Why Did My Garage Door Come Off Its Tracks?

Are you stressing about your garage door and stuck asking, “Why did my garage door come off the tracks?” Don’t worry, because Overhead Door Company of Fort Wayne is here to help you understand how it happened, and what needs to be done to fix the garage door.

The Most Common Cause: External Force

In the vast majority of situations where our team repairs a garage door that’s come off its tracks, the problem started with a bump, ding or crash. Maybe the garage door was backed into when you or another occupant was leaving the home, or maybe someone was moving heavy tools or boxes and banged into the door.

Regardless of the source, if enough force is suddenly applied to a garage door, it can be jolted, and the rollers in the tracks can pop out. This results in a door that is now off its tracks and hanging on by the lift cables.

Out of Whack Track Alignment

Garage doors are fairly simple overall, but they are engineered to perform a very specific task using predetermined angles and alignments. If the tracks themselves have worn down or become damaged, this will result in your garage door sticking and cycling incorrectly, and eventually coming out of the tracks completely.

The most common causes of poor track alignment include:

• Low-quality tracks that couldn’t bear the weight of the door
• Poorly maintained tracks that have developed bends, rusting, or cracks
• Older tracks, or tracks that do not suit the type of garage door replacement you’ve had installed recently

Worn-Down Garage Door Components

As mentioned, garage doors require every part to be working as intended and in tandem for the garage door to operate correctly. Sometimes, though it is less common, parts in your garage door may go bad or take on considerable damage. This typically leads to difficult garage door opening and closing and unusual noises during door operation. If ignored for too long, the problem may also result in the garage door coming off of its tracks.

Your garage door torsion springs are responsible for countering weight applied to your door by the force of gravity. If these have snapped or worn out, you may get a garage door that comes off of its tracks.

Garage door rollers are responsible for guiding your door along its tracks, and they’re also one of the more common parts to wear down or break. Rollers are the most heavily worked part of a garage door, and so you want to be certain that higher quality rollers are used in your garage door installation.

What to Do if Your Garage Door Is Off Its Tracks

There’s always the temptation to break out your own tools and get to work on a nice weekend DIY project, but we would encourage you to resist the idea in this case! Garage doors are heavy, and they have many sharp components that are dangerous if mishandled. Garage door repair and garage door replacement are tasks best handled by a team with the training and proper tools to get the job done right, and more importantly, done safely.

Contact Us for Garage Door Repair in Fort Wayne, IN

If you need a garage door repair or maintenance service, call on Overhead Door Company of Fort Wayne! With decades of experience and extensive knowledge of all commercial and residential garage doors, we are the superior source for complete door services in Fort Wayne and the surrounding areas.

You can reach us online, or call 260-205-8509 to schedule emergency garage door repair!