Prep Your Door For Spring: Commercial Door Maintenance

Spring is almost here and it’s time to spruce up your commercial garage door! We’ll walk you through how to give your door a tune up and glam up, so your business is ready for the busy year ahead. 

Understanding Your Commercial Garage Door

Get to know your door. 

If you want to keep your commercial door in great shape, it's important to get familiar with its parts. Springs, cables, rollers, and hinges—these are key players that keep your door running. Knowing their ins and outs will make maintenance a whole lot easier!

Do inspections quarterly (or, every 5,000 cycles).

The first step to door maintenance is simply looking at it! Take a close look at your door’s cables, pulleys, rollers, springs, and hardware for signs of wear and tear. Adding this step to your maintenance schedule will help you identify and address issues before they become problems. 

Keep an eye out for these common issues:

• fraying cables
• tearing or bent hinges
• loose bolts or screws
• excessive roller wear
• rusty or dry or broken springs

If something doesn’t look right, you’ll want to contact your local Clopay dealer for repairs. 

Clean and lubricate quarterly (or, every 5,000 cycles)

Keep it clean. 

Winter can leave a nasty buildup of dirt, grime and road salt on commercial doors. Salt is the worst offender. The longer it sits, the more chance your door will be prone to ugly salt stains and corrosion to door parts and hardware. Spring is the perfect time to give your door a deep clean, both glamming it up and keeping it at top performance.

Here are some quick tips on how to clean your garage door: 

• Wipe down the surface gently with a clean cloth.
• Use a hose on a lower setting to gently remove remaining dirt and debris.
• Using a non-abrasive sponge, scrub away tough spots.
• Using soap and water, gently wipe down the exterior and interior, along with weatherstripping and trim.
• Finally, wipe your door down with a dry cloth.

Lubricate moving parts and hardware.

Lubricating your door is an easy way to keep your door in shape. Just grab “garage door lube” and apply it to moving parts, particularly rollers, hinges and springs. And, don't forget to check your torsion springs! They might need a little extra care after a long winter season. Just remember to not go overboard, excess lubrication can drip onto surfaces. If you have a high-cycle door, make sure to give your bearing plates some grease too. 

Check your door’s operation annually. 

Test your motor-operated door.

Motor-operated doors can sometimes be forgotten when it comes to yearly maintenance. We all know how important it is to keep commercial doors safe, so make sure to give them the attention they deserve with a quick check-up. 

To test your motor-operated door:

• Disengage the opener arm (trolley) or emergency release (jack shaft) and operate the door manually.

To operate your door:

• Make sure your lock is disengaged.
• Raise the door to the open position.
• Pull down on the rope to close the door.
• Step on the step plate to ensure the door is completely closed.
• Engage the locking mechanism.

You should be able to:

• Lift the door smoothly and with minimal resistance.
• Keep the door open around three or four feet above the floor. 

If the door doesn’t do the above:

• It is out of adjustment.
• Have it adjusted by a qualified Clopay service dealer.

Finally:

• Re-engage opener and test/reset limit switch.
• Reset/adjust friction clutch if applicable.
• Test safety features of the opener to ensure safety equipment is functioning properly, such as photo eyes or bottom edges.

Professional inspection and maintenance. 

Why do you need a professional for inspection and maintenance? 

The parts on your door are attached to high-tension springs. Messing with these parts could lead to serious injury or death. Clopay garage door dealers are trained to safely maintain and service your garage door.

A professional technician can also provide comprehensive inspections, including drop testing for fire-rated doors and more. They’ll identify issues and ensure that your door maintains peak performance all year long.

Contact your local dealer for service and to set up a maintenance plan. 

Incorporating these steps into your maintenance routine will keep your door in great shape, no matter what the season! The result will be a long-lasting door that will create a more efficient and secure workspace for both employees and customers. When in doubt, always reach out to our expert technicians for help. 

You can also visit our commercial support center for in-depth videos, manuals, and more! 

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