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If you’re wondering how a garage door works, you need to familiarize yourself with the basic parts of the system.
They’re not complicated, to begin with, and it’s easy to familiarize the parts.
Once you understand the garage door parts and how they function, you can identify the issues that cause your door to encounter specific problems.
Here’s a description of each of the garage door parts to know them more.
Cables
Cables assist springs in the opening mechanism of the overhead door.
You can locate them at each side of the door, the bottom and top of the door.
The bottom cables are connected to the door, while the top cable connects to the drum.
When you lift the door, the drum rolls into the cable. Then, the cable moves upward.
If the cable is broken, it will slam the door shut, potentially risking someone to injury.
With this, leave the garage door cable repair to a professional in Pittsburgh.
Opener
The opening mechanism of the garage door lies in the opener.
The opener is an automated device that is activated when you click the remote.
Remote and the opener send signals to each other to operate the garage door.
When you push the remote, it will send a signal to the opener to either open or close the door.
The opener hangs at the top of the garage door, with its cord connecting to an outlet.
It has a motor that is responsible for triggering the door’s motion.
Springs
Springs are one of the moving parts of the garage door that is responsible for lifting the door.
Springs are under high tension, which makes the door easy to lift.
They produce energy that balances the door’s weight.
If you find yourself lifting the door, you’ll notice that you’re not raising the door with its full weight.
Tube Shaft and Drums
You can see the tube shaft in overhead doors with torsion springs.
They look like a metal rod where the springs are coiled.
Drums, on the other hand, allow the cable to move to make the door open.
It is located at the sides of the tube shaft.
Rollers and Tracks
One of the components that also make the door easy to lift are the rollers and tracks.
Without these components, your door won’t move according to its path.
As a result, your door might crash all over the place.
Rollers are small wheels located within the metal tracks and placed at the sides of the garage door.
Rollers and tracks secure the garage door in place as it opens and closes.
If your door is off-track, you won’t be able to move the door.
Hence, track adjustment and replacement are needed.
Hinges and Brackets
Hinges and brackets are metal parts attached to the door’s sides to secure the whole garage door system in place.
If you notice rattling noise from your garage door, you need to check if they are loose or rusty.
For loose parts, tighten them with an open wrench.
For corroded parts, lubricate them. Watch this video on how to lubricate garage door parts.
Sensors
The sensors also coordinate with the opener to open and close the door.
They also detect objects along the door’s path.
They are faced at each other at the bottom side of the door to send a light signal.
The light detects the object in the path, which causes the door to open.
Thus, it is an electrical safety device to prevent your door from crashing into objects or equipment.
Weather Seals
The primary purpose of overhead doors is to prevent external elements from entering, such as rain, animals, insects, or snow.
If the door fails to protect your home, your garage door is useless.
Weather seals bridge the gap to prevent these external elements from entering the door.
Hence, check the weather seals once in a while. If you see cracks, watch this video on how to replace them.
Emergency Release Cord
When there’s a power outage, an automatic opener cannot open the garage door.
For this case, an emergency release cord serves the purpose of replacing your opener in the meantime.
It is a red-colored cord that hangs at the top portion of the garage door.
By pulling it down towards the opener, you can manually open the door.
Ask from Garage Door Pitt!
By familiarizing different garage door parts, you’ll be able to spot the problems with your garage door.
Also, you’ll be able to communicate the issues with an emergency garage door service in Pittsburgh.
If you need garage door services, you count on Garage Door Pitt. We offer 24 7 garage door repairs to cater to you any time of the day.
We also perform garage door installation, maintenance, and tune-ups.
If you ever need help regarding garage doors, call us, and we’ll fix whatever issues you’re encountering.
