Why Your Garage Door Is Making Those Strange Noises

Why Your Garage Door Is Making Those Strange Noises

Every garage door makes noise while it is opening or closing — even if it is ideally maintained and properly lubricated, there can still be humming sounds from the opener or the quiet whirring of rollers moving along the metal tracks.

In most cases, homeowners pay little attention to the everyday noises their garage door makes — if you hear the same sounds every time the door is in motion, you’ll probably assume everything’s in good working order. Unfortunately, this level of predictability can cause many homeowners to become complacent about their garage door’s performance until it is too late, and they need a service call to replace a broken garage door opener or attend to some other repair. If your garage door is making a buzzing sound, it might be time to call a professional.

Common Odd Noises and Their Possible Causes

Even if your garage door opens and closes normally, it isn’t necessarily in proper working order — there may be signs that service is on the horizon. These red flags can begin as strange noises you wouldn’t usually associate with its daily operation. Therefore, you should pay attention to the noises your garage door and opener make to detect potential or existing issues and minimize or prevent repair costs.

Rattling or Shaking

If your garage door makes noises like rattling or shaking, it can indicate several underlying issues. Ignoring rattling noises may lead to further loosening of components, exacerbating the problem and potentially causing more significant damage to the door or its mechanism.

Possible causes of rattling or shaking noises in your garage door could include the following.

• Loose hardware: Over time, nuts, bolts and screws can loosen due to regular door movements, causing parts to rattle during operation.
• Worn rollers: If the rollers on the garage door tracks are worn or damaged, they may produce a rattling noise when the door moves.
• Misaligned tracks: Improperly aligned tracks can shake the door during opening and closing, resulting in rattling noises.

Grinding or Screeching

Grinding or screeching noises are distressing sounds you might hear when operating your garage door. Here are some of the common causes.

• Lack of lubrication: Insufficient lubrication on moving parts such as hinges, springs or rollers can cause metal-on-metal contact.
• Worn or damaged rollers: Over time, garage door rollers can wear out or become damaged, causing friction and noisy operation.
• Misaligned tracks: If the tracks are misaligned, the rollers may grind against the edges, producing an unpleasant sound.

Popping or Clicking

Popping or clicking noises are another unusual noise you might hear when operating your garage door. While occasional clicking sounds may not cause immediate concern, don’t ignore persistent or sudden popping noises, as they may indicate potential issues within the garage door system.

Possible causes include the following.

• Temperature changes: In extreme temperatures, metal parts of the garage door may expand or contract.
• Spring tension issues: Incorrectly adjusted garage door springs could produce clicking sounds during operation.
• Loose or worn components: Some clicking noises may arise from loose or worn-out parts within the garage door’s assembly.

Squeaking or Whining

Promptly address these high-pitched sounds or strange buzzing noises in your garage to prevent further damage and ensure your door operates smoothly and quietly.

• Lack of lubrication: Insufficient lubrication on hinges, springs or other moving parts can result in squeaking or whining noises.
• Dry or rusty rollers: Dry or rusty rollers can create friction, leading to annoying squeaks during garage door operation.
• Worn-out bearings: The bearings in the garage door’s pulleys or other moving parts might wear out, causing squeaking sounds.

Other Noises

Additionally, there may be issues specific to a faulty or broken garage door opener.

• Rattling: A loosening of the chain or support rails
• Grinding: Inadequate lubrication of a part or parts
• Straining: Defective motor or inadequate horsepower

Regardless of the specific noise or how to differentiate them, any abnormal sound indicates the need for a garage door inspection and perhaps repair service. 

The Role of Regular Maintenance

While you can inspect your garage door and perform minor fixes such as adjusting loose hardware or lubricating the opener, you should leave most other repairs or service to trained professionals like the technicians from Whitby Garage Doors. A garage door’s weight and the degree of tension in the springs and cables can be particularly dangerous for do-it-yourselfers.  

Like any other mechanical system, your garage door requires periodic attention and care to ensure optimal performance and longevity. Routine maintenance prevents potential issues, while contributing to home security.

• Preventive measure: Regular maintenance prevents unexpected breakdowns and malfunctions. By addressing small problems early on, you can avoid more extensive and costly repairs in the future.
• Safety assurance: A well-maintained garage door is safe. Ensuring all moving parts function correctly reduces the risk of accidents and injuries to you and your family.
• Extended life span: Proper maintenance can significantly extend the life span of your garage door and its components. Well-cared-for doors are less likely to wear out quickly and require premature replacements.

A Garage Door Tuneup Can Prevent Additional and Unnecessary Repair Costs

If you suspect your garage door is struggling to keep up with your needs, schedule an immediate service call with a technician from Whitby Garage Doors. Our team will address any pressing maintenance tasks and perform a complete garage door tuneup to prevent additional or unnecessary service and repair costs.

Our garage door maintenance checklist includes a thorough inspection and essential maintenance for any door and opener repair issues.

Garage Door Inspection/Tuneup

• Panels
• Hardware
• Tracks and rollers
• Springs and cables
• Door weight/balance

Garage Door Opener Inspection/Tuneup

• Motor
• Travel limits
• Drive system
• Support tracking
• Safety/auto-reverse

If your garage door or garage door opener is making a strange buzzing noise or other unusual sounds, it might be time for repair or maintenance. Call the garage door repair experts from Whitby Garage Doors today at 905-441-1512 to book a garage door inspection and tuneup visit as soon as possible.

Why It Is a Good Idea to Insulate Your Garage Door

Insulation of a Garage Door Increases Home Comfort and Lowers Energy Bills

A garage door being insulatedIt should come as little surprise to homeowners that the monthly cost of utilities can add rather quickly or, considered from the opposite perspective, subtract dollars quite quickly from their bank account. Even with a monthly home maintenance plan/budget in place, there can be times of the year when these expenses will place a strain on one’s finances.

Therefore, it should also not be surprising that homeowners will look for ways to reduce utility costs in order to stretch their budget/finances just a little bit further every month. However, one aspect of cost reduction that can be especially challenging in this regard is that related to energy consumption, since winter weather/temperatures in Whitby and the surrounding region necessitate regular heating of a home for the family’s comfort as well as their personal health and safety.

On the subject of comfort, the following all-too-familiar complaint might strike a chord with many homeowners: is the living space above and/or adjacent to the garage always too cold in winter? And does this circumstance require either raising the thermostat or using an additional heat source, thereby increasing the cost of running the home during this season? If the answer to these questions is ‘yes’, the situation might be attributable to the fact that their garage doors are not insulated, thus allowing cold air to penetrate the garage area essentially at will and subsequently affect/lower the temperatures in the neighbouring rooms of the home.

Non-insulated garage doors are usually constructed of wood, either flat-surfaced or with recessed panels, or from a single layer of steel, with an open frame on the interior side. Of course, an immediate way to improve energy efficiency and lower heating costs would be to replace these types of garage doors with a newer, insulated model, but this might not be financially feasible for some/many homeowners.

Fortunately, there are less costly ways to upgrade garage door insulation without the installation an entirely new door; this can be done rather easily by affixing one of these materials to the back of an existing door:

• Batt insulation – best choice for steel doors
  • Usually made of fiberglass, backed by paper or foil
  • Material acts as an air barrier and a vapour barrier
• Reflective foil – for steel doors or flat-surface wood doors
  • Insulation is either cardboard or polyethylene bubbles
  • This has highly-reflective aluminum foil on one/both sides
• Foam board – can be used with steel or wooden doors
  • Thin rigid polystyrene panels with high insulating value
  • Material usually has either a vinyl or aluminum facing

In addition to improving the thermal performance/energy efficiency of the garage door, the layer of insulation can also provide benefits in terms of noise reduction. This muffles street noise and can be advantageous to family members who are watching television or reading/studying in the rooms over or adjacent to the garage.

One important point for Whitby homeowners to note when adding insulation to the back of their garage doors would be to determine whether the garage door springs or garage door opener would need any adjustment to compensate for the extra weight of the door.

Indeed, due to the extreme winds and cold temperatures that can be part of the winter in Whitby and surrounding areas, installing garage door insulation can be very effective in improving energy efficiencies as part of good overall home maintenance practices. Homeowners looking for the immediate advantages of insulating their garage door, but who may be limited by time or other priorities, can count on the expert technicians from Whitby Garage Doors to complete the installation in a quick and competent manner.

Whitby Homeowners Can Realize Many Benefits from an Insulated Garage Door

A closed garage with an insulated wooden garage door. Should homeowners decide that installing a new, insulated garage door would in fact be the best course of action, they can once again bank on the skills and expertise of Whitby Garage Doors. The technicians from Whitby Garage Doors are trained in the installation of garage doors distributed by the leading North American manufacturers, including:

• Amarr
• C.H.I.
• Clopay
• Equal
• Haas
• Steel-Craft
• Wayne Dalton

Further to their improvement of energy efficiency, insulated garage doors offer other benefits over non-insulated doors, such as:

• A more quiet operation
• Improved noise reduction
• Greater resistance to dents
• Enhanced aesthetics/curb appeal

As a result, Whitby homeowners may want to capitalize on the full range of operational advantages and improved visual appeal afforded by installing a new insulated garage door from Whitby Garage Doors.

If you are interested in insulating your current garage door or want to upgrade to a new insulated door, call the expert technicians at Whitby Garage Doors at (289) 316-2997 to schedule a complimentary consultation today!

There Are Several Viable Reasons to Replace Older-Model Garage Door Openers

People accustomed to modern conveniences can get rather testy when those amenities are not available to them, even on a temporary basis. Ask most homeowners how they react when the power goes out, the air conditioner stops working in mid-July, or access to their internet service is disrupted and their answers may need editing before they can be printed or published.

The same premise holds true for garage door openers; homeowners who have a garage door opener can become rather irritated when they push the button on a remote control and the device fails to respond/operate. In some cases, this is a temporary situation that can be resolved through do-it-yourself means or professional garage door opener repair; other times, though, the better solution might be the purchase of a new device.

But a reactionary reason, a problem, should not be the only reason to replace an existing garage door opener. Similar to many/most other mechanical devices, there have been significant advancements in garage door opener technology over the last several years, to the point where older models may have become limited or close-to-obsolete relative to their overall value to homeowners.

When garage doors openers were developed, their fundamental premise was indeed that of convenience – permitting access to/egress from the garage (and from the home) for the homeowner-family without anyone having to physically lift or lower the garage door. Yet over time, garage door openers have seen their functionality expanded into providing advancements in:

• Operation
• Convenience
• Home security
• Homeowner safety
• Protection of property

As a result of their technological advances, newer garage door openers offer a number of reasons why homeowners may want to replace their current models, even though those devices might still be delivering, in a manner of speaking, an acceptable level of service.
Some of the prime influences and considerations for upgrading a door opener would be:

• Keypad entry
• Key ring remotes
• Rolling-code technology
• Greater energy efficiency
• Smoother/quieter operation
• Safety reversal mechanisms
• Activation/control via smartphone
• Fingerprint-activated wireless keypads
• Built-in battery back-up (for times of power outages)
• Lockout feature (prevents operation during absences)

Modern/advanced-technology garage door opener scan certainly deliver substantial value and benefits to homeowner from several perspectives including operation/performance, security, and convenience. A complete line of available options/upgrades is available to homeowners in Oshawa, Ajax, and the Durham Region through the garage door opener repair and installation experts at Whitby Garage Doors.

Expert Garage Door Opener Installation and Testing from Whitby Garage Doors

When homeowners opt to replace their existing garage door opener, a critical part of the overall process will be the proper installation of that new device. This will be particularly important when upgrading from an older/basic model to one that has enhanced wireless technology.

The technicians from Whitby Garage Doors are trained in the installation of all garage door opener models, including the LiftMaster series, acknowledged as a leading brand worldwide for more than 45 years. The Whitby Garage Doors staff can help homeowners in selecting the right garage door opener for their needs, and for the size and weight of their garage door, and then ensure the opener is properly installed.

Once the physical installation is complete, the technicians will test various aspects of the garage door opener’s operation, including:

• Travel limits for opening and closing
• Opening and closing force of the door
• The overall balance of the door weight
• Safety reversal mechanism/photo eyes
• Condition of all existing garage door parts

In the case of the existing door parts, actual or potential issues with such components as the springs, cables, rollers, and tracking can adversely affect the smooth operation of a garage door opener and, in some instances, be detrimental to the motor. Should there be any issues identified, Whitby Garage Doors can provide immediate repair service to rectify the situation and protect the homeowner’s investment in the new door opener.

Thinking about installing a new or upgraded garage door opener? Call the garage door installation and repair specialists from Whitby Garage Doors today at (905) 441-1512 to schedule a no-obligation consultation on the garage door opener that is right for your specific needs.

Reasons Why Your Garage Door Will Not Open

Troubleshooting to Assess Whether a Garage Door Repair Technician is Needed

For most mechanical objects that are used on a daily or routine basis, there is a certain level of owner expectation with respect to their performance. It is generally assumed that vehicles will start every time the key is turned in the ignition, that gas lawnmowers will respond every time the starter cord is pulled, and that food will be properly chilled or frozen every time a family member opens the refrigerator or freezer respectively.

So, when a result other than the expected occurs, there could be a feeling of momentary shock and disbelief in discovering that something usually quite reliable has failed; these emotions may often be followed by frustration and even resentment at the subsequent inconvenience caused by this failure.

This same scenario plays out time and again, at home after home, when family members try to open their garage door and, surprise, nothing happens! Their immediate reactions might be to simply repeat the process by either straining harder to lift the door (it must be stuck) or pushing the button on the remote more forcefully (it must be sticking). But there may be any number of reasons why a garage door will not open, including:

• • With a garage door opener
    • Malfunctioning remote (or just dead batteries)
    • Malfunction in the opener drive system or motor
    • Power source disconnected or wiring may be loose
    • Photoelectric eye either blocked or out of alignment
    • Open and close limits for the opener not set properly
    • Door might have been inadvertently left in lock mode
  • With or without a garage door opener
    • Broken torsion spring
    • Broken or loose cables
    • Door off kilter/weight unevenly distributed
    • Rollers damaged or popped out of tracking
    • Tracking blocked, bent, or out of alignment

When it comes to troubleshooting these types of issues, some may be readily apparent through a visual inspection, particularly those related to the garage door itself and/or its hardware. Should a mechanical or parts-related problem be identified or suspected, it is strongly advised that a professional garage door repair service, like Whitby Garage Doors, be contacted to confirm and/or rectify the matter. This is due to personal safety concerns linked to installing or readjusting springs and cables placed under high tension.

• Testing all remotes/replacing all batteries
• Resetting the power source/checking fuses
• Examining all wiring for fraying/connectivity
• Wiping/cleaning dirt from all photo eyes/sensors

Should such actions not correct the situation, it could imply that something much more complex is at play. In these cases, it would again be prudent for homeowners to utilize a certified garage door repair provider such as Whitby Garage Doors to diagnose the issue and recommend an appropriate course of action.

An Annual Tune-Up Can Prevent Unnecessary Garage Door Repair Service Costs

In the same manner that regular maintenance can prolong the life of a furnace or an air conditioner, an annual garage door tune-up will help keep the door in optimal operating condition and extend its lifecycle as well; it can also help the homeowner avoid the need for/costs of unwanted garage door repair service.

There are several steps that homeowners can take to maintain their garage doors in top working condition. These actions include:

• Brushing/cleaning and inspecting all torsion springs, cables, pulleys, drums
• Inspecting all hardware and tightening any screws, nuts, bolts as needed
• Examining tracking for dents/damage that should be repaired or replaced
• Lubricating rollers (spray not oil) and looking for wear, cracks, misalignment
• Lubricating the garage door opener drive mechanism (again using a spray)

Homeowners who might be unsure about completing their own garage door tune-up or those with a preference to have this tune-up performed by a certified technician can call on the expert garage door repair service available from Whitby Garage Doors.

If you have been inconvenienced by a garage door that will not open, due to the failure of a garage door opener or a problem with the door mechanism or hardware, call the garage door repair specialists at Whitby Garage Doors today at (905) 441-1512 to book a technician as soon as possible.