Your garage door may get dented for various reasons. You may hit it with something substantial, or a different external force may have caused the dent. It does not matter what the cause was as long as you understand how to fix it adequately. Below are a few tips that will help you fix your garage door with ease the next time you need to.
Understand your Garage
Are you wondering how to fix a dented garage door? Well, if so, you may want to get a few facts right. How you proceed with the repair will depend on the type of garage door and the extent of the damage caused. Either way, you need to understand that professional garage repair may be inevitable if the dent is too large. However, before you consider calling in the handyman, you may want to tackle the repairs on your own first. Consider the following steps.
Inspecting the Damage
It is essential to start with determining the extent of the damage. Prioritize knowing if the panel interferes with the door’s closing and opening. The door assemblies of your garage door handle high tension, so you need to eliminate any items around it. If the door strains to open as it should, do not attempt to force it open. Instead, call a professional garage door repair expert and let them take a look.
Some panels may be easy to fix, while others may be more complicated than you know, rather than struggle with. Make sure to call a certified technician to have a look. The expert will advise on the way forward. Choosing the proper repair technique matters greatly when dealing with garage door repairs. You do not want to exaggerate the problem by making it worse as you try blindly.
Choose the Appropriate Garage Door Repair Technique
The good news is that your garage door will take a few minutes or at most a few hours to fix if there is no problem with closing and opening. You have to understand the appropriate technique to fix the dent on your garage door. Fortunately, there are several options you could go for. These include:
Hammering the dent with a Mallet
This works best for aluminum doors. The flexibility allows for easy malleability and correction of minor dents and errors. You can hit the affected areas back and restore the garage door to its original state. If you determine that the mallet works better, then proceed as follows.
- Start by washing the dented surface with some soap and water
- Get a block and mallet (This are the most essential tools in this method)
- Go to the opposite side of the indentation
- Put the wood block over the dented area
- Tap the dent with the mallet until it aligns with the rest of the garage door
- If the garage doors have deep dents, you may need grit sandpaper and auto body filler to smoothen the surface before painting it.
Using Suction Cups
Suction devices may be used to correct dents on garage doors. This technique works best for minor dents, and the suction is pulled outwards towards a certain direction.
The Heat Application Method
It is also possible to use heat to repair dented garage doors. In this case, you need aluminum foil and a heat source. A can of air that will reshape the dent is also required. For this technique to work, you need to follow a few steps.
- First, wash the area with soap and water and let it dry completely
- Spread the aluminum foil and heat it with a lighter for about a minute
- Remove the foil quickly and spray the area with the compressed air
- The compressed carbon monoxide will pop the dent back into position.
3. Check that the Damage/Dent is Fixed
Once you have chosen the appropriate method to fix the dent, proceed to confirm that it has been fixed. This should happen if there are no issues with the garage door. However, it may be impossible to restore the dented door, in some cases, especially if the dent is a major one. You need to confirm this first to know what step to take next. Do not rush to call in the experts before knowing whether or not the dent is fixable.
4. Fix Bolts and Nuts
If you have to unscrew the garage door before fixing the dent, then this is a good time to restore it. Once the dent is fixed, you can restore the door to what it should be. This should not take too much of your time. Check to see if you need to replace old hinges or fix broken parts to improve garage door movement. The idea is to improve how your door will work and prevent future dents if possible.
5. Call the Experts
If the garage door dent is impossible to fix, you may want to bring in the experts. It is not easy to tackle a garage door dent that is stubborn. The damage may be too deep to respond to the minor force you are applying to it using the strategies described above.
Professionals will come in with the bigger tools to help align the door. What’s more, the garage door may be beyond repair. You cannot decide this without professional insight. You need the intervention of an expert to ascertain the extent of the damage and advise accordingly. You may have to replace the entire garage door if it is unsalvageable. Working with experts helps you avoid making costly mistakes whether you need professional repair or complete garage door replacement.
Final Thoughts
The right garage door repair can help you save hundreds of dollars when done right. However, if dent repairing is not an option, consider replacing the entire door. Take advantage of this and change to something else. Just be sure to work with professionals to minimize the possibility of making mistakes. While at it, learn how to maintain the unit too.
Author Bio
Alex is a full-time content marketing specialist. He has been closely studying the travel industry trends for quite some time. He has worked for various domains before coming to the travel industry. When he is not working, Alex likes to work out, try new foods, and play with his dog. He is currently getting references from Paragon Garage Doors for the modification of his garage door.
