Garage door checklists

Monthly (you). Watch and listen through a full cycle. Run the contact-reverse test with an object on the floor. Break the photo-eye beam during closing and confirm the door reverses. Wipe the sensor lenses. Look over the cables for fraying and the hardware for loose fasteners. With the door closed and the opener released, lift the door halfway by hand and see whether it holds position.

Annually (a technician). Full hardware inspection and tightening, roller and hinge condition, track alignment, cable and drum condition, spring inspection and balance adjustment, and opener force and limit settings.

Hiring. Confirm the company carries general liability insurance and workers' compensation, ask whether their technicians are trained on your door type, and get parts and labor itemized. Be direct about pricing: ask what the spring replacement costs on its own, before any conversation about a new door.

Buying a home. DASMA publishes a residential door and electric operator checklist aimed at home inspectors and consumers. Check the opener's age — units manufactured before January 1, 1993 predate the UL 325 entrapment-protection requirements and should be replaced.

How to choose

Monthly reversal tests, no exceptions

Contact reverse and photo eyes. A failure means the opener is out of service until repaired.

Balance test is diagnostic only

Test it, report it, do not correct it. Spring adjustment is professional work.

Annual professional visit

DASMA recommends one visit a year from a trained door systems technician.

Itemize parts and labor on every quote

It is the only way to see whether a repair is being padded into a replacement.

Check the opener's date of manufacture

Openers predating January 1, 1993 may lack UL 325 entrapment protection.