Why Do Your Garage Door Needs Maintenance in Winter?

Leaves have fallen, temperatures have cooled down and we know that the coolest part of the year isn't far away from Oklahoma. It is important to make you prepared for winter, including your garage, to get ready for the snowy, icy days to come. If you don't take proper care of this during the winter, you may have to face consequences and difficulties due to lack of maintenance. Here are the problems that you may encounter and require a garage door service in OKC.

Damage Due to Weather

Temperature fluctuations all day long can result in snow melting and refreezing outside of your garage door. If melting snow becomes ice, your garage door will stay on the surface. If you open the door, it can peel off the bottom of the frame and risk the sight of the door. The weather outside i.e. the frigid air and humidity will impact certain parts of the door inside your garage. Both the door paths and motion sensors are prone to damage due to extremely low temperatures; a garage door repair company in OKC can fix the weather strapping quickly to prevent further damage.

Make sure you shovel frequently outside your garage door to avoid problems completely. When parking your vehicle in your garage, try to shake off the snow from the tires of your car and cover. Make sure you to prevent moisture build-up around the garage door that can again lead to ice formation.

Problems That Can Happen in Cold Weather

Too Much Grease

Excess grease on the garage doors is a concern, but it can start to cause problems during winter. Excessive lubrication will discard your rollers and make it easy to open and close your door smoothly. One of the most important parts of garage door maintenance is to find the balance between enough lubrication and grease.

Contracting Metal

Most materials contract if temperatures fall below the standard. Metal is one such material that shrinks and seizes in winter months and it is not unusual in the case of a garage door spring, screws and other metallic components. This phenomenon cannot be avoided, but by adding more lubricant you can minimize its effects. Apply lots of garage door oil to the springs, ball bearings and a vent drive.

Thickening of Greases

In extremely hot conditions, most lubricating greases make them so effective under the high-power conditions in motors. Sadly, when exposed to the cold, lubricants don't function as well. Low temperatures will harden the fat to the point that it becomes a very weak lubricant. Be sure it didn't happen in the door of your house. Remove aged, hardened fats with the correct solvent and substitute for better winter results with a silicone derived oil.

Door Opens Slowly

Freezing temperatures impact many of the components of your garage door–from rollers and paths to springs or even the opener itself. When the temperatures are lowered, lubrication in garage door tracks will harden, making it difficult to move by the rollers. Inappropriate lubrication of the track can also lead to a slower opening.

A little grease is usually not an issue in warm weather, but the rollers require significant lubrication in winter to drive the door smoothly along the paths. The tracks should be the first thing you search when you open your garage gate slowly in a dark, wintery morning.

If the tracks don't seem to be the issue, the opener or spring engine may be the question. Nevertheless, without extensive training, it is often difficult to find the source of the problem. Your best bet is to contact your local garage door repair company if you want a fully functional door.

Contracting Metal Components

If your garage door is not well insulated, metal components will contract during cold weather. Due to the metal nature of all the wheels, chains and springs, this phenomenon can affect the integrity of moving doors' components. The springs controlling the door become rigid and brittle at freezing temperatures and can easily break under the weight of the frame. Broken springs are extremely dangerous, and only a professional garage door service can handle them. To order to ensure that freezing temperatures do not impact the door's movements greatly, consider buying a well-insulated garage door to maintain additional heat.

Windsor Garage Door Services can help you with garage door maintenance. Go for it and give us a call without delay.