How Long Should an Automatic Garage Door Opener Last?

An automatic garage door opener is one of the most important features your home can have, especially if you live in a cold climate. After all, no one wants to get out of their car and grab the ice-cold metal handle of a manual garage door in the dead of winter. Automatic garage doors have a lifetime measured in cycles, where opening and closing the door constitutes one cycle. Depending on how often you use your home's garage door, it should last you for roughly 10 to 15 years. You can extend the life of your automatic garage door opener by following a few simple procedures.

Maintenance

Keep the moving parts on your garage door lubricated with WD-40 every 3 months or so. You don’t need much, just enough to coat the springs, rollers and hinges. This will allow the parts to move freely along the track without grinding, which can reduce the lifespan of your garage door.

Cleanliness

In order to keep your garage door operating smoothly, you’ll want to keep the tracks and the door itself clean. Take the time to wash out any gunk or debris that may be obstructing the movement of the machinery. Too much junk in the tracks can impede the movement of the door, putting unwanted pressure on the springs and causing the garage door to wear out more quickly.

Repair

Of course, even with all possible precautions, a garage door will wear out eventually, as the tension and torsion springs can only handle so many cycles. If your garage door is starting to move more slowly, or you hear grinding noises in the machinery, it’s a sign that your garage door is about to wear out. Don’t wait until you’re trapped out of your house to get it repaired. Contact Town & Country Door, Oakland county's largest garage door service company, and get your system back on track today!