Why Won't Your Roller Garage Door Close All The Way?

Blog

When properly installed and maintained, roller garage doors are usually very reliable. Unfortunately, they can still suffer from mechanical problems under certain circumstances. If your roller garage door is malfunctioning, you may find that it refuses to close all the way. It may get stuck before it reaches the ground, or touch the ground only to move upwards again, hovering a few centimetres above ground level.

It goes without saying that a garage door that won't close properly is a huge security risk, especially if your garage is used to store expensive vehicles or equipment. Roller garage doors that won't close all the way may be suffering from one of a number of underlying faults. Call in a professional roller door repair service to check for the following problems:

Damaged Or Clogged Tracks

Like most types of garage door, roller garage doors are fitted with small wheels on either side of the door. These wheels move through metal tracks that allow for smooth operation and keep the roller door from shifting left and right while it is moving.

If one or both of these tracks have been bent by a physical impact, damaged by rust, or distorted in some other way, the roller door wheels may become jammed in the damaged track, and prevent the door from moving to a fully closed position. They can also become clogged with debris, such as fallen leaves, which prevent the wheels from moving smoothly.

Check the tracks for any visible signs of damage or distortion, and carefully remove any debris wedged inside. If they are damaged, have them repaired by a roller door repair service.

Damaged Torsion Spring

Your roller garage door may also be fitted with one or more torsion springs, which coil more tightly when the garage door is closed. This coiling retains kinetic energy within the springs, which is released when the garage door opens. This makes roller garage doors easier to open by hand, or with a motorised garage door opener.

If a roller garage door spring has been damaged, or has snapped in two, it will not be able to coil correctly when the garage door is closed. Damaged springs may release their tension prematurely, causing the door to open slightly once it has been moved to a closed position. Snapped springs may become jammed in their housings, preventing the garage door from closing at all.

If your roller garage door uses torsion springs, any damage should be fairly easy to spot, especially if the spring has completely snapped. Call in a roller garage door repair service to safely remove and replace the spring.

Do not attempt to fix or replace the spring yourself under any circumstances. A broken torsion spring still contains huge amounts of stored energy, which can be violently released if the spring is tampered with.

Malfunctioning Automation Sensors

If your roller garage door uses an automatic garage door opener, it is probably fitted with one or two safety sensors, located low on the walls to either side of the door itself. These sensors detect any obstructions beneath the roller garage door. If they detect an obstruction, they prevent the door from closing fully.

If one or both of these sensors are malfunctioning, or have been damaged by an accidental collision, they may send faulty signals to the automated door opener, telling it that the door is obstructed and preventing the door from closing fully. If this occurs, the closing door will stop a fair distance before it reaches ground level, and may start to open itself back up automatically.

These sensors contain complex electronics, and must be hardwired to the door opener correctly to function properly. This isn't exactly a DIY job. Call in a roller door repair service to have the sensors reconfigured or replaced as necessary. 

22 April 2022