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Recent Blog Posts
When Should I Lubricate My Garage Door?
Summer is upon us, and that means your garage door is likely to see a lot more activity. Garage doors are used significantly less during the winter months, since they are only opened and closed when the family car is needed. However, in the summer, a garage often becomes the home's most used entrance and exit. It may be opened or closed each time your children fetch their bikes and toys, when you and your spouse retrieve your lawnmower or gardening equipment, or for hundreds of other different reasons. This extra work that your garage door performs can create the potential for wear and tear. To keep your garage door functional and avoid causing problems during the summer, you need to make sure that it is well lubricated.
The Purpose of Lubrication
Lubrication has been employed by builders for thousands of years. When two rough surfaces meet, this causes friction that can lead to damage over time. A lubricant provides a slick filling that coats the spots where hard surfaces meet, allowing for better mobility and reducing the potential for damage. Your garage door is no different. Each time you open and close your garage door, its tough metal and plastic components scrape against each other. Without that smooth coating of lubrication, the garage door will quickly degrade and cease to function.
How to Test your Garage Door Spring for Damage
Your garage door has a set life span. Parts will eventually degrade due to use, wear, and tear, and they will need to be replaced. However, few parts of a garage door system will typically degrade as quickly as the garage door spring. The spring is the most important part in helping your garage door to function. It allows your garage door to open and close without damage being done to the structure of your garage, but each time you open and close your door, the spring gradually gets weaker and weaker. This means that it is essential to regularly inspect the spring and ensure that it is able to function correctly. When checking your garage door spring, there are few things to look for:
- A good test to determine whether your garage door spring is beginning to falter is to open your garage door manually. Disengage your automatic garage door opener and manually raise the garage door to a variety of heights, including the very top and the midway point. If the door is able to stay in those positions by itself, then the spring is still usable. However, if the door moves or falls back down to the ground, then the spring needs to be replaced.
The Best Garage Door Openers of 2019…So Far
The garage door opener industry is like almost every other industry in that it has been dramatically affected by the influx of new smart technologies. In previous blogs, we have discussed how electric garage door openers can now be connected to your smart devices, such as smartphones, Amazon Echo, Google Home, etc. to allow you to open and monitor your garage more efficiently. Smart technology keeps on evolving, and so do garage door openers. Here is a short list of some of the most advanced garage door openers available at this point in 2019:
- Chamberlain Group B550 Smartphone-Controlled Ultra-Quiet & Strong Belt Drive Garage Door Opener. The garage door works with the myQ App, which can be installed on your smart device, allowing you access to your garage door remotely. This opener allows Amazon Prime members to give Amazon delivery people the ability to enter your garage and deliver packages safely while you are away. Additionally, the B550 uses a steel-reinforced belt drive system which is both sturdy and silent. No longer will a noisy garage door disturb the quiet in your home.
How to Perform Maintenance on Your Garage Door Remote
Recently, some people in North Olmsted, Ohio began to experience problems with their electric garage door openers. Their garage door opener remotes and similar devices began to behave sporadically, and many people had difficulty opening and closing their garage doors. A variety of fixes were attempted, but typical maintenance, such as changing the batteries in key fobs, was not effective.
As the issue progressed, it was determined that the problem was being caused by a much stronger radio signal operating on the same frequency used by garage door remotes. After an investigation was conducted, it was discovered that the cause of the issue was a device created by a local inventor. This person was using the device to alert him when people were at his front door while he was in his basement, and the machine operated on the same frequency used by most garage door remotes but was so strong that it blocked their signal. Correcting this issue resolved the problem for residents of the neighborhood.
How In-Garage Delivery Options Can Improve Security and Convenience
The world of garage door installation has gotten much more exciting in recent years. Most of us are used to being able to open our garage doors through a short-range wireless remote that operates an electric garage door opener. However, many garage door openers are now able to connect with smartphones and home wifi systems, allowing you to open and close your garage door remotely. This technology has now taken another step forward by allowing some home delivery services to have temporary access to open your garage door and store your deliveries safely inside your garage when you are away.
About This New Service
Many garage door brands, such as Liftmaster, have begun a partnership with Amazon. Together they have created a new service available to Amazon Prime members. Using the Amazon Key app and MyQ technology, Amazon Prime members will be able to have greater control and awareness over who enters their garage and when. The Amazon Key app allows you to know when your garage door opens through smartphone notification, and it allows wireless streaming from security cameras, so you can see who is entering into your home.
What Are the Latest and Best Garage Door Opener Features in 2019?
The busy season has begun for home improvement and building contractors. If you plan to replace your garage door and/or garage door opener this year, now is the time to research options and engage a contractor. To help you get started, we have compiled some information on the latest options in garage door openers from LiftMaster, the brand of garage door openers that we at Blue Sky Builders, Inc. recommend and have been installing for our customers for many years.
Battery Backups for Electric Garage Door Openers
If you have had an electric garage door opener for many years, you probably take it for granted that the door will open whenever you press the button. But what happens if your electricity goes out due to a summer storm? Make sure your family knows how to use the red-handled cord that hangs down from the garage door track. When you pull that emergency release cord, it disconnects the garage door from the electric opener, allowing you to raise the garage door by hand. Do a test run to make sure you can get that door open manually. See your owner's manual or this online video for instructions on how to use the emergency release and how to reconnect the door back to the electric opener.
How to Perform an 8-Point Inspection of Your Garage in the Spring
April is the perfect month to give your garage a good cleaning and a careful inspection to identify problems that need repair before serious damage occurs. By doing your annual inspection in the spring, you then have months of warm weather to complete any necessary garage repairs. Here are eight things to check as you go about your spring cleaning:
- Overhead garage door: Use our garage door maintenance checklist, and be sure to lubricate the garage door springs. Also, check flexible door seals for signs of mouse damage and replace the seals as needed.
- Windows and entry doors: Spring is a good time for window washing and wiping down entry doors. While cleaning, check for any signs of rot around window sills and door sills. Inspect caulk that protects against water infiltration around doors and windows, and repair it as needed. Check the weatherstripping as well.
What Roofing Terms Do I Need to Know When Replacing My Garage Roof?
Most home and garage roofs in the Chicago area require replacement of their asphalt composite shingles every 20 to 30 years, but the actual life of the roof can be shorter or longer depending on the quality of the shingles, the amount of direct sun they get, and other weather-related factors.
How to Tell if Your Garage Roof Shingles Need Replacement
Start talking to a garage roofing contractor if you see any of these signs of impending failure on your asphalt garage roof shingles:
- The surface of the shingles looks cracked or crackled.
- The granules on top of your shingles have eroded away to the point that you can see any bare black surface below.
- Edges of shingles are curling upward or cupping.
- The shingles are brittle to the touch and crush into bits easily rather than being flexible.
Roofing Terms You Should Know
If you have never had to replace a shingle roof before, here are some terms you should know.
Should My Garage Have One Double or Two Single Garage Doors?
When you want to upgrade the look and functionality of your garage, several of the most important decisions you must make involve the garage doors. Some decisions will significantly impact your property's curb appeal, such as the color and decorative style of the doors. Other decisions are more functional, such as the insulating value and the type of electric garage door opener you install. But the most long-lasting decision you will make is this: should you design your garage for one double garage door or two single doors?
Advantages of One Double Garage Door
Many people assume that one double garage door will be cheaper than two single-car doors, and this is true primarily because of the cost of the extra garage door opener. However, given that a garage door opener only costs about $500 with installation, this is a relatively small percentage of your overall garage cost.
Can I Save Money By Installing Solar Panels on My Garage Roof?
Now that spring has sprung, outdoor home improvement season is upon us. With Earth Day approaching on April 22, it seems appropriate to dedicate this post to a "green" topic: solar power. Specifically, does it make financial sense to use your Downers Grove residential garage to generate electricity with solar panels? The short answer is: Yes, thanks to current federal and state incentives.
Does Solar Power Make Sense for DuPage County Homeowners?
California is currently the biggest market for solar energy, largely due to aggressive laws promoting solar. One law even requires solar panels on all new homes effective January 1, 2010. So, you are probably wondering, how does Illinois compare?
Illinois is currently ranked 34th out of the 50 states for the amount of solar power generated. However, thanks to new state programs that are just ramping up in 2019, Illinois is projected to rank 12th in the nation in five years.
According to the real estate brokerage company Redfin, Chicago buildings scored 80 out of 100 on average for solar power potential; a minimum score of 75 is necessary for a building to be considered "good" for solar power generation.
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