Little Hinges Swing Big Garage Doors

Little hinges swing big garage doors …Small in size, hinges are essential to the proper function of your garage door. Should they break or wear out, opening the garage will be difficult, if not impossible. Even worse, broken hinges can cause serious damage to the garage door itself. Look for signs of deterioration and get them fixed before you are faced with a major repair bill.

What Causes Hinges to Break

Your garage door hinges are subjected to a great deal of stress every time you open and close the garage door, and even more so when someone backs into it or hits the garage door. The best type of hinge to have with this type of heavy wear and tear over the course of their life is commercial grade hinges. These are full size and manufactured of heavy steel. They should last for about 10-15 years of normal use. Hinges made of thinner metal, builder grade, may be initially cheaper to purchase but will not hold up as long as commercial grade quality hinges.

Trouble Signs

The first sign of trouble is often a wobbly or missing screw. This may sound like a simple problem. In reality, though, the reason why screws holding garage door hinges in place become loose is that the metal plate (see torn end stile picture on right) they fit into has deteriorated.

When this is the case, a temporary fix for your garage door hinge may be a replacement of the screw with a nut and bolt.

Other trouble sources are bent or cracked garage door hinges, or damage as the result of impact. If the hinges have not been properly maintained, they may become rusted or corroded by pool chemicals stored in the garage.

Potential Damage to Your Garage Doors

Whether you have loose, rusted, or broken garage door hinges, stop using your garage door until the hinges have been replaced. You may want to park in the driveway or on the street. Enter your garage through the door from your house when you need access to stored items in the garage. Otherwise, you may run the risk of serious damage to your garage doors.

Broken hinges are capable of bending the garage door tracks or damaging the panels. The longer you wait to repair or replace the hinges, the more likely it is that you’ll end up needing to replace the garage door. An expense you may want to live without unless you’re in the market for a new garage door.

How to Solve the Problem

When the problem is a deteriorated end stile, try replacing the screw(s) with nuts and bolts.  If the problem is the hinge is completely broken, use a commercial grade hinge to get your garage door back in working order. A builder grade hinge can be purchased from a hardware store or a commercial grade hinge can be purchased from a garage door company.

If you want to attempt the job yourself, prices range from approximately $5-$20 each. To have a professional garage door service technician replace the broken hinge, an estimate repair cost may run between $130-$160 for one hinge, additional if more than one hinge is replaced, including parts and labor.

SAFETY WARNING: Do not attempt to repair torsion springs yourself, serious damage or life threatening situations can occur.  Leave this job for a trained garage door technician!

Garage Door Hinge Maintenance

Once your new garage door hinges are installed be sure to inspect them regularly at least twice a year for indications of wear and tear. In addition, all moving parts of your garage door, including the hinges, should be lubricated with a non-silicone garage door spray on a regular basis.  This basic maintenance will keep them functioning smoothly and prevent corrosion.

A1 Affordable Garage Door Reapir Services carries commercial grade hinges in their showroom in Plano as well as garage door lubricant with no silicone.  Stop by today and learn how to check your garage door.