Your garage door takes a beating! Regular use and harsh Canadian winters will eventually affect even the highest quality garage door installations. You’ll know something is wrong when you start to hear unusual noises during your garage door’s operation. Here are a few things you can try on your own to remedy that squeaky garage door before you call in the professionals!
Common Garage Door Noises
Is your garage door noisy? Here are some typical reasons why your garage door makes noises and what causes them:
- Rattling: Ensure the door’s chain and support rails are sufficiently tightened. Take this time to tighten any loose bolts or nuts. Also, consider lubricating all of your garage door’s moving parts so you don’t hear that metal-on-metal sound!
- Squeaking: Is your garage door squeaking? Use some lubrication on your roller hinges and tighten any loose parts.
- Grinding: This could be caused by a loose hinge or roller. Try lubrication, but if the grinding noise persists, a component may have been incorrectly installed.
- Vibrating: Lubricate or replace the rollers, You can also tighten any loose bolts or nuts connected to the track.
- Banging: This noise indicates that either your garage door is off the track or you need to replace one or more of your garage door’s panels.
- Clinking: Usually caused by the coils accumulating too much rust to operate properly.
- Rubbing: The tracks might be bent and you’ll need a garage door specialist to help.
- Slapping: If your chain is loose, it could make a slapping noise when it hits the opener.
- Squealing: Lubricate all moving parts and if the noise still persists, call in a pro.
- Very loud opening and closing noises: If your garage door sounds extra loud while it’s opening or closing, it might not even be an issue with your garage door. Some garages can require extra insulation for soundproofing on the walls to keep the noise under control. In some cases, the design of a garage can amplify noisy garage doors, making the problem sound worse than it actually is!
Causes of Garage Door Noises
Take a quick inspection of your setup to see if you can identify the source of the garage door noise. Here are a few possibilities to consider:
- How old is it? Even the best quality garage doors will make more noises as they age and that’s caused by a lack of lubrication on moving parts such as the rollers.
- Is it off-balance? Your garage door will be quite loud if it has come off the track.
- Opener needs replacement/repair: A rattling sound means it might be time to repair/replace the unit whether it’s a belt-drive or chain-drive.
- Ageing rollers: Older garage doors with steel rollers will get rusty over time. Modern, newer garage doors use nylon rollers which are much less likely to make noise as they age.
- Loose bits and pieces: Check all of the nuts and bolts on your garage door system and tighten any ones that are loose.
- Lubrication needed: Be sure to add lubricant to all moving parts including rollers and hinges.
How to Fix the Noise
There are few other things you can try to fix the noise on your own, however, it can be dangerous for an amateur to attempt these kinds of repairs and we always recommend enlisting the help of a professional, experienced garage door repair technician. Here are some things you can do on your own to help reduce garage door noise:
- Tighten everything: Using simple tools like a wrench and screwdriver, you can go along the track to tighten all bolts and nuts, but give them gentle turns only as you don’t want to overtighten the hardware.
- Replace or lubricate rollers: If your garage door’s rollers are rusty, the door will be extra noisy as it opens and closes.
- Check your springs: Apply lubricant as necessary and if you notice any damage call a professional immediately. Do not try to fix this part of the garage door on your own.
- Check the opener: See if the chain on your garage door opener is loose. If it looks intact, try some lubricant.
- Regular check-ups: You should always get a professional garage repair service to inspect your garage door every couple of years to make sure you don’t overlook any major concerns.
Call Someone You Can Trust
For more than 20 years, Fix It Right Garage Doors has been helping homeowners with garage repair in the Greater Toronto Area. We offer same-day repairs from knowledgeable and friendly technicians who take pride in their work and simply want to help you out! Contact us today for a free estimate.
