Shut the garage door manually or with the remote. This allows you to access the tracks and the rest of your door's moving parts.
Before you lubricate your door, make sure it's not in use. After closing your garage door, disconnect it from the power source. If the plug for your garage door opener is difficult to reach or hard-wired, turn off the breaker in your circuit box.
The garage door rollers move along the tracks as they open and close. You don't need to lubricate these, but you do need to make sure they're completely clean for your door to work properly. Remove any dirt and debris from both tracks.
If you're having trouble getting debris out of the tracks, you can suck it out with a vacuum and a hose extension. This is an excellent solution for getting to the higher portions of the tracks that you may be having difficulty reaching.
Lift your garage door slowly and spray each hinge where it meets the bend in the track. This will lubricate the door's moving parts and make opening and closing the garage door much smoother. On each hinge apply one or two sprays. Lubricant should be applied to all hinges.
Garage door rollers are the circular moving pieces that are attached to each of your hinges. Spray the grease inside the rollers with the thin hose attachment, but do not spray lubricant on nylon rollers. These rollers contain small ball bearings that must be lubricated for your door to open and close smoothly. Any exposed ball bearings must be lubricated thoroughly. Wipe away any excess lubricant to prevent your door from becoming unbalanced.
The springs can usually be found at top of garage door. Bearing plates are moving circular parts on both sides springs. Spray down outside and near center then open close your door to spread grease around.
Lubricating the lock will make it easier to lock your garage door and will help prevent rust in the long run. Spray the lubricant into the lock's keyhole once to lubricate it. After you've finished with the lock, finish by spraying the grease on the large armbar at the top of your garage door.
The chain has a natural protectant on it that eliminates the need for regular lubrication. The rail is the portion of your chain that runs along the ceiling of your garage. Because the top portion of the rail is where your chain rides, it is the part that needs to be lubricated. Spray the top of the rail with the grease, then spread it around with a rag. Spraying the bottom of the rail has no effect.
To learn how to lubricate and maintain your specific garage door opener, consult the owner's manual.
