How often the makers say to service a door
| B&D NZ care guide | Dominator maintenance sheet | |
|---|---|---|
| Sectional doors | Within the first 12 months, then every 2 years | A technician in the first 12 months, then every 2 years |
| Roller doors and tilt door fittings | Every 12 months | Not split by door type |
| Heavy use, harsh weather or salt air | More often | Wash more often in salty or industrial fallout areas |
| Your own checks | How the door runs, every 6 months | A yearly check, plus lubrication every 3 to 6 months |
What a garage door service covers
Dominator's service book lists what its technicians go through: lubrication, tightening the mounting points, spring tension, the opener's travel limits and force, the safety beams and the door's alignment. Whoever services your door should cover the same ground.
A service also keeps the opener's warranty alive. Dominator's opener warranty asks for the first service within 12 months of installation or 3,000 cycles, whichever comes sooner, and at least one every 2 years after that, done by B&D or a Dominator representative.
A noisy door and the right lubricant
Before calling about a noisy door, clean it and lubricate the parts that are meant to be lubricated. Dominator's routine, every 3 to 6 months, is to wipe out the inside of the guide tracks with a cloth dampened with mineral turps or methylated spirits, and put a little all-purpose machine oil on the steel hinges.
Grease and oil stay out of the guide tracks. The opener's belt needs no lubrication either, Dominator says, and the opener itself must never be washed or sprayed with water.
Washing the door
Bare steel corrodes, so the finish needs regular washing. B&D NZ's care guide asks for clean water and a cloth every 14 days, including the parts the rain misses, while Dominator's maintenance sheet says every 3 months. Both say to wash more often in salty air or near industrial fallout.
A service stops short of the springs
Maintenance at home never extends to the springs or cables. Garador says it is natural for springs to lose tension, and still tells owners not to adjust them: that part of the service is the door specialist's.
Your own checks between services
- Watch the door run once a month and listen for grinding or scraping
- Run the monthly reversing test with a block of timber about 40mm high under the door
- Every three months, unplug the opener and check the door still moves easily by hand
- Look at the cables for fraying, rust or tangles, without touching them
- Make sure the safety beams are clean and pointing at each other
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Wash the door and wipe out the tracks
- Put a little machine oil on steel hinges
- Use powdered graphite on a stiff lock
- Keep up the monthly reversing test
Leave to a door specialist
- Spring tension and cable checks
- The opener's limits and closing force
- Tightening mounting points and brackets
- Lining up the door and the safety beams
What we would do
Put a reminder in your calendar for the month the door went in. B&D NZ and Dominator both point to a first service within 12 months, and a door serviced on time keeps its opener warranty and has its spring tension checked before a weak spring turns into a repair.