My garage door opens very abruptly and it's only a year old. Does it need oil or wd-40 and where?
Everything shakes like it's going to fall off the ceiling or come off rails.
Brand: Chamberlin
Lift master pro
1/3 hp
Garage door opens abruptly
garage-door
Best Answer
From my research for that particular model, I can see that it's a chain drive lifting system. If this is incorrect, please advise. The videos I've seen show a centrally located coaxial spring acting on a rod over the width of the door. Not visible in the video would be a set of spools with cables lifting the door from the edges/ends.
Machavity would be suggesting to disengage the lift mechanism by pulling on the red handle. The door springs should be powerful enough to allow you to lift the garage door manually, as when the power goes out and you want to leave anyway, or maybe return home, or just mow the lawn.
If you are unable to lift the door, examine the spools/pulleys at each end to ensure the cables are not wrapped over previous layers causing excessive friction and possibly wear.
Examine also the spring for breaks or slippage. Some people recommending using a spray lubricant on springs of this type. I'm not sure if the reasoning is to reduce friction, prevent rust, or both.
If you are able to easily lift the door, make note of the rollers in the tracks. They should move freely as well. Lubrication on the axles of the rollers is a good idea. Lubrication of the wheels in the tracks is not particularly effective, although it may quiet the roller noise by an insignificant amount.
If you have spring or pulley problems, the drive mechanism may be taking on a greater load than design allows. If the internal gearing is plastic (which is likely), the gears can slip, wear and occasionally have broken teeth. Manually lifting the door will bypass such failures.
With the door in the down position, with the red handle disengaged, actuate the opener and listen for slipping or skipping gears. Reverse direction once it reaches the open position until it locks into the red handle. It may be necessary to lift the door somewhat to make the red handle click into place.
A big part of repairing a problem of this sort is to isolate the source. The above steps may provide you the key information to solving the problem.