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Typically, when the garage door is still new, no problems happen.
The panels should automatically lift along the tracks once you press the remote control device or turn the wall switch.
However, over time, without the proper maintenance, the movement starts to decline.
One of the main symptoms of this issue is that a garage door only opens a foot.
When you have a fully functional door, there shouldn’t be any problems concerning the height of the door.
The garage should open soon without any stops along the way.
When this happens, and you only have a small gap from the floor to the lowest panel, what could be the possible cause of the problem?
There are many possible reasons why this happens; nevertheless, it’s best to contact experts to deal with the problems.
Lone Star Garage Doors Austin is present to give you repairs and solutions to the problem.
We are a team of professional technicians who have experience with all types of problems inside the garage.
Let’s find out why the garage door only opens a foot to devise solutions to the problem.
Broken torsion spring
The most typical answer is a broken torsion spring.
As the torsion spring provides most of the support for the doors, when the spring breaks, nothing lifts the door.
The cables alone can’t provide the force to lift heavy door slabs along the track.
When the doors stop at about a foot up from the garage floor, it’s the only force that the spring provides to counterbalance gravity.
It’s best to get a spring replacement immediately in the scenario.
Track obstruction
Another reason that the doors don’t lift is because of path obstruction.
Focus particularly on the track and look at the insides.
If there is a loose screw, item, or toy, take it out of the track and test again.
Moreover, door sensors are usually within a foot of the garage floor, and these devices start to loosen over time due to door movements and shifts.
Check the sensors to see if anyone from the pair is stopping the door panels from advancing upward.
Lack of adjustments
Recall the date of installation of the garage door.
If you haven’t booked for any maintenance routine such as tune-up, inspections, and upkeep, then expect some minor issues in the door.
As the door lacks the necessary adjustment, there is less support for the door until the panels only lift about a foot from the ground.
The entire mechanism is not as intact and well-kept, preventing the parts from working together to lift the door.
Some of the routines include the following:
- Track adjustment to keep the tracks parallel and in place
- Spring adjustment to keep the necessary force at the given distance of the winding cone
- Cable adjustments to prevent loose lengths along the way
- Roller lubrication for smoother movement and travel
- Sensor check and adjustment to lessen incidents of false obstruction alerts
Weather conditions
When the weather is colder, daily conditions affect the movement of the door panels.
The mechanism may need to work extra hard to lift the door panels.
Ice formations and water damage prevent the door from moving until it reaches the overhead tracks.
For this, it’s best to check the opener’s settings to modify the force adjustments that control the sensitivity of the door movement.
Also, one possible scenario is that the travel distance of the opener is set to lift only at a height equivalent to a foot; change the settings to allow the panels to travel fully.
Make an appointment with our team for a garage door repair in Austin
For the most part, a garage door that only opens a foot is more annoying than problematic.
If you want to drive your vehicle out of the garage, the stubborn doors won’t allow you to do so.
Get the necessary repairs and solutions to keep your doors fully functional.
We are Lone Star Garage Doors Austin, and we provide all services for different garage doors that don’t open properly.
We offer repair services for long-lasting damage solutions, and we also provide garage door installation in Austin.
If you decide that your doors are too old and are not at par in performance to keep your garage safe, book a job with our team.
We are always one call away.