A common area for garage doors to develop problems is the tracks. These can rust, bend, get clogged, and come loose. A damaged track is dangerous because the door could pop out, become uneven, get stuck, or fall. Call a garage door repair company when your door has problems rolling smoothly in the tracks. Here are steps they may take. 

Clean And Lubricate The Tracks

If your garage door isn't gliding smoothly in the tracks, the tracks may need to be cleaned to get rid of leaf bits, webs, dirt, and other debris the rollers get stuck on. The tracks might also need lubrication to help the rollers glide. If this doesn't fix the problem, the repair technician needs to look for damage to the tracks.

Tighten And Adjust The Tracks

Screws can back out of the tracks due to vibrations from opening and closing the door. If that happens, the tracks might get rattly. This is an easy garage door repair since the technician can solve the problem by tightening the screws so the track is held tightly against the garage wall.

Another problem might be when the track has been crushed inward so the rollers snag on it. This can sometimes be repaired by adjusting the track. The bent part can be pulled back into place so the rollers don't snag and so they don't pop out of the track.

Repair Or Replace The Track

The garage door repair technician will try to repair the tracks when possible if they've been damaged so the tracks won't have to be replaced. Replacing a track is a lot of work since the door has to be taken apart and removed. However, if the track is too far bent or warped, it may have to be replaced.

Since this entails taking the door off, the technician might talk to you about replacing the door too. Doors and tracks are often replaced at the same time since the tracks are specific to each brand and door model. If the door is still fairly new, you'll probably want to keep your door and just replace the tracks, so you can discuss your options with the garage door technician to determine what's best for your situation.

Repairing or replacing a bad track is essential for your safety. Garage doors are heavy, so you don't want one jumping the track if you're standing nearby. Your garage door should be repaired promptly when it's malfunctioning, no matter what the cause of the problem, but especially when the door has trouble gliding up and down the track.

Contact a local garage door repair company to learn more.