What you are seeing
- The door looks crooked when it is closed, with one edge lower than the other.
- A roller has come out of the channel, or the door has visibly left the track on one side.
- The door grinds, scrapes or shudders as it moves, and the noise comes from one side.
- The door is wedged at an angle, part way open, and will not close.
- Daylight or a gap shows along one edge of the door that was not there before.
- The door has been hit - by a car, a bin or a bicycle - and has never sat right since.
Likely causes
What a good contractor will do
- Secures and supports the door before touching any hardware, because a door off its track is a falling hazard and the opener is not holding it.
- Straightens or replaces the bent track section, and replaces the rollers, hinges or brackets that let the door leave the track in the first place.
- Re-sets the door squarely in the opening, sets the track spacing and plumb, and re-tensions or replaces the springs so the door runs balanced.
- Re-checks the opener's travel and force settings after the door is rehung, and tests the safety reverse before leaving.
Before you call
- The door make and approximate age, and whether the door is steel, aluminium, wood or a composite.
- A photo of the door as it sits now, taken from inside the garage, plus a close photo of the track and roller where the door has left the channel.
- What happened immediately before it came off - an impact, a bang, or nothing obvious at all.
- Whether the door is currently open, closed or stuck part way, so the technician knows what they are walking into.
Safety first
- Do not try to lift, straighten or force the door back onto its track, and do not run the opener while the door is off the track. A door that has left its track can come down, and the opener is not what is holding it.
- If the door is hanging open, keep everyone out of the opening and park clear of it until a technician arrives.
- Never loosen or remove the track bolts, bottom brackets, cable drums or torsion springs yourself, and do not touch the cables. These parts hold stored energy and the assembly can release suddenly.
- Do not prop the door up with a ladder, a jack or a length of timber while you wait. Treat the opening as out of use and call for service.
Ask the contractor
- Are you insured, and will the door be supported and secured before any work starts?
- Is the track going to be straightened or replaced, and will the new section match the existing profile?
- Will every roller and hinge be inspected, or only the ones that failed?
- Will the springs be re-tensioned and the door balanced and tested after the repair?
- What caused this, and what can be done so it does not happen again?
- Will you test the safety reverse and the opener force settings before you leave?
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