • If there is a good supply of power, something more serious might be wrong. Try unplugging the unit and plugging it back in. Look around for loose wiring. The worst case scenario is a blown out circuit board. If you suspect that this is the problem, call an electrician or buy a new garage door opener.
  • Garage Door Gets Stuck
  • If your garage door gets stuck midway between the open and closed positions, you probably have an obstruction that is keeping your garage door opener from working properly. Take a look at the track that raises and lowers your garage door. Is there a foreign body in the way? Remove it and try again. Hopefully, that does the trick. There might also be something jammed in the way of the door itself. If it's a bird's nest, try not to kill any of the baby birds when you move it.
  • If an obstruction is not to blame, you might have a few chains that need lubricating. It's a good idea to lubricate the moving parts of your garage door twice a year, anyway, so don't worry about getting a little greasy. Lubricate the chain and anything else that moves. Just remember to unplug your garage door opener first, unless  you want to lose a finger or two.
  • Garage Door Opens and Closes on Its Own
  • Some garage doors act like they are haunted, opening and closing on their own. There's a simple fix, in most cases. Check your garage door remote and get the button unstuck. If that doesn't work, talk to your neighbors. You may have the same garage door opener as a neighbor does.  
Call Overhead Door of Northeast Arkansas Glass - 870-336-3667 - let us help you keep your door running. 


Tags: Handyman garage doors, Fix garage door, Self Repair garage door, Door Will not CLose, DYI Garage doors, Diagnostic Door