How To Lubricate Garage Door
Nothing beats proper maintenance – it extends the garage door’s life while making sure it works just fine.
If you’ve been neglecting for a while, you probably might hear garage door squeaking and screeching. If this is the case, you might overlook the lubrication process
Applying grease for garage doors is very important. It ensures that every moving component is moving smoothly. It also prevents constant grinding between the components that could damage them. Hence, with lubricating, you no longer hear a noisy garage door.
Hence, we will tackle all the basics of how to lubricate garage doors in this guide.
What is the Purpose of Lubricating Garage Doors?
Applying a garage door lube to your garage door is essential. First, it prevents wearing and tearing of the parts. It ensures a smooth movement to avoid any squeaky garage door noises.
Also, lubricating adds years to the garage door’s life. The reason is the more you take care of your garage door, the longer it will last. Finally, you won’t be risking yourself from accidents due to neglected components that could come into contact with each other.
Clean All Non-Moving Parts
Hopefully, by now, you’re convinced about lubricating your garage door. But before you do any lubricating work, make sure to clean your garage door. To clean, first, gather the necessary equipment:
- Soap or detergent
- Clean towels
- A large bucket of water to mix the detergent or soap solution
- Broom
Brush the Garage Door
When cleaning the garage door, start by removing any debris and dirt on the surfaces and the non-moving components. Use a microfiber towel or broom to dust off everything.
Wash it with soap
Next, prepare your detergent to make a solution into the bucket of water. Then, get a cloth to wipe the dirt from the surfaces. Don’t forget the weather stripping, tracks, panels, and rollers. Check at the same time if there are any signs of wear, tear, and cracks.
Rinse and Dry Everything
Using a water hose, wash the garage door until you remove the soap on the surfaces. Check the spots that you might probably miss out on as you’re doing this.
Lastly, wipe the wet areas with a clean towel to dry everything. You don’t want to have any wet surfaces before applying a garage door lubricant.
Where Should I Lubricate?
After you’ve cleaned all corners of your garage door, it’s important to know which of the parts need lubrication.
Thus, we’ll break them down for you. Make sure to prepare a silicone-based spray or white lithium grease to get started.
Lubricate the rollers made of steel
Rollers are located at each side of the garage door. If you’re trying to apply a garage door lube, make sure it’s steel-made. Otherwise, the coil won’t penetrate if the rollers are nylon or plastic.
Make sure to use lithium grease for lubricating the rollers for an even application. Apply the oil liberally all over the rollers, including the shaft and inner bearings.
Lubricate the hinges
Never neglect the hinges located at the sides of the garage door especially if they are made of metal. To prevent corrosion, apply a silicone-based spray to target the pins and the points. Then, wipe off any excess lubricant on the hinges.
Lubricate the Springs
A spring is as important as other components of the garage door. In fact, it’s the most crucial component since it determines the garage door’s life.
Make sure the springs are not rusted and worn out. If you only see signs of minimal rust, apply a silicone-based spray.
Lubricate the Bearings and Shafts
Of course, the shafts and bearings near the springs should also be free of friction. These parts ensure that the garage door slides as it’s supposed to do. Apply a silicone-based spray or lithium grease on these parts for a smooth garage door operation.
Test Your Garage Door
Finally, test if the lubrication works in your garage door. If you don’t hear any noise, then you’ve successfully lubricated your garage door
Choosing The Best Lubricant For Your Garage Door
You might be asking yourself by now: What is the best garage door lubricant to use?
When dealing with heavy-duty metal surfaces, the answer is to use lithium grease or a silicone-based spray.
These are the best garage door lubricants to use since they don’t attract dust and grime. If you prefer to lubricate the minor parts of the garage door, use a silicone spray. The thin nozzle allows you to spray the innermost part of the components, such as bearings and locking mechanisms.
For liberal application, use white lithium grease. With lithium grease, you might find yourself using your hands to apply it over the surfaces of the metal components. However, you only need to apply a little to lubricate your garage door.
How about using a WD-40 Lubricant?
WD-40 is made of mineral oil and carbon dioxide. The combination of these ingredients does not lubricate your garage door enough. Hence, never use it, especially for moving mechanisms such as springs, rollers, and hinges.
Another reason to not use it is its effects are not long-lasting. After about a week, you might see only a tiny amount of mineral oil over the garage door parts. Hence, it won’t adhere well to metals, unlike lithium and silicone-based sprays.
You can only use a WD-40 for your interior doors since the parts are smaller and light-duty.
How often should I apply a garage door lubricant?
You might also be wondering, how often should I lubricate my garage door? Generally speaking, it’s best to lubricate your garage door yearly. However, you need to constantly check the condition of your garage door and see if it needs greasing.
It also varies depending on the components. They require more frequent lubrication than you might think.
Springs, shafts, and bearings: Lubricate garage door springs, shafts, and bearings every three months. This is to ensure that the springs are in good condition.
Hinges: Similar to springs, lubricate the hinges every three months. However, if your area is prone to extreme weather conditions, you might want to grease them often.
Rollers: Similar to hinges and springs, lubricate them every three months.
Tracks: Do not attempt lubricating the tracks. Only remove the accumulated dirt and grime every six months or so.
A Wrap Up: A Well-lubricated Garage Door
You must maintain the upkeep of your garage door to last long. No matter how advanced or durable your garage door is, it doesn’t matter if you don’t take care of it.
Lubricate your garage door as needed. Besides, a well-lubricated garage door means no noise and more years to last.
