Garage Door Services: Match the Problem to the Right Repair

The Services We Cover

Most garage door problems trace back to one of a handful of systems. Here is what each service page covers.

• Spring repair. Springs do the heavy lifting, not the opener. Torsion springs sit on a steel shaft above the door; extension springs stretch along the horizontal tracks. Both are rated in cycles, and a common residential torsion spring is built for about 10,000 opens and closes.
• Opener repair. The motor unit, its chain, belt, or screw drive, the trolley carriage that actually pulls the door, and the logic board that runs it all.
• Cable repair. Lifting cables wind around drums at each end of the torsion shaft. When one frays or slips, the door lifts unevenly.
• Track and off-track repair. The vertical and curved tracks that guide the rollers. A bent track, or a roller that has jumped out of it, can jam the door completely.
• Roller repair. The small wheels that ride inside the track. Worn steel rollers grind and wobble; nylon replacements run quieter.
• Panel repair. Dented, cracked, or rusted door sections.
• Sensor repair. The photo-eye sensors mounted about six inches off the floor on each side of the opening. They reverse the door if anything breaks the beam.
• Remote and keypad help. Dead remotes, keypads that will not take a code, and reprogramming.
• Tune-ups, weather seal, and safety inspections. Preventive care: lubrication, hardware tightening, bottom-seal replacement, and balance and reversal testing.
• Commercial service. Sectional, rolling steel, and high-cycle doors on business properties.

Match the Symptom to the Service

Use this guide to find the page that fits what your door is doing right now.

• The door will not open, and the opener hums or strains. Most often a broken spring, sometimes the opener itself. Start with spring repair, and see our guide on telling an opener problem from a door problem.
• You heard a loud bang from the garage, and now the door feels very heavy. That bang is the classic sound of a torsion spring breaking. Go to spring repair.
• The door hangs crooked or one side droops. Usually a frayed or slipped cable, or the door has come off its track. See cable repair or off-track repair.
• Grinding, squealing, or rattling while the door moves. Worn rollers or a bent track are the usual causes. See roller repair, track repair, or the noisy-door page.
• The door starts to close, then reverses back up. Blocked or misaligned photo-eye sensors are the most common reason. See sensor repair.
• The door is stuck partway open. This can be track, roller, spring, or opener trouble. The stuck-door page walks through the possibilities.
• The remote or keypad stopped working. See the remote and keypad page.
• A section is dented or cracked. See panel repair.
• Daylight or drafts show under the door. See weather-seal service.
• Nothing is broken, but the door is older and never checked. Book a tune-up or a safety inspection.

What You Can Safely Check Yourself

A few checks are safe for any homeowner and can save you a visit or make your service request more useful.

• Wipe the photo-eye lenses with a soft cloth and confirm both indicator lights are on and steady.
• Swap the batteries in your remote and keypad.
• Make sure the lock or vacation button on the wall console is not switched on.
• Look, without touching, for frayed cables, a visible gap in a spring, or a roller sitting outside the track.
• Check the rubber seal along the bottom edge for cracks or flattening.

Do not touch the springs, the lifting cables, or the bottom brackets they attach to. These parts hold the entire weight of the door under high tension, and they can release that tension violently if loosened. Fixing them is a job for a trained technician with winding bars and the right replacement parts.

How to Request Service

When you know which page fits, submit a service request through the form on our contact page. Describe the symptom, any sounds you heard, whether the door is a single or double, and the opener brand if you know it. Photos of the door, the spring area above it, and any damaged part help a lot.

Repair needs vary by door and hardware, so a technician confirms the exact cause in person before any work starts. Your request is how that visit gets set up: describe the problem, submit the form, and you will be matched with a garage door technician who can assess the door and handle the repair.