Monthly Archives: May 2013

Posted:
May 28, 2013
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Garage Door Panel Replacement

Garage Door Repair

Your garage door is normally the single most important element of your home’s curb appeal.  Routine maintenance of your garage door is important and takes only a few minutes of your time.  Proper maintenance will guarantee worry-free operation for many years and will prevent damage and possible safety concerns.

Can I Do This Myself?

Many garage doors are constructed in a panel design.  What happens if one or more of these panels gets damaged?  You can save money by replacing the damaged panel rather than the whole door.  Replacing panels can be a fairly simple garage door repair that you may want to consider doing yourself if you have some DIY skills.  If you do not want to tackle this job on your own, you can call us at 215-795-2500 or contact us  by email and we will do the replacement for you.

Residential garage doors are equipped with two different types of springs.  A torsion spring and an extension spring.  If your door has a torsion spring(s) (located above the door) it will be under a large amount of tension, and this tension will need to be released before you can work on the panel.  This is more dangerous than relieving the tension on an extension spring configuration.  For this reason we recommend you call a professional to do the door repair rather than having to relieve and reload the tension on the torsion spring yourself.

OK, so you have an extension spring garage door and you’ve decided to do this garage door repair on your own.  Let’s assume you need to replace one panel on your overhead door.  Here are the following steps you will need to take:

  1. Unplug the garage door opener (if so equipped)
  2. Release the lock on the garage door opener
  3. Raise the garage door 5 or 6 inches and secure in this position with two clamps across from each other applied to the roller track.
  4. Release the garage door springs or attach a come-a-long winch to the roller track and the spring and tighten until the cable has an inch or so of slack.
  5. Remove the hardware securing the hinges to the panel you are replacing
  6. Lift out the damaged panel
  7. Replace with a new panel and tighten the hinges
  8. Release the tension on the come-a-long or re-attach the extension spring
  9. Remove the clamps and lower the door
  10. Plug in the garage door opener

If this doesn’t sound that difficult to you then give it a try.  Just be sure to order the correct replacement panel.  They are not universal.  If you have a problem with determining the type of door panel you need please give us a call and we will get you the proper panel for your door.

 

Posted:
May 14, 2013
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Liftmaster Garage Door Openers Bucks County PA

Steich Overhead Doors is a proud dealer for LiftMaster garage door openers. LiftMaster® residential garage door openers offer a broad selection in performance, features, and durability. All of their models offer the ultimate in safety and security features, and are available with a variety of horsepower levels and drive systems for all types of homes and applications. They are also proven to withstand even the harshest of elements and years of extended use, and are available with innovative accessories designed to make home access even more convenient.

Older garage door openers were not designed with the safety features of today’s models. The following information is from Liftmaster’s website:

Position on Garage Door Openers Pre 1993

We are committed to the highest standards of product safety. Over the years, the LiftMaster® brand has led the industry in introducing innovative product safety features. As a company, we have manufactured garage door openers for 50 years with a safety record that ranks as one of the best in the industry.

In the early 1990s, the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) enacted into law new rules ensuring that all garage door openers manufactured after 1992 had external entrapment protection devices, such as infrared sensors or sensing edges, in addition to the internal contact reverse mechanism. Garage door openers made prior to 1993 are safe and reliable if installed, tested, and maintained properly. However, the vast majority of these older units are not equipped with infrared sensors or other external entrapment protection devices, and thus do not meet today’s standards for garage door opener safety. To insure the highest degree of safety and customer satisfaction, we believe it is important that pre-1993 garage door openers are replaced, as opposed to being repaired.

Steich Overhead Doors does not recommend the repair of any pre-1993 LiftMaster garage door openers. We believe this decision will provide you with the latest in technology and more safety, security, and convenience features. We believe this decision is in the best interest of our customers, as safety always comes first.

Please visit us in Bedminister Pa. or call us at 215-795-2500 when you need to upgrade your garage door opener.