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#1
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Garage door seal
I want to replace the rubber/vinyl seal on the lower section of a 16ft steel
garage door, it appears that the seal has to slide into a track/grove. I do think that the door has to be clamped shut, then the lower section bracket loosened so that section, can be slanted to a position that would make it easier to work with the seal. Has anyone done this and have any tips on how to make this as simple as possible, for a do it yourselfer? Thanks Tom |
#2
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Look at your door. You probably have a track that is in sections.
Open the door partway so the lower section of the track can be unbolted and then you can probably flex the door enough to slip out the old one and slip in the new one. -- Roger Shoaf About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then they come up with this striped stuff. "twfsa" wrote in message news:_0DEd.3418$Wp.2765@lakeread07... I want to replace the rubber/vinyl seal on the lower section of a 16ft steel garage door, it appears that the seal has to slide into a track/grove. I do think that the door has to be clamped shut, then the lower section bracket loosened so that section, can be slanted to a position that would make it easier to work with the seal. Has anyone done this and have any tips on how to make this as simple as possible, for a do it yourselfer? Thanks Tom |
#3
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Roger Shoaf wrote:
Look at your door. You probably have a track that is in sections. Open the door partway so the lower section of the track can be unbolted and then you can probably flex the door enough to slip out the old one and slip in the new one. What you might want to try is when the door is open fully, Close it a few inches. that sholuld give you enough room to slide the old rubber bottom seal out and put the new one in. Also, it would be a good idea to go buy a can of light spray grease and spray the metal track that the bottom seal slides into. It will make things go more smoothly. Also, it would be a good idea to get the help of someone else to feed the bottom seal in while you pull it down the door. |
#4
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Roger Shoaf writes:
Open the door partway so the lower section of the track can be unbolted and then you can probably flex the door enough to slip out the old one and slip in the new one. That is FOOLISH DEATH-WISH ADVICE. Follow it at your peril. Sectional doors cannot be safely disassembled by the casual do-it-yourselfer. Besides, the OP doesn't even specify the bottom seal or an inter-panel seal. It matters. http://www.truetex.com/garage.htm |
#5
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"Richard J Kinch" wrote in message . .. Roger Shoaf writes: Open the door partway so the lower section of the * track * can be unbolted and then you can probably flex the door enough to slip out the old one and slip in the new one. That is FOOLISH DEATH-WISH ADVICE. Follow it at your peril. Sectional doors cannot be safely disassembled by the casual do-it-yourselfer. First off I said nothing about disassembling the door, I suggested it migh tbe possable to remove the lower section of *track* so the gasket could be slipped into a grove at teh bottom of the door. Doing this the door would be mostly up supported by the track still in place. The only reason I suggested removing the lower section of *track* was to get a little wiggle room to replace the gasket. I did however assume that the OP was refering to the bottom gasket. If how ever it was the gasket between the lower panel and the next one up, that would probably be easier to replace. This gasket should be accesable by opening the door untill the lower section is at its highest vertical point and the next section is angled back. I would then strip off the old gasket and clean the top of the lower section or the bottom of the upper section and use an appropriate peal and stick foam seal. Now please explain to me why you claim my suggestion is a foolish death wish? -- Roger Shoaf About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then they come up with this striped stuff. Besides, the OP doesn't even specify the bottom seal or an inter-panel seal. It matters. http://www.truetex.com/garage.htm |
#6
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Roger Shoaf writes:
Now please explain to me why you claim my suggestion is a foolish death wish? I gather it isn't obvious to your mechanical intuition. A sectional garage door is normally a system containing a balance of two huge forces, the weight of the door versus the lift of the lift cables, drums, and torsion springs. This balance gives the illusion that the door is approximately weightless and that no forces are involved, when in fact hazardous forces are merely being kept at bay, like two giants in a stalemated tug of war. This is a very dangerous illusion when it comes to naive tinkering with the mechanisms. Releasing certain constraints (setscrews, cable brackets, tracks) permits the potential energy of these opposing forces to convert into kinetic energy of large masses in violent motion. For example, if the track does not constrain the door movement (imagine the track were to just suddenly disappear by magic), in the down position, the door will fold on its hinges. BOOM! The lower panel(s) will be lifted by the lift cables and fly up violently, while the upper panel(s), no longer supported by the lower panels, will fall by gravity, also violently. |
#7
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Richard,
When the door is mostly up as I had suggested The rollers on the door are still in the track. Your *huge* force is still constrained. By the way, how many pounds of force are exerted when the door is half way up? Seems to me the force on one cable would be slightly less than half the weight of the door in the vertical position. Since these sections are ordinarily assembled by one person the *huge* force might not be so *huge*. -- Roger Shoaf About the time I had mastered getting the toothpaste back in the tube, then they come up with this striped stuff. "Richard J Kinch" wrote in message . .. Roger Shoaf writes: Now please explain to me why you claim my suggestion is a foolish death wish? I gather it isn't obvious to your mechanical intuition. A sectional garage door is normally a system containing a balance of two huge forces, the weight of the door versus the lift of the lift cables, drums, and torsion springs. This balance gives the illusion that the door is approximately weightless and that no forces are involved, when in fact hazardous forces are merely being kept at bay, like two giants in a stalemated tug of war. This is a very dangerous illusion when it comes to naive tinkering with the mechanisms. Releasing certain constraints (setscrews, cable brackets, tracks) permits the potential energy of these opposing forces to convert into kinetic energy of large masses in violent motion. For example, if the track does not constrain the door movement (imagine the track were to just suddenly disappear by magic), in the down position, the door will fold on its hinges. BOOM! The lower panel(s) will be lifted by the lift cables and fly up violently, while the upper panel(s), no longer supported by the lower panels, will fall by gravity, also violently. |
#8
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Roger Shoaf wrote:
"Richard J Kinch" wrote in message . .. Roger Shoaf writes: Open the door partway so the lower section of the * track * can be unbolted and then you can probably flex the door enough to slip out the old one and slip in the new one. That is FOOLISH DEATH-WISH ADVICE. Follow it at your peril. Sectional doors cannot be safely disassembled by the casual do-it-yourselfer. First off I said nothing about disassembling the door, I suggested it migh tbe possable to remove the lower section of *track* so the gasket could be slipped into a grove at teh bottom of the door. Doing this the door would be mostly up supported by the track still in place. The only reason I suggested removing the lower section of *track* was to get a little wiggle room to replace the gasket. I did however assume that the OP was refering to the bottom gasket. If how ever it was the gasket between the lower panel and the next one up, that would probably be easier to replace. This gasket should be accesable by opening the door untill the lower section is at its highest vertical point and the next section is angled back. I would then strip off the old gasket and clean the top of the lower section or the bottom of the upper section and use an appropriate peal and stick foam seal. Now please explain to me why you claim my suggestion is a foolish death wish? It isn't foolish and it isn't unsafe but you need to block the door in position. A better way might be to remove the two lower wheels so that the panel could swing down when the door is up or inward when the panel is vertical. |
#9
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George E. Cawthon writes:
It isn't foolish and it isn't unsafe but you need to block the door in position. A better way might be to remove the two lower wheels so that the panel could swing down when the door is up or inward when the panel is vertical. This is just contemptibly wrong, inventing advice that will not merely fail, but will almost certainly hurt anyone stupidly credulous enough to follow it. Good techniques may come from training, experience, scientific analysis, or even armchair intuition, but you exhibit none of these. Let's hope you're just being trollish. |
#10
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twfsa wrote:
I want to replace the rubber/vinyl seal on the lower section of a 16ft steel garage door, it appears that the seal has to slide into a track/grove. I do think that the door has to be clamped shut, then the lower section bracket loosened so that section, can be slanted to a position that would make it easier to work with the seal. Has anyone done this and have any tips on how to make this as simple as possible, for a do it yourselfer? Thanks Tom That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. BUT, look for a replacement seal that fits first. Most of the seals that I see are intended to simply be nailed on as are most of the seals on a wooden door. I haven't seen a garage door seal such as you mentioned so you may have a hard time finding a replacement. It may simply be that the seal just pries out of the metal holder, and the new seal is slipped in a putty knife rather than sliding from the end. |
#11
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George E. Cawthon writes:
That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. Stupid, reckless, ignorant advice. |
#12
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Richard J Kinch wrote:
George E. Cawthon writes: That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. Stupid, reckless, ignorant advice. Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! Isn't the school holiday over? Have you ever seen a multi section garage door? |
#13
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George E. Cawthon writes:
That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. Stupid, reckless, ignorant advice. Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! I'll admit to that, but it was some three decades ago. |
#14
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"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message ... Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! Isn't the school holiday over? Have you ever seen a multi section garage door? George, Richard has seen a sectional garage door, he has a picture of one on his web page showing how he single handedly fixed a spring and didn't get killed because he had the foresight to use an 18 inch lever. Most amazing thing was he did this perched on a ladder. Not bad for a PhD eh? -- Roger Shoaf If you are not part of the solution, you are not dissolved in the solvent. |
#15
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Roger Shoaf wrote:
"George E. Cawthon" wrote in message ... Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! Isn't the school holiday over? Have you ever seen a multi section garage door? George, Richard has seen a sectional garage door, he has a picture of one on his web page showing how he single handedly fixed a spring and didn't get killed because he had the foresight to use an 18 inch lever. Most amazing thing was he did this perched on a ladder. Not bad for a PhD eh? Hey, I just did read it. I skimmed it quickly but thought it was pedantic, although he might have some good theoretical info. What caught my attention and gave me the willies was the picture of a 12 point ratchet wrench on a square head set screw. After another quick look, I see that earlier in the article he has a monologue about picking a wrench and finally selected an open end wrench for this screw. That tells me he doesn't use tools much as any non-novice would immediately have picked an open end wrench (or even a Crescent wrench). But why does he show the 12 point ratchet being used after he goes through the mess about picking a wrench? Enough critique since I'm not getting paid for this. Oh, the ladder doesn't bother me, but he should have had it against the front wall based on the direction of force needed to wind the spring. |
#16
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George E. Cawthon wrote:
Richard J Kinch wrote: George E. Cawthon writes: =20 =20 That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. =20 =20 Stupid, reckless, ignorant advice. =20 Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! Isn't the school holiday over? Have you ever seen a multi section garage door? No, it's very valid advice, especially considering the context of the = question. You've obviously never been centrally involved installing a = door like that or you would realize it. |
#17
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Pop writes:
No, it's very valid advice, especially considering the context of the question. You've obviously never been centrally involved installing a door like that or you would realize it. Bunk. You cannot remove panels from a sectional door without unwinding the torsion springs. I defy you to find any such technique in Clopay's library of installation manuals: http://www.clopaydoor.com/installman.asp |
#18
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Pop wrote:
George E. Cawthon wrote: Richard J Kinch wrote: George E. Cawthon writes: That would work but block the door up at a convenient height first. Probably only have to remove the lower two wheels. Stupid, reckless, ignorant advice. Stupid reckless, ignorant teenager! Isn't the school holiday over? Have you ever seen a multi section garage door? No, it's very valid advice, especially considering the context of the question. You've obviously never been centrally involved installing a door like that or you would realize it. And you sir, are obviously very wrong. Removing the two lower wheels of the lowest section has no effect on the weight of the door or the weight/spring dynamics. All it does it let the lower section swing inward, and if the door is blocked up (probably by putting a clamp under the wheel(s) of the next section higher, absolutely nothing will happen. It won't even swing inward until you force it to. This has nothing to do with installing a door. All the op is trying to do is replace the rubber strip on the bottom. Centrally involved in door installation? Nope never been centrally involved, but I do maintain my wood door (much heavier than a metal door) including tightening the springs and all the brackets, wheels, and guides. Installing a replacement door is quite straight forward. |
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