New Website Helps Homeowners Understand Garage Door Safety, Maintenance

Get your garage door ready for winter today

Fall is here. It’s time to take down the screens, get the furnace checked and change the batteries in your smoke detector.

But there’s one more thing you should check – or have checked by a pro – before winter arrives.

It’s your home’s largest and heaviest moving object, and you count on it several times a day for quick and easy access to your home.

It’s your garage door.

A new website, GarageDoorCare.com, makes it easy for homeowners to learn about the maintenance checkups they can perform themselves, as well as the issues that require the help of a pro. The site also provides a handy ZIP code search function allowing consumers to locate the nearest garage door professional if they prefer the help of a seasoned expert for annual or semi-annual checkups, or for maintenance and repair issues.

Sponsored by the International Door Association, the world’s largest trade association of professional garage door and access system dealers and installers, GarageDoorCare.com also provides safety tips that all homeowners – especially those with children – should know.

“Think of your garage door and its electronic operator as a system,” said IDA Executive Director Chris Long. “Keeping the garage door system in top operating condition is in every homeowner’s best interest. No one ever wants to have problems with a garage door, but with the holidays and cold weather coming, a door that won’t operate properly can be a real headache – one that’s avoidable.”

The site lists and describes tests a homeowner might consider doing themselves, such as a visual system inspection, balance test, reversing mechanism test, photo eye test and force setting test. Semi-annual lubrication is also recommended.

Long also urges consumers not to go beyond their “comfort zone.”

“If you’re not comfortable performing these tests, it’s a good idea to call a pro,” he said. “We also recommend that homeowners have their garage door system inspected and maintained annually or semi-annually by a garage door professional.”

When it comes to repairs, a homeowner is nearly always best served by calling a garage door professional. A garage door system is made up of many components, including springs and cables that are under high tension, and can cause severe injury or even death if broken, mishandled or tampered with.

Take a few moments to visit GarageDoorCare.com to learn more about how you can make sure your garage door system keeps you coming and going.