Difficulty when opening and closing plus hints of damage and tear on garage doors can greatly reduce the allure of a home.
This is in addition to rendering the interior of your house vulnerable to intrusion and the elements.
Besides going past their designed lifespan, malfunctioning garage doors can present all manner of eyesores due to various factors.
At the height of the malfunctions, the most likely course of action is repair. However, there comes a time when repairs are not the effective thing to do.
From outdated design and features, the need for upgrades, excessive noise and vibrations, frequent repairs, and inflated energy costs, door replacement goes beyond the mere operational challenges, including closing/opening.
Outdated Design and Features
Is your garage door in need of replacement?
Older garage doors are manually operated which often comes with a lot of inconvenience, especially during rainy seasons. This means you have to climb down the car, open the door, get back in the car, and drive in. By the time you are done, you are already soaked in rainwater. This level of inconvenience, plus the lack of automated features like motion sensors, door lighting, remote control, and inadequate insulation make up for some of the reasons to replace the door. New and advanced doors come with automated features and enhanced insulation, which increase your energy efficiency.
Need for Upgrade
Sometimes the door does not have to be faulty for you to replace it. The need for the replacement could be inspired by the need to upgrade your home’s visual appeal. This happens when the door does not conform to the level of your home’s general appearance. Upgrading to a new and advanced door brings your home to the desired updated level. This has the effect of elevating the curb appeal, something that works magic by attracting a higher resale value when considering a resale in the future. Even when not selling, an updated door is visually appealing not just to your oncoming guests, but also to yourself.
Excessive Noise
Apart from the common controlled sound of the winding pulley, a normal functioning door should not produce any weird noise or vibration. Loud squeaking, grinding, and incessant vibrations make up for the many indicators of structural and mechanical issues such as broken springs or excessive rusting, which call for an overhaul of the entire door. Excessive vibrations on the other hand indicate sagging or imbalances caused by broken pulleys or tracks. While it would be tempting to ignore such noises and vibrations, no matter how unappealing, it puts your life at risk. Structural or mechanical issues such as broken springs, pulleys, or tracks could cause accidents for instance when the springs snap. Trying to fix such issues sometimes nears or equals the cost of buying a new door, hence the replacement.
Frequent Repairs
While door repairs are a common thing throughout its lifespan, sometimes they become too frequent and very costly. Even with a barely old door, too frequent repairs, say more than 3 times a year indicate serious structural and mechanical problems that call for an overhaul of the entire system. This is especially true when the cost of the repairs nears or surpasses the cost of a new door. Beyond the common maintenance such as greasing, repainting, and replacing features such as lights, so many repairs are an indicator of a door whose end times have arrived. Therefore, instead of wasting so much of your money on costly and frequent repairs, it is more prudent to replace it with a new one.
Increased Energy Costs
A worn-out or very old garage door, besides posing mechanical and structural issues, lacks adequate insulation. This presents you with additional eyesore; increased ventilation needs. Inadequate insulation on old or worn-out doors allows outdoor into the garage and possibly into the house if they are connected. New updated doors come with enhanced insulation for energy efficiency.
If any of the above signs sound familiar to you, beyond the mere common wear, it might be time to consider a new door even if it still ‘works’. A new door elevates your curb appeal, guarantees your safety, is easier to operate, fetches higher resale value, and increases energy efficiency. Having the door installed improperly means you are getting off on the wrong foot and it may probably not attain its designed lifespan. This is why we always insist on professional installation and maintenance. Getting it right from the start eliminates the possibility of the above-discussed issues going forward.
