Garage Door Maintenance Tip

[retiredguy123]

Recently, I noticed that my garage door was making a lot more noise than usual when I opened the door. Today, I used a wet rag to clean the door gasket at the bottom of the door and the concrete floor where the gasket rests. It made a huge difference in the noise issue. Apparently, the gasket was sticking to the concrete foor and putting strain on the motor. I also sprayed all of the moving parts on the door with lithium spray-on grease, which is something I do every 3 or 4 months. I use the WD-40 brand of white lithium grease, that is available from Amazon.

[petsetc]

In my "up North" home I replaced the rollers with Nylon Garage Door Rollers from Amazon, made it stealth!

[retiredguy123]

In my "up North" home I replaced the rollers with Nylon Garage Door Rollers from Amazon, made it stealth!
If you have a Romac chain drive garage door, nylon rollers may help to reduce noise, but much of the noise is from the motor mechanism. The best way to reduce noise is to replace the door opener with a Chamberlain belt drive unit.

[Topspinmo]

Recently, I noticed that my garage door was making a lot more noise than usual when I opened the door. Today, I used a wet rag to clean the door gasket at the bottom of the door and the concrete floor where the gasket rests. It made a huge difference in the noise issue. Apparently, the gasket was sticking to the concrete foor and putting strain on the motor. I also sprayed all of the moving parts on the door with lithium spray-on grease, which is something I do every 3 or 4 months. I use the WD-40 brand of white lithium grease, that is available from Amazon.

I found that grease collects dust if you don’t wipe off all the excess. Over time the roller bearings, hinges and tracks full of grit and hinges pivot points stick. I cleaned them all up with brake clean, used vise grips or pliers to get the hinge pivot points moving and very light greased wiping off all excess. Other areas of concern the lift cables fraying, hinges screws loosing over time from vibration, mud dobbers up in motor chain area, and spring shaft bearings.

[MrFlorida]

Silicone spray works well on the rubber gasket seal around the door, the heat from the sun makes mine stick at times.

[Byte1]

Attaching insulation to the door panels will quieten it down a bit. Also, you can purchase rubber pads and bushings to put on the bolts that hold the ceiling mounts to the motor. But, the belt driven garage openers really are the quietest. I won't be changing mine out to a belt driven installation until my original opener finally gives up it's ghost. I am waiting for my new bottom door weather stripping to arrive from Amazon so I can replace it. Didn't realize how bad off it was until I noticed the new one a neighbor just installed. The nylon rollers are much quieter than the original steel ones.

[Blackbird45]

Is there a service that will come in and take care of all of this?
I need the rubber strip replaced.

[thelegges]

Is there a service that will come in and take care of all of this?
I need the rubber strip replaced.

Call Romac if you want a company, little pricey but we use them for parents who just won’t use handyman. Our garage door or HVAC guy doesn’t go south to our new home, so looking for new people.

[RICH1]

Great post … Recognizing that the Belt Drive units are extremely quiet. Nylon rollers, clean tracks, proper lubrication of cables, cable drums, and hinges will quiet these old doors… BALANCE THE DOOR will extend the life of these components.

[mrf0151]

If you have a Romac chain drive garage door, nylon rollers may help to reduce noise, but much of the noise is from the motor mechanism. The best way to reduce noise is to replace the door opener with a Chamberlain belt drive unit.

I agree 1000% in that the belt drive is unbelievably quieter than chain driven. I just did this at our place.

[eeroger]

Call Scott's Garage Door. Reasonable and is a great guy. Former firefighter. (352) 697-0321

[Sheri]

Great post addressing some of the issues I’m having with my garage door and screen. Unfortunately, I’m not very handy and could use some help.

[Maker]

The wheels and tracks should never have any lubricant on them. The wheels must roll, not slide. If they slide then they will develop a flat spot. Once the lubricant gets contaminated with dirt, that friction causes them to roll with a loud thump thump thump. Like a bad cart in a store. Only remedy is to replace all the rollers, and degrease the tracks.

White lithium grease (and other grease with a residue that is gooey) will collect dirt and then unintentionally cause wear. There is a specifically formulated lubricant for garage door hardware that should be used.

Spots to lubricate... springs, hinges, wheel bearings, cables, opener chain (but not belt).
Looking to stop squeaks, and prevent corrosion.

[Sheri]

I just noticed that I need a new weather strip for the screen door that comes down. How do I know what type and size to buy and how do I remove the old strip and install the new one?

[Nevinator]

I found that grease collects dust if you don’t wipe off all the excess. Over time the roller bearings, hinges and tracks full of grit and hinges pivot points stick. I cleaned them all up with brake clean, used vise grips or pliers to get the hinge pivot points moving and very light greased wiping off all excess. Other areas of concern the lift cables fraying, hinges screws loosing over time from vibration, mud dobbers up in motor chain area, and spring shaft bearings.

Yes, after cleaning with brake clean, lubricate the chain with a silicon bicycle chain grease that is sold in local bike shops. This Lube will not collect much grease and dirt.

[retiredguy123]

The wheels and tracks should never have any lubricant on them. The wheels must roll, not slide. If they slide then they will develop a flat spot. Once the lubricant gets contaminated with dirt, that friction causes them to roll with a loud thump thump thump. Like a bad cart in a store. Only remedy is to replace all the rollers, and degrease the tracks.

White lithium grease (and other grease with a residue that is gooey) will collect dirt and then unintentionally cause wear. There is a specifically formulated lubricant for garage door hardware that should be used.

Spots to lubricate... springs, hinges, wheel bearings, cables, opener chain (but not belt).
Looking to stop squeaks, and prevent corrosion.
Note that the Chamberlain garage door opener manual recommends lubricating the garage door parts, including the rollers, with lithuim grease. The WD-40 website specifically recommends their white lithuim grease product for lubricating door tracks and rollers. Bob Vila also recommends using lithium grease on the door parts, including the rollers.

Here is a link to a review of the WD-50 White Lithium Grease for garage doors.

The Best Garage Door Lubricant for Smooth Operation (2023) (https://todayshomeowner.com/garage/reviews/best-garage-door-lubricant/)

[Blackbird45]

Call Romac if you want a company, little pricey but we use them for parents who just won’t use handyman. Our garage door or HVAC guy doesn’t go south to our new home, so looking for new people.

Thanks

[Sully]

The best option to replace a noisy motor in my opinion is the Lift Master 8500 shown below. No belt, no chain, these are my favorite. They mount against the wall, directly to the pole that runs across the top of your garage. Battery-powered for power outages and super quiet. Much cleaner looking too as you don't need the motor in the middle of your ceiling. A huge improvement. Can be controlled by an app on the phone too.

Amazon.com (https://www.amazon.com/LiftMaster-Elite-Jackshaft-Garage-Operator/dp/B077PJPNHK/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=LiftMaster+8500W&qid=1697889826&sr=8-1)

https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-fdyqgtwe91/images/stencil/1280x1280/products/4566/16105/liftmaster-elite-series-8500w-wall-mount-garage-door-opener-w-built-in-wi-fi-123__57290.1675254848.png?c=1

[jump4]

Call Scott's Garage Door. Reasonable and is a great guy. Former firefighter. (352) 697-0321

I would not recommend Scott's Garage Door. I called him to do a tune-up. He spent more time bad-mouthing the brand of opener and garage door (only 3 years old) than tuning them up. He sprayed lube on some parts to try to stop squeaks, but did not lube the chain, springs, etc. His technique to quiet the door included loosening screws on some of the hinges so much that they would likely fall out (after he left, I noticed that I could turn them with my fingers so I tightened them up). Based on this experience, I have serious reservations about his qualifications to service garage doors.

[MandoMan]

Attaching insulation to the door panels will quieten it down a bit. Also, you can purchase rubber pads and bushings to put on the bolts that hold the ceiling mounts to the motor. But, the belt driven garage openers really are the quietest. I won't be changing mine out to a belt driven installation until my original opener finally gives up it's ghost. I am waiting for my new bottom door weather stripping to arrive from Amazon so I can replace it. Didn't realize how bad off it was until I noticed the new one a neighbor just installed. The nylon rollers are much quieter than the original steel ones.

Yes, the belt drives really are quieter, even hard to hear when you are standing in the garage. I had new wheels put in along the tracks, and that helped a little. The vinyl strips along the sides and top of the garage door also get sticky as they are altered by the UV light, and replacing them means it’s much easier for the garage door motor to get the door started. (You can have a company replace these strips for about $350, or you can buy the strips at Lowes or Home Depot for less than $100 and install them yourself. Don’t remove the old ones. Just cut off the vinyl with a box cutter and tack the new strips to the old ones with the appropriate nails.) Replacing the garage door opener with a new one that has belt drive is quite expensive, even though it only takes an hour. I think mine was $700. (Plus the new wheels and new door strips purchased earlier.) But the old garage door opener kept failing to work, and I’d have to hold the button in the garage down until the door was closed, then go out the front door, so it needed to be replaced anyway. But I do love the new quiet door. The old one could be heard several houses away.

[ron32162]

I have been using a thin coat of Vaseline for years on all rubber surrounding the garage door I was told to do that by a door repairman years ago.

[Lancer]

Screw drives are also very quiet.

[Ecuadog]

Other than the idea that noise is created by wear and tear, I kind of like the idea that I can hear when my garage door is opening, especially if I am not doing it.

[npwalters]

Buying any new opener such as a belt drive, screw drive, etc. to solve noise during opening/closing seems like SERIOUS overkill to me. I guess I can deal with the 10 seconds of noise rather than spend a few hundred bucks.

[galluccb]

Now spray silicone spray across spring/s with door closed plus end bearings UOTE=retiredguy123;2266880]Recently, I noticed that my garage door was making a lot more noise than usual when I opened the door. Today, I used a wet rag to clean the door gasket at the bottom of the door and the concrete floor where the gasket rests. It made a huge difference in the noise issue. Apparently, the gasket was sticking to the concrete foor and putting strain on the motor. I also sprayed all of the moving parts on the door with lithium spray-on grease, which is something I do every 3 or 4 months. I use the WD-40 brand of white lithium grease, that is available from Amazon.[/QUOTE]

[Normal]

I have been using a thin coat of Vaseline for years on all rubber surrounding the garage door I was told to do that by a door repairman years ago.

The stuff is good for so many things in the house. When I switch out light bulbs I use it. We haven’t had a stuck lightbulb in years and zero corrosion problems.

[Greentee]

Call Rodney’s Garage Door & Screens 352-454-2893. He’s the best!

[Two Bills]

I have been using a thin coat of Vaseline for years on all rubber surrounding the garage door I was told to do that by a door repairman years ago.

Vaseline, like oil, will over time rot rubber.
Better a silicone gel, or WD40.
Break fluid does not harm rubber either.