Garage Doors

When you say it is a composite door do you mean that it is flush (may be smooth or rough sawn) on both sides or does it have composite material panels (a row of squares or rectangles across each panel.

What is the actual width of the door? 2.5 car could mean different things to different people & would make a difference on the weight.

With the above info I could look it up on a chart. If I were to guess it would be in the 325 to 400 lb range.

Doordoc

It wasn't me....

Dave

Brian Laws>Hey Dave,

Are you sure you need new springs yet? Ken.

When the power twinkles or the like around here, I often get false setup on the Shop door. (normally cars stored in it but I never do that!)

Mart> The cable does have some frayed strands. I don't see any color dabs

The panels are smooth. When I accidentally scratched one once, it looked like it was made of chipboard/particleboard. The door is made up of articulated rectangular sections. Each section goes straight across and is solid (no inserts, etc.).

I went out and measured the door - it is 7 foot tall by 16 foot wide overall and is comprised of four rectangular sections.

--George

On Sat, 21 Feb 2004 22:05:49 GMT, Ken Sterling wrote: It's a 25 year old house and the garage is attached. Three of the springs are of unknown vintage but have rust forming on them. One I took a guess about the weight and replaced about 3 years ago. I'm pretty sure that at least a few of the springs have been replaced over the years as there are marks on both sides of the door where the springs have snapped and smashed through the 1/4" panelling.

I checked the rails and they look good. I ensured the cables are on the pulleys and the door still raises up the one side faster than the other and jams. A spring imbalance seem to make the most sense.

--George

Okay, you state that the "door still raises up the one side faster than the other", which means that the spring tension on that side is higher.... increase the opposite side's tension until the door raises up "evenly" (by hand). The opener should not have to strain to lift the door - that's what the springs are for. Ken.

Or if the wheels and pulleys are rusted and are seized such that they drag rather then turn, one side could drag enough to cause a jam. Has the rolling gear been oiled every year ore at least lately?

I just came in from working on cars, so now's a good time to answer. My son pushed the button to turn on the door opener & I gave a real gentle lift on the one side that opens slower. My guess is maybe only

10 - 20 pounds. I'm big so it's hard to gauge, but I'm definitely not lifting very hard at all. Once the door gets past 6-12 inches , I can stop lifitng and it will then go up the vast majority of the way on it's own.

All of the rollers and pulleys have been oiled each year. Next time I open the door, I'll watch the one side and make 100% sure all pulleys are turning. That I have not done yet, but definitely will.

--George

A couple of months ago, I put a new opener in my folks garage. A week later the weather turns cold and my step father tells me it isn't working.

I had exactly the same symptoms you describe.

It turned out, that the rubber weather stripping at the top of the jamb got stiff in the cold and hung up on the top of the door.

I trimmed the rubber with a razor knife and boosted the lift strength on the opener and that fixed it.

Paul K. Dickman

Okay, George.... I guess, from what you are doing, that you are either not reading the posts, or you are ignoring the information given to you.... Many suggestion have been given concerning spring tension adjustments and checking.... and you come back and say one side of the door is lighter than the other, but you say you will check the weatherstripping..... You have not unhooked the opener from the door and checked the weight or other tips.... so.... I'm done. Ken.

Sorry but the charts don't agree w/ your setup. Most of these doors have 1/8" masonite on both sides, which according to the chart the door would weigh

266 lbs. However this would only take 2 springs and not four and your door must have a heavier type skin. The only way to know for sure is to weigh the door without the spring tension. Sorry I couldn't give you a more accurate idea.

Doordoc