Don’t Neglect Your Home’s Most Important Door

Posted on: 12 April 2022

A garage door connected to an opener should close gently, landing on the ground with enough force to make complete contact without slamming or causing the door to bounce slightly. However, it's not uncommon to one day close your garage door and find it hitting the ground with more force than you think it should. There are a few causes that could be behind that, and which one you start looking at first depends on how long you've had the door. Regardless of the cause, you have to take action. Not only can some of the causes signal more serious trouble down the road, but even the minor causes can lead to damage to the door if they aren't found and fixed.

Adjusting the Garage Door Opener Force

If the garage door opener is new, chances are the force-adjustment needs some tinkering. There's a setting in the opener that controls the speed and force at which the door heads down to the ground, and the wrong setting lets the door close faster than it should, hence the slam once it closes fully. You'll find a force-adjustment screw in the opener (check the manual for the exact location); turning this screw one way or the other adjusts that force. Do this carefully, with tiny adjustments! You don't want to make the issue worse.

Beware of the Springs 

For an older opener, the springs are a major concern. A sudden change in how forcefully the door is closing indicates that the springs are not controlling the descent of the door as well as they used to. A weak spring can break, sending parts flying with impressive but dangerous velocity. You must call a garage door company to look at the springs and repair them if necessary. This, by the way, is something you shouldn't put off. Weak springs only get weaker, and they eventually reach a literal breaking point.

Internal Issues

If you cannot do a force adjustment, then one of the internal parts of the opener may need some repair. This could be anything from a gear to cables or chains. When the garage door company is there to inspect the springs, they'll look at the opener if they can't find anything wrong with the springs.

By the way, even if the garage door opener is brand new, if you can't adjust the force enough to get the door to stop slamming, your next thought should be that it could be the springs. Those are really among the most dangerous parts of the system given their tension. But an inspection from a good garage door company should find the problem.

To learn more, contact a company like Raynor Door Company.