Your garage door is made up of several moving parts. The things most homeowners think of are the garage door itself, the garage door opener, and the garage door springs. Yet, your garage door tracks and rollers play a big part as well, so it is important to keep them clean and maintained. Here are a few tips into how to clean and maintain garage door tracks and rollers.
Brief Review of What are Garage Door Tracks and Rollers
On each side of your garage door, you have a metal track. Your garage door rollers are attached to the panels or sections of your garage door and go inside the track. The rollers inside the track guide the garage door open and close. It’s like the garage door tracks are the concreate medians of the highway that keep the cars (or in this case, rollers) on that section of the highway instead of jumping to the other section into oncoming traffic.
NOTE: Before working on your garage door, make sure it is closed, and if possible, your vehicles out of the garage.
Cleaning and Maintaining Garage Door Tracks
Using a damp cloth, clean out the tracks carefully. You want to remove all the debris, and you may wish to use a vacuum to reach and remove any trace of dirt. Apply a thin layer of clear lubricant spray. You will also want to make sure there are no bends or pinches in the garage door track. If there are, carefully use a pair of pliers to take out the bends on the garage door track.
Cleaning and Maintaining Your Garage Door Rollers
With all types of rollers, you are going to want to look for rust on the stems, excessive wear, or breakage. All rollers should always be perpendicular to the stem, rotating smoothly on the stem. If the roller is wobbly, it needs to be replaced. From there, it will depend a little on what type of garage door rollers you have. If you have steel rollers, use an old toothbrush to scrub the roller to remove any grease that may have built up, then use a rag to wipe the rollers clean. Lubricate them with a lithium-based grease. Nylon rollers, which are the ones we recommend, have sealed ball bearings, and do not need additional greasing. We recommend the nylon rollers because they last longer, have fewer parts to rust, and are quieter.
How Often Should I Clean and Maintain Garage Door Tracks and Rollers?
Performing maintenance on your garage door tracks and rollers should be a part of your Garage Door maintenance routine. We recommend once every six months to perform a maintenance check and do simple fixes to your garage door. We have prepared 10 Tips for Garage Door maintenance to help you maintain your garage door.
Spectrum Overhead Door is a local Houston Garage Door repair company that specializes in providing excellent garage door repair service that is fast and affordable. Being garage door repair experts for the last 15 years, we can be available for emergency garage door service usually within just one hour of your call. Call 281-748-9542 or if you are in East Houston 713-557-3407 to schedule your appointment today!
