While the generally accepted size of a garage door itself may vary from location to location (usually between 7-9ft. across) the standards for garage door rollers since the late 1980s have been fairly well assumed nationwide.
In this article, we’re going to look at some of the top tips for garage owners, when it comes to the rollers, sizes, and maintenance of the whole system. So, let’s get started.
What is the standard garage roller door size?
This depends on whether or not we’re talking about commercial or residential garage doors. In a residential setup, you can expect the roller to be just under 2 inches (1.75 inches).
For a commercial setup, you can add approximately an inch to the size, so 2.75, although in some commercial settings you can expect to use a two-inch roller for smaller systems.
Are all garage door rollers the same size?
In short, aside from the distinction mentioned above, yes. In general, the industry has done a very good job of standardizing the size of the garage door roller.
Exceptions to this would be antique garage door systems that were installed in the 1980s, or earlier. These systems may have had their own proprietary designs that predate the push towards standardization.
Which garage door roller brands are compatible with other garage door rail brands?
Like we mentioned before, you can expect most rollers to be compatible with most garage door rail brads
How much does it cost to replace rollers on a garage door?
If you’re looking to replace your rollers the cost of the rollers themselves is actually quite reasonable. You can expect a pack of ten to cost you more or less $20, depending on where you buy them.
Additional costs, such as labour and the requisite tools will all depend on the way in which you do it, and whether or not you go for the professional route.
How can I make my garage door rollers quieter?
Garage doors tend to make a lot of noise when they’re opening and closing due to the strain and the amount of connected rolling parts. There are a few different ways that you can deal with this issue.
- Nylon Ball bearings for your rollers – a simple case of replacing the head of each roller with a nylon replacement, which won’t create the same noise as a metal part.
- Lubricating your door – it could be the case that the moving parts simply require some sort of lubricant to stop the metal rubbing against itself, and creating that familiar shrill squeaking.
- Tighten loose parts – it could be the case that some of the nuts and bolts of your door aren’t correctly attached. Tuning up your system with a wrench, could be the solution.
- Insulation – if the noise seems to be coming from the door itself, rattling or vibrating, there are options in the way of insulation that you can explore. Likewise, if the noise is travelling into your home, you could insulate your entire garage.
Can you use wd40 on garage door rollers?
In short, yes. WD-40s, standard general-purpose lubricant is appropriate for use on garage doors, and can help to lessen the noises that are produced by the mechanism.
What’s the best lubricant for garage rollers?
WD-40 should be fine when it comes to lubricant, but you can also find dedicated lubricants for garage doors online if you want something a bit more targeted. A white lithium grease lubricant will run less and last longer, so if you can find that it comes strongly recommended.
More than the type of lubricant, the most important thing is that the appropriate parts of the door are being lubricated. This means not only using large amounts of lubricant on the rollers, but also the spring cage and the hinges.
What maintenance do garage door rollers need?
Garage doors require most of the maintenance that we outlined above already – regular inspection to look for damage or rust, lubrication, occasional replacement of faulty rollers.
In general, the maintenance requirements of the rollers specifically are quite low. It’s easily taken care of by a cursory inspection once every couple of months.
How often do garage door rollers need to be replaced?
A roller is an exceptionally simple component within the overall door. As such, the only time that they need to be replaced is if they are rusty, or otherwise visibly damaged or deformed.
A good bet for your rollers, then, is to make sure that they’re made of a high-quality material such as steel.
How do I know if my garage door rollers are bad?
It should be fairly obvious from the presence of a bend or a break, or even the presence of rust.
Other signs are the malfunctioning of your garage door or excessive noise. If either of these happens, then it’s likely that is there’s something wrong with the roller, or another component.
How do I fix the rollers on my garage door? How long will it take?
That depends on what the job is specifically that you’re looking to fix. Chances are if you’re fixing them the issue is either that they’re somehow misaligned, there’s some kind of jam, or an old roller has broken.
Depending on the severity of the break it could take perhaps an hour or two to successfully fix the roller – if you know exactly what the issue is and you know what you’re doing.
If you’re unsure what to do, we would recommend getting in touch with a professional.
How do I replace old garage door rollers?
Firstly, you should know that the bottom roller should never be tampered with by anyone other than a professional. The sheer weight of tension that that specific roller is dealing with could cause serious injury, property damage, and even death when it’s tampered with. The instructions we will provide here will be to
How much does it cost to pay someone to repair garage door rollers?
In general, it can take anywhere between $80 to $190 – this depends of course on the complexity of the problem and the number of rollers that need to be replaced.