So, your garage door has stopped working. It’s shaking, excessively loud, or just not functioning as it should. You’ve called your local garage door service technician and set up an appointment, but there’s still much more to do before everything returns to working order. We’ve seen a lot of different garage door issues at American Door Works, and there are steps both home and business owners can take to ensure a smooth repair process.
Schedule a Service Call with a Certified Garage Door Technician
Before you call, try to identify the source of the issue to allow for a smooth and quick repair process. Here are some questions to answer in preparation for your call with your garage door technician:
Can you see why the door is not working? Is there a visible broken spring, cable, track, roller, or hinge? Record what you see, and relay that information to the service technician.
When did it stop working? Were you able to use it up until yesterday, or has it been malfunctioning for some time and only now stopped working entirely? If it has been malfunctioning for some time, what did that look like? Was it excessively loud or shaky?
What type of spring is in place? This question only really matters if the spring itself is broken, but in that scenario, it’s essential to have this information. Is it mounted and wound onto a pole above the upper door section? Is it attached to the rear hanger support of the track on the ceiling?
Is the garage door made of standard fiberglass? Or is it constructed of something less common, like steel in industrial garage doors or wood in more high-end residential doors? The weight of the garage door will have a drastic impact on the amount of torque required to raise and lower it.
Is there a visible manufacturer or brand on the garage door? Some common garage door brands include Clopay, Amarr, Raynor, and Midland. In addition, is there a visible manufacturer or brand on the automatic opener system? This may be the same as the door itself but commonly isn’t.
Was there any specific event leading to the need for service? Some of the common issues we see at American Door Works include closing the garage door on an object, a door that freezes to the ground then fails to open, or a garage door hit by a vehicle.
Prepare Your Garage for Service
Now that you’ve answered all the questions about your garage door malfunction, here are a few tips to help your garage door technician provide the best possible service experience.
Remove all tools, implements, and vehicles from the area around and directly below the affected door. If your vehicle is trapped in the garage, have your keys ready to move it once the technician opens the door.
Prevent children and pets from entering the work area. Try to keep children and pets away while the technician is on-site. Garage doors can be dangerous, especially faulty ones, and no one wants to see someone get injured by something entirely preventable.
A quality garage door service technician will be able to repair your garage door under almost any circumstance. Answering these questions and clearing the areas of hazards will reduce overall service costs and ensure a quick and painless repair process. This information will also be stored in your service technicians’ account, ready to be recalled whenever necessary, thus saving you time in the long run by ensuring you don’t have to repeat any work.
Looking for a quality garage door service or repair? The service technicians at American Door Works can help. Contact American Door Works for quick and professional garage door repairs or installation.