Anyone know a good How2 on balancing garage doors. My home is only 7 years old and I acquired it last year. All 3 single garage doors cannot stay up with they garage door opener latch detached. They all fall down. I have a feeling this might be why one or more of the openers acts strained when opening...too much gravitation downforce.
Thanks for any help, Carleton
You must adjust the spring so it is neutral , in up down force , there are a few different types depending on what you have
This is a job best left to trained persons. I can show you a mangled hand to prove it. Don't mess with spring loaded garage doors. Any money you save is just not worth it. Des
Need to start the question with knowing what kind of spring(s) you have. Long stretchy ones, or the ones that twist?
Then just adjust the amount of gravity around the house.
first off any search engine will give you plenty of 'how to fix the garage door sites'.
assuming you have a coil type spring above the door, before you kill yourself, i highly recommend you call in a pro on this one. its a very 'simple' procedure that without the proper tools, if something goes wrong it will send a steel rod through your skull, then the wall of the garage, and finally into your neighbors house the spring stores a tremendous amount of energy. almost any site you find describing this procedure will also suggest that you do not do it yourself.
if you must, at very least go rent a proper ratcheting tool for tightening the spring.
randy
My page:
That is a ridiculous, hysterical exaggeration. Don't mindlessly parrot the mindless parrotings of your fellows who have no experience.
That'll get you the same response at the tool rental store as if you asked for a skyhook.
The "proper tools" are (1) a pair of 50 cent steel rods, (2) a wrench, (3) a ladder, and (4) enough intelligence, skill and dexterity to learn how to do it safely and correctly.
Send me some photos and your story. I'll add it to my Web page. You will be doing a great service by propagating the truth.
i admit, i have no experience with a big spring flinging any metal objects at me. i dont really know firsthand how dangerous it is. maybe if it slipped and smacked you in the head or the hand it would only hurt a lot.
btw, have you ever met anyone that was expecting to get hurt when they did? there is a reason they call them 'accidents'.
i rented one, actually the place i rented it rented you a pair so you didnt have to use any steel bars at all. cost me 10 bucks. felt a lot safer than hoping to get that steel rod in the hole before it slipped.
if you know and accept the risks, go for it. but there are risks. even the site you gave says this. go hate somebody else...
randy
First, don't listen to Richard. There is some real potential danger working with the springs on these doors.
That said, don't feel that working with them safely is impossible or that you need 4 years of intense study to do so. However you do need to know the procedure for the springs on YOUR door. There are a number of different kinds of springs and the safe procedures for working with them are not the same.
Your doors came with instructions when new. I still have my instructions, but I'll bet you don't. Few people keep them or they bought a home from some Buba who could not read anyway.
If you do have the instructions and if you feel you can safely follow the instructions do it yourself. It is no really all that difficult. I have done it myself a few times.
If you don't have, or can get the instructions (try the manufacturers web page) or you are hesitant, don't consider doing it or winging it thinking that the instructions for a sort-of-like door will do. Emergency room visits are more expensive that having it done.
Note, that even with all the right instructions and tools etc, you could still be injured if there is a defect. It is rare, but it can happen.
BTW you are right about the openers. You are damaging the openers trying to use them like they are. The doors should stay both open and closed with little resistance between.
Thanks all for the replies. It is indeed the torsion variety like that shown in RichardJK's excellent website How2.
I will definitely look into the matter before deciding what to do. Hopefully this is a DIY but I definitely have a feel for my limits.
Thanks again. Some very good discussion on the matter.
Carleton
Don't listen to Joseph, at least about Richard.
Did I say no risks? I *explain* the risks, and their management, as opposed to just hysterically parroting you will "kill yourself".
My fan email currently stands at 812 to 0 for "I did it like you said" versus "I killed myself" (*). Plus about a half-dozen disgruntled tradesmen upset that I publish this information at all.
(*) As they say of medical doctors, "the earth covers their mistakes". But I would expect to have heard from at least a few grieving relatives, or perhaps one-fingered typists.
Richard I may owe you an apology. I did not check out your web site where you may provide a balanced view. The messages from you that I did read were not well balanced and I believe, on their own, not responsible as they may well lead a reader to the conclusion that it is safe to go ahead and do it themselves without proper knowledge.
This was certainly not my intention.
I am glad to hear that and sorry for any incorrect comments I made.
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