Why Is My Garage Door Making Noise?
A high-quality garage door will have a smooth and quiet operation, but over time, even the highest quality doors will experience wear and tear that could result in unpleasant noises. If you have a noisy garage door, try some of these tips when troubleshooting your garage door.
- Common Garage Door Noises
- Causes Of A Garage Door Making Strange Noises
- How To Eliminate Noise From A Loud Garage Door
- Let Our Team Fix Your Noisy Garage Door
Common Garage Door Noises
Here are some typical reasons why your garage door makes noise and what causes them:
- Banging: A banging sound means you need to replace your garage door panels, or you may need to put the garage door back on its track.
- Straining: If your door is straining to open or close, you may need to replace the motor in your garage door opener. It could also indicate you don’t have enough power in your garage.
- Rattling: A ratting noise may mean you need to tighten some loose nuts or bolts, lubricate the door’s metal moving parts or put the garage door back on its track. The door opener’s support rails or chain might be loose as well.
- Scraping: A scraping sound is more severe than banging or rattling because it means the door is scraping against your house, and it usually means your garage door is unbalanced.
- Rumbling: A rumbling sound could mean a loosened spring or coil tension. Call a garage door technician to tighten any tension springs in your garage door system.
- Squeaking: A squeaking sound could signal a loose roller or hinge. Lubricate the rollers and tighten loose parts to get rid of the noise.
- Loud opening and closing: If your door makes loud noises when you open or close your garage door, you may have poor acoustics in your garage. Install some insulation or soundproofing on the walls to keep the sound contained.
- Clinking: A clinking sound is often due to rust buildup, which causes spring coils to rub together.
- Popping: What can cause your garage door to make a popping noise? In many cases, it means one of your torsion springs has snapped. Call a professional to replace the torsion spring.
- Rubbing: Bent tracks or tracks that are too tight produce a rubbing sound. A garage door specialist would need to adjust the alignment of your garage door.
- Squealing: A squealing sound comes from poor lubrication. If you lubricate your moving parts and you still hear a squealing noise, call a professional. You may need to have the door reinstalled or put back in place on the track.
- Grinding: A garage door grinding noise could be from a loose roller or hinge. Try lubricating the parts to stop the grinding noise. Improper installation or a stripped out trolley may need help from a professional.
- Slapping: A loose chain could make a slapping sound against the garage door opener.
- Vibrating: If you hear a vibrating sound, tighten the loose nuts or bolts around the track. You can also try lubricating or replacing the rollers.
Causes of a Garage Door Making Strange Noises
Inspect your garage door to find out what’s causing the noise. Here are some common problems to explain why you might have a noisy garage door:
- The garage door is old: Garage doors make more noise as they age. These sounds are usually due to old rollers that may need extra lubricant.
- The garage door has fallen off-balance: A garage door that has come off the track will be louder than normal as it opens and closes. If you hear this, call a professional garage door company to fix your door’s alignment.
- The garage door opener needs repairing or replacing: If you hear a rattling sound, you may have a problem with your garage door opener. A chain-drive opener makes more noise than a belt-drive one, but you will need to call your garage door manufacturer if the chain or belt is loose.
- The rollers have signs of wear and tear: As metal garage door openers get older, they’ll get rusty and start to make noise. Nylon rollers make less noise than steel rollers over time.
- The nuts and bolts have come loose: Loose nuts and bolts will produce a screeching sound when your garage door opens and closes.
- The hinges and rollers need lubrication: All moving parts of a garage door need lubrication to function. Lubricate your metal garage door pieces until your door is quiet again.
How to Eliminate Noise From a Loud Garage Door
While a garage door will always make some noise, there are a few things you can try yourself to help reduce the noise if it has gotten out of hand. Just be sure to disengage the automatic setting while you’re inspecting and repairing the garage door. Keep in mind, though, that if your garage door won’t open or close, or if it has fallen off the track, you could get hurt while trying to fix it. Trust a professional to adjust your noisy door instead of repairing it yourself.
Here are some things you can do on your own to help reduce garage door noise:
- Tighten nuts and bolts: Use a wrench and a screwdriver to tighten the bolts and nuts along the track. Be careful not to make them too tight, or you could strip the lag screw holes.
- Lubricate or replace the rollers: Rusted metal garage door rollers make a vibrating sound as they move. Lubricate your rollers and surrounding hinges until the noise stops. You can use the lubricant supplied by your manufacturer or one like it.
- Lubricate or replace the torsion and extension springs: The torsion spring is above your closed garage door. The extension spring is by the tracks on each side of the door. Before using lubricant, inspect your springs to make sure they didn’t snap. If they did, call a professional to replace your springs. If not, lubricate the springs with the spray from your door’s manufacturer. Use caution when manipulating these springs. If they snap, they could be a safety hazard to you and your property.
- Inspect the garage door opener: If you’ve looked over the garage door and it’s still making noise, check the garage door opener. Follow the instruction manual for how to reduce noise from the garage door opener. A loose chain or belt could cause a rattling or slapping sound. Contact your garage door manufacturer to inspect your opener if the belt or chain is loose. If it’s intact, lubricate it with the lubricant they gave you.
- Regular maintenance checks: After doing a thorough inspection yourself, the garage door still might make noise. Call in a professional to inspect and replace any damaged parts. Schedule an appointment to have your garage door checked at least once a year to prolong its life.
Let Our Team Fix Your Noisy Garage Door
Our local professionals at Olympic Garage Door are experts in garage door troubleshooting. We perform work throughout the Olympic Peninsula for residents and commercial businesses in Port Angeles, Sequim and Port Townsend. If you have concerns about your garage door, we will help you eliminate any existing noises and prevent future issues. Contact us online to request service for your noisy garage door, or call us at 360-452-3859.