Your garage's roller door has moving parts, and, rather obviously, without those moving parts, it wouldn't really be a garage—more like a large room where your car is trapped. The movement required for your roller door to open and close is going to make some noise, but what about when that noise escalates to an alarmingly loud rattling and shaking? There are a few things that need to be done when your roller door has become a rattling door.

Clean and Lubricated

The best-case scenario is that the roller door tracks are simply unclean. There can be dust and general debris in the tracks, and over time, this can actually begin to form a partial obstruction. Open the door and give the tracks an extensive cleaning. A damp cloth and a fair amount of elbow grease should be all you need. Be careful about using potentially corrosive cleaning chemicals, as this can damage the tracks, creating even more problems. Apply a small amount of appropriate lubricant after cleaning. 

A Loose Frame

So now your roller door tracks are shiny and clean, but the door still rattles excessively when opening and closing. Of course, the motion of the door is always going to be shaky when the track it's actually moving within is not adequately stable. Tighten the screws that attach the track to the garage door frame. Do not tighten them all the way, as a tiny amount of room to move is necessary with such heavy hardware. Over-tightening the screws can strip their finish, making them more difficult to adjust in the future. You can also damage the pre-tapped threading, which is the screw's guide hole in the wall. Damaging any of these components can result in more extensive repairs becoming necessary.

The Torsion Spring

The roller door's guide rails are clean and have been appropriately tightened, and yet the door still rattles too much. So now what? At this point, your attention should move to the door's torsion spring. The tension of this torsion spring might be unbalanced, which can have caused that irritating rattling and shaking when the door opens and closes. Setting the tension can be complicated, and it's easy to damage the component, possibly while also injuring yourself. When you suspect that your door's torsion spring is the culprit, contact a company that specialises in roller door repairs. It's a simple job for a professional to perform. 

A roller door doesn't need to be a rattling door, and periodic maintenance should keep that door as quiet as it can be. Contact a roller door repair technician to learn more.