Grease

[GB]

Can you (easily) get grease that can be applied using a mastic gun? It's just to grease inside the garage door runners, and I don't have a grease gun handy.

[Brian Reay]

Never seen any.

You could, may be, improvise something.

A large plastic syringe off Ebay with a bit of tube replacing the needle. I needed something to suck oil out of a sump on a compressor an bought a syringe which held several hundred ml.

You could even try the plastic bag trick cooks use to 'pipe' cream. Take a strong plastic bag. Cut off one of the corners at the bottom. Put grease in and twist top. Press the bag, twisting more as needed, to force a bead of grease out of the cut corner.

[GB]

Thanks. I'll stop looking.

I'll just get some grease and smear it on with a rag, then run the door up and down a few times. I'm buggered if I'm going to buy a grease gun just for this.

[Pancho]

I recently bought a large plastic syringe off Ebay. It was great for a while, but the black plastic piston (at the end of the plunger) seems to have expanded, so there is now too much friction with the barrel for it to work.

What would make the plastic piston expand? Or alternatively make the barrel contract?

[Pancho]

Do they really need it? One side of my double garage I never really use and hence haven't greased the runners in 25 years. I've never had a problem.

[GB]

I think it's designed to expand when you push the piston. Or some chemical reaction with whatever you put in.

[Chris Hogg]

Solvents or oils in whatever you put in the syringe, diffusing into the plastic of the piston.

[GB]

This door was put in in 1972, and I think this is the first time it's being greased. It's had 3 in 1 oil before, but that doesn't last.

[John]

Grease attracts the dirt. My runners are supposed to "roll". When I lubricate them they start to slide and a flat wore on them. I replaced them. I now opt for keeping the runners really clean and it works well (for me). In fact I stuck some cloth tape in the sides of the channel to encourage the rollers to roll. I do oil the spring across the top of the door as it twists and unwinds as the door is opened and closed.

Take a careful look and see for yourseld if lubrication is needed. I prefer the "clean" option now on my Henderson door of 1988.

[John]

As an aside - I used to like using gearbox oil for some applications rather than grease

[newshound]

Grease is widely supplied in 400g cartidges for industrial use, and is available from Screwfix. I suspect that it fits a standard mastic gun.

[Dave Liquorice]

+1

The rollers seized on mine and flat wore on to them. Replaced and all is fine with no grease in the channel. I think I've applied a little oil to the roller bearing once since I replaced them maybe ten years ago. This is a "vintage " henderson door as well circa 1980.

Don't think i've done the springe but all the bearings up there certainly.

[Chris Green]

Wouldn't a can of spray grease do the job nicely?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

You can buy it in an aerosol.

[Andrew]

When the grease dries out, you impose more force on the wires that lift the door (assuming up and over), and makes them liable to fail. Mine did just that at the point where the wire was formed into a loop where it connects to the side of the door where the little jockey wheel is connected.

Spray grease is easier and you can give the spring a good coating too.

[FMurtz]

you can get spray grease from your generic car parts outlet

[John Rumm]

WD40 do a white lithium grease spray, that would work ok.

[John Rumm]

WD40 do a white lithium grease spray, that would work ok.

[Brian Gaff (Sofa 2)]

It would need to be very thick grease, unless you can adjust the spring tension etc. What are you wanting to actually use it on, a bit vague? Brian

[John]

"Dave Liquorice" [e-mail] wrote in news: [e-mail]:

Worth oiling - and its centre support - need to work inside with the door closed.