If you ask yourself your garage is so loud, then chances are, it’s not normal. Loud and unusual garage door noises typically indicate an underlying issue. Problems with the door or opener cause these strange noises. That’s why it’s crucial to investigate a noisy garage door to determine the cause before it becomes a bigger problem.
Before You Get Started
When troubleshooting a loud garage door, take the necessary safety precautions. One is to disconnect the power to the opener, so no one can open or close the door while you work on it. You’ll also want to contact a garage door professional to repair serious issues that could put you at risk of injury.
Noises That Indicate a Problem
As an overhead door ages, it’s more likely to make noises. Older garage doors make noises because their worn parts must work harder. You can extend your garage door’s life span by maintaining and inspecting it at least twice a year. If you notice any of these noises, you’ll want to investigate and find the source:
- Squealing: Squealing sounds often indicate poorly lubricated parts.
- Squeaking: A simple way to fix a squeaky garage door is to inspect the weather stripping. If the weather strip is dry, it can cause the door to squeak when you open or close it. It can also indicate a problem with the rollers.
- Grinding: Poorly lubricated or worn-out rollers, hinges and door opener’s chain or belt can all produce a grinding noise.
- Rattling: Rattling noises can signify loose nuts, bolts or a chain, poor lubrication and misalignment.
- Vibrating: Loose nuts and bolts or poorly lubricated rollers cause vibrating.
- Slapping: Slapping sounds occur when a loose chain hits your opener.
On the other hand, if your garage door makes any of these noises, contact a professional right away and do not try to fix the issue yourself:
- Popping: Popping can signify a broken torsion spring.
- Banging: When you hear a banging noise, it means a professional needs to replace or realign your door.
- Clinking: Springs and coils that rub together or a defective roller can cause clinking sounds.
- Clunking: Thumping or clunking can indicate a malfunction with the opener or a broken torsion spring.
- Straining: If your door strains upon opening and closing, your garage may need more power. The other cause of straining is a faulty motor.
- Rumbling: Coil tension or a loosened spring often causes rumbling.
- Rubbing: Tight or bent tracks can produce a rubbing sound.
- Scraping: The door could be rubbing against your home because its placement is misaligned.
Common Causes of Garage Door Noises
When your garage door makes loud noises, one of your primary questions is why. Here are some of the common reasons garage doors make noises:
- Age: An older door makes more noise. Usually, these noises result from old rollers.
- Misalignment: A misaligned door makes a noise when you open or close it.
- Opener: When the belt or chain of your opener is loose, it can create a rattling noise.
- Rollers: Metal garage openers rust as they age.
- Loose nuts and bolts: Screeching sounds indicate loose nuts and bolts.
- Poor lubrication: If your rollers and hinges need lubrication, your door may squeal, grind, rattle or vibrate.
How to Fix Garage Door Noises
Some garage door noises stem from minor issues that you can address yourself. Here are some maintenance tips that may stop the noises:
Tighten the Nuts and Bolts
Loose or missing nuts and bolts on the door or track supports could cause your door to rattle. You can use a wrench and socket set to tighten these nuts and bolts, but be careful you don’t overtighten them.
Lubricate the Moving Parts
Lubricating the moving parts could solve the problem if they are dry. These moving parts include the chain or belt drive, springs, lift cables, rollers or hinges. As long as these parts are in good condition, they may only require some lubrication. However, you must contact a repair professional if they are in poor condition. Only lubricate the metal parts, not the nylon or plastic ones.
Create Buffers With Rubber Pieces
You can use rubber buffers on your door and opener to reduce the noise. To install the rubber pieces you:
- Unplug the motor to your door opener.
- Rest your door on a ladder.
- Remove the bolts that hold your tracks to your garage door.
- Slide a rubber piece between the bolts and the door.
- Replace and tighten the bolts.
The rubber will help absorb vibrations that can cause the support frame to shake. Test your opener and garage door when done to confirm they work correctly.
Readjust the Locks
Inspect your locking bars to ensure they’re properly aligned. If your lock bar makes noises, doesn’t catch or hits the track, it’s misaligned. You can try to realign the lock bar by:
- Finding the leader brackets or the L-shaped plates with screws.
- Removing the screws and tap your guide up or down.
- Tightening the screws.
- Repeating on the other side.
Replace the Weather Strip
The insulation strip under your door could be damaged, missing or worn out. If the weather strip is the problem, your garage’s air will be humid and cold, and the door may bang when it closes. You can hire a professional to replace your weather strip and save time, or you can purchase a weather strip from a garage dealer and replace it yourself.
Hire a Professional to Repair the Springs
If your overhead door hits the floor too hard, it causes noise. Your door can hit the floor too hard if your springs need maintenance. Since working on the springs is complicated and dangerous, contact a professional to repair or replace them.
Hire a Professional to Repair the Opener
Sometimes, the noise can come from your opener. A noise close to your garage’s roof or from the opener requires professional repair services. Addressing issues with your opener is crucial so your door continues to open and close safely and correctly.
Schedule Maintenance With AAA Garage Door
Routine maintenance inspections are the best way to address minor issues before they become problems. It also ensures your overhead door lasts as long as possible. For over 25 years, AAA Garage Door’s professionals have provided high-quality, prompt and reliable garage door repair and maintenance services in the greater Omaha area.
Our caring, highly-skilled professionals perform all of our garage door repair and maintenance services. We offer fair pricing models and easy scheduling. When you choose AAA Garage Door — the most reliable and trustworthy garage door repair specialists in Omaha — you receive quality services performed with extreme care and precision to ensure your garage door’s long-term safety, reliability and performance.
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