Do it yourself garage door installation

Do it yourself garage door installation is possible even if you have never seen a garage door being installed. You seek the advice of a professional even if you do want to do all the work yourself. This is because most residential garage doors use torsion springs that are very dangerous if you handle them the in the proper way. In order to start the installation procedure, you need the following materials:

• Hammer
• Cordless drill
• Measuring tape
• Level
• Clamps wrenches

If you are replacing an old door or even putting up the new one, you will need to have a helper for lifting the door. Garage doors are quite heavy, often weighing as much as 400 pounds.

The first thing you need to do is to nail weather stripping along the bottom of the door. This helps keep the cold air out of the garage and acts as a shock absorber when the door comes down on the concrete. There is a channel in the door for the weather stripping and you need to make sure that you tuck it in well. Add the vinyl trim around the frame to help with the seal of the garage door and to make the door look attractive. If you have a panel garage door, you should select one panel at a time and set it in the opening using temporary nails to hold it in place. When you are sure that the first panel is level, then you can start stacking the rest of the panels in place.

The hinges have to be installed along the edges and the middle of the door before you insert the roller shafts into them. The tracks need to be placed around the door with the mounting brackets resting against the doorframe. You have to make sure that the track is level. The rear-level tracks are the ones that carry the weight of the door, so these must be firmly secured to a rafter or joist. Barring brackets in the middle and on the ends will make sure that the top roller stays in place. After this you affix the outside brackets.

The last thing you have to do is to run the lift cable to the drum so that it connects the spring and the door. Test the door to make sure that it doesn't slam down on the floor. It needs to close gently and if it slams down, you will need to make adjustments to the tension on the spring until you get the door to close properly.