Garage Door Replacement by Myself
Introduction:
If your garage door has stopped working, and you want to replace it, you can surely do it by yourself. But garage door replacement is a risky and dangerous task. You can replace your garage door but you need to be fully equipped for this purpose. Although a new garage door weighs at max 200 pounds an old garage door weighs 400 pounds because of deteriorating hardware. For this purpose, you need to have help with you while removing the old door.
Our purpose is to inform you about garage door replacement and things like which door is safe and which one is unsafe, and basic instructions so that you’ll be able to do it perfectly. For which, we have mentioned below the answer to the most essential questions you need to know when replacing your garage door yourself.
Choose a suitable garage door:
Which is better between a single and double garage door?
A single garage door has two garage door panels made of steel, wood etc. The weight of two single garage doors is quite similar to a double garage door. It is easy to install a single garage door but it is quite expensive in comparison to a double garage door.
A single garage door requires two electric openers which are expensive. But these doors look good at the exterior.
Whereas, A double garage door will save you hundreds of dollars but it requires 8 to 12 hours of work from your day. You can install a new garage door by yourself but you will need recruits for removing the old one. The old garage door is heavier than the new one due to falling hardware.
Choose the right spring:
Which spring is better to use? Torsion and Extension springs?
The springs of the garage door come in two styles. First, torsion spring and second is extension spring. Torsion springs mounts on the header of the door while extension springs are safer to install but don’t have any cables running through the springs. Another drawback of extension spring is that they tend to be noisier than torsion spring. These springs are also unsafe because when weight is heavy, they will whip off. These springs are only recommended if your header door is less than 12 inches which is the requirement of torsion spring.
For removing the old door and installing a new garage door requires special tools such as winding bars. These will release the tension on the torsion spring which is required. Make sure the garage door panels should be made of steel. The double garage door with steel panels weighs less than wooden or hardboard at most even when they are heaviest. These steel garage door panels weigh almost half of wooden or hardboard garage doors. This makes it easy to install.
Precautionary measures while doing it yourself:
How to prevent accidents while garage door replacement?
Most of the accidents happen due to the bad installation of garage doors. To solve this problem, make sure you buy a new garage door that has a contaminating cable passing through it. Make sure you mount the security brackets that come with the door such as the torsion spring bracket should be firmly mounted on top of the wooden header of the door. The roller track support bracket and opener should be securely bolted into the rafter.
If you are installing a door for the first time then make sure you check the conditions of nuts, bolts, cables and springs annually. Check if any nuts need to be tightened or not. Majority of the accidents happen when the fingers are caught between moving doors. To prevent this from happening make sure the new garage door you are buying has pinch-resistance between the sections.
Conclusion:
Installing a garage door is a difficult thing to do. It requires the correct set of tools and skills. But it is not something that is impossible to do. Follow the above-mentioned instructions carefully, and if you are installing a garage door all by yourself then make sure you provide service to your door every 2 months.