Commercial Garage Door Preventative Maintenance Checklist

Written by Ted Newman on . Posted in Commercial Door Maintenance

The garage door of your facility is one of the most-used doors and entryways to your building. Many owners or managers make the mistake of only having their commercial garage doors inspected when a part or piece of hardware breaks.

Clopay ribbed steel commercial garage doors

To keep your commercial garage door in proper working condition and avoiding time-consuming and costly repairs, you should perform regular maintenance and hire a professional garage door service to inspect your door once annually. By performing routine maintenance on your garage door, you ensure:

  • Safety: With a properly-maintained door, you can identify and prevent hardware failure that leaves the door inoperable or could injure employees.
  • Life-Expectancy: While commercial garage doors last for many years, the parts will prematurely wear out without maintenance. Regular inspections can prolong the lifespan of the system.
  • Cost: Most tune-ups are far less expensive than common repairs or entire door replacement.

Commercial Garage Door Inspections

Between annual maintenance visits, site managers and employees can perform visual inspections and basic tests that can identify potential issues with your garage door. Every month or two, you should perform the following commercial garage door maintenance:

  • Regular Visual Inspections: With the garage door closed, visually look over the mechanisms of the garage door — cables, springs, rollers and hangers — checking for signs of excessive wear or rust and corrosion.
  • Door Balance Test: Disconnect the door from the opener and then lift the door halfway up its track. If the door is properly balanced, the door will remain in place. Unbalanced doors will either snap open or crash down.
  • Test Reversing Mechanism: As a safety feature that manufacturers must install, test the reversing mechanism by placing a piece of wood at the bottom of the door. Close the commercial garage door using the automatic opener. When the door hits the wood, it should automatically reopen.
  • Clear Photo Eyes: Remove any debris from photo eyes. Also, test the functionality of this safety feature by closing the garage door and then blocking the photo eye beam with a broomstick. If it’s working properly, the door should raise when the beam is broken.
  • Lubrication: As needed, make sure all moving parts are properly lubricated to prevent wear and rust buildup.

Sectional and Rolling Commercial Garage Door Inspection Checklist

For sectional and rolling doors, regular preventative maintenance is often determined by the condition of the facility, including its geographical location, environmental conditions and the normal operations of the door.

Sectional doors should be inspected monthly for loose hardware. Hinges and springs should also be lubricated. Regularly check to ensure the track has not been misaligned, the weatherseal has not cracked and that there’s no difficulty opening or closing the door.

Rolling doors require maintenance every three to six months to ensure proper functionality. Lubricate all moving parts, including roller chains and bearings. For crank-operated doors, use grease on the crank assembly and not a lubricant. Also, drop-test fire doors and check the tension of roller chains.

For Regular Commercial Door Maintenance, Call OL Door Systems

At OL Door Systems, we have over 25 years of practical experience installing, maintaining and repairing all makes and models of doors for business owners throughout the Twin Cities, MN, and beyond. We specialize in all types of door repairs, including broken spring, cable, track and roller repair. When you’re in a bind, we also offer emergency 24-hour services.

To learn more about our garage door services and maintenance offerings, complete our online contact form or speak to one of our team members at 612-623-1817.

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Commercial Garage Door Maintenance

Written by Ted Newman on . Posted in Commercial Door Maintenance

Many of us expect commercial garage doors to be reliable and efficiently open for many years without any issues. To ensure your garage door dependably operates as you expect, without bothersome delays or time-consuming and costly repairs, it’s crucial to perform regular maintenance and hire a professional to inspect your garage door system at least once per year.

white Clopay commercial doors

At OL Door Systems, we have over 25 years of commercial door repair and maintenance experience throughout the Twin Cities. We’re dedicated to providing all of our customers with knowledgeable repairs completed with high-quality parts and equipment quickly and affordable. We even offer emergency 24-hour repair services.

Your Commercial Garage Door Preventative Maintenance Checklist

Every one to three months, employees should be noting any unusual garage door functions, loose hardware or unusual sounds while the door is operating. To keep your commercial garage doors in proper working condition, perform the following tasks:

  • Tighten Hardware: As the door moves, parts become loose or fall out. Check hardware monthly to ensure all parts are secured.
  • Lubricate Parts: Keep the opener chain and springs well-lubricated to ensure proper functionality, lifespan and prevent rust.
  • Clear Debris: As needed, remove dirt and buildup from photo-eye sensors, tracks, and rollers.
  • Perform Balance Test: Often, when the door is unbalanced, it will appear lopsided when operating. To test the garage door’s balance, simply unlatch the door from the opener and lift it on the track halfway. If the door remains in place, it is balanced and if it snaps open or slams shut then it isn’t balanced.
  • Test Reversing Mechanism: This is a safety feature that keeps the door from crushing anything as it closes. To test this, place a board under the door and use the opener to close the door. If the door snaps open once it hits the board, then it is in proper condition.

Sectional Garage Door Maintenance

For your sectional garage door, you should be performing maintenance regularly, but additional factors may impact how frequently you should check the parts and hardware — including environmental conditions, facility location and the factors which determine how often the door is operated.

Every month, employees or managers should inspect and maintain the following:

  • Check all door surfaces and hardware
  • Lubricate rollers, hinges, shaft and springs
  • Check all hardware for loose pieces or rust — winding plug, anchor plug, mounting brackets and collar
  • Ensure cables aren’t frayed or broken
  • Look at bottom seal for damage

Call the Experts at OL Door Systems Today

If you’re ever unsure of what’s causing your door to malfunction or if you’re just in need of repairs or maintenance, call the expert technicians at OL Door Systems. We’re a local company dedicated to establishing long-term and personal relationships with all of our customers throughout the Twin Cities area. We perform garage door and opener repairs, installation, and maintenance at competitive prices. And if you’re ever trapped inside of your facility or stranded outside of it, we even have technicians available 24/7 to identify and repair the issue.

Schedule the trustworthy and friendly commercial garage door services of OL Door Systems today by filling out our contact form. Or, call us at 612-623-1817 to speak to a specialist.

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Commercial Garage Door FAQs

Written by Ted Newman on . Posted in Garage Door

white commercial doors

When you’re in the market to purchase a new commercial garage door, it is common to have questions regarding how to best select and care for your door to guarantee optimal functionality for many years. To assist you in your commercial garage door search, check out our list of commonly asked questions:

Where Can I Buy a New Commercial or Industrial Garage Door?

At OL Door Systems, we offer a wide selection of Clopay® commercial and industrial garage doors. We’re proud to be an Authorized Dealer of Clopay — the most trusted, leading manufacturer of commercial garage doors. Each door is constructed from the finest steel and tested to withstand excessive force and variable climates. Our professionals can help you select and then we can install a new commercial door that best fits your daily production needs and budget. We carry a wide selection of commercial doors, truck doors, coiling doors, fire doors, and other types.

What Size Is a Standard Commercial Garage Door?

For standard commercial doors, they measure 32 feet by 2 inches wide by 1 inch in height. We know that not every facility is the same, so we offer variable door sizing so the commercial garage door fits your needs and not the other way around. Our Clopay doors can be manufactured in 2-inch increments ranging from 4’ 2” to 36’ 2” in width and 4′ to 26’ high. If you need a custom door size, please call us to learn more about our wide selection.

What Is Headroom and What Is the Minimum for a Sectional Garage Door?

Headroom is the distance measured from the top of the garage opening to the lowest point of the ceiling or obstruction. Determining how much headroom you need largely depends on the type of spring system your commercial garage door will have — torsion springs require 12 inches, for example — and if you’re using a garage door opener. With an opener, you’ll need an additional 3 inches of headroom. The sales staff at Ole and Lena’s Garage Doors will help you determine how much headroom you have and the correct garage door size for your space. We can also review options that include low-headroom kits for tight installations or vertical and high-lift tracks for facilities with high ceilings.

How Often Should the Door Be Serviced?

Professional garage door maintenance companies will recommend you have your system inspected once annually. However, between checkups, you should be performing regular visual inspections, tightening hardware and lubricating moving parts. Also, make note of any unusual sounds or behavior your garage door makes while operating and call a professional company to check out the issue in-person, since it may be something minor that could easily be fixed now rather than cause a worse problem later.

What Maintenance Can I Perform?

To keep your commercial garage door in proper working order, perform visual inspections every one to three months. During these inspections, you’ll want to look at the door surface and hardware, lubricate the rollers, hinges, shaft and springs, check all hardware for rust or loose parts and look at the weatherstripping seal for damage or cracks. During maintenance, also perform a balance test and check safety features like photo eye sensors and reversing mechanism.

For Comprehensive Installation and Repair, Contact OL Door Systems

For over 25 years, OL Door Systems has been a leading expert in commercial garage door installation, maintenance, and repair. We pride ourselves on offering the most comprehensive, reliable and affordable commercial garage door services throughout the Twin Cities.

To install a new garage door or have routine maintenance performed, call us at 612-623-1817 or request a quote.

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