Imagine that you are leaving early in the morning for work, and your garage door won’t open. Or, you’re coming home from being away for a couple of days and when you click the button on your remote opener, the door does not respond.

This situation can be a real hassle for many families as the garage quickly becomes the main entryway into the home. Carrying groceries or luggage around the home to the front door is less than ideal when the temperatures are as cold as they are now. Not to mention, the scenario where the car is stuck in the garage!

With the cold weather settling in for good you might start to notice some resistance from your garage door. Sometimes in the cold weather, garage doors start to malfunction or stick a little when commanded to open. There are many problems that can cause this, and most are easily fixed.

Here are some causes and fixes for why your garage door might not work in the cold weather:

• Contracted metal: When the temperature is cold outside, the metal door, rails, and components of your garage door will contract. This can cause things to seize up. The answer to this problem is lubricant. Making sure to add plenty of lubricant to your garage door and all of its parts and pieces is essential this time of year. A silicone-based lubricant is best and will withstand the temperatures.
• Frozen grease. During the winter weather the grease on your garage door will contract to the point of hardening. This turns the grease from a benefit to a problem. The answer is to remove the grease. You can do this by using some solvent on a toothbrush or small scrubber and work the grease out of the cracks and crannies of your garage door runner.
• Wear and tear. At any time of the year the rollers and tracks of your garage door can become misaligned or corroded. But, in the cold weather especially because of the contraction of the metal. This problem requires calling a professional garage door repairman.

Make sure that your garage door does not cause you problems this season. Keep these troubleshooting tips in mind if there is an issue, and schedule your garage door for service if you haven’t done so already this year.