How to Adjust Garage Door Tracks

Don’t know how to adjust garage door tracks? Garage doors usually open and close by rolling up and down, and the rollers on your garage door are guided by two tracks. These tracks run from the floor to the ceiling and on every side of the doorway, there’s an individual door track. Without a doubt, these tracks are designed to help the garage door operate smoothly, but when they are hit or have become loose, your garage door won’t operate as smoothly as it should. When the garage door track is out of alignment, it causes some issues but the most common ones include:

• The garage door might bind which in turn makes it hard to open and close
• The door might rub against the rubber molding
• A gap might appear between the door and the rubber molding

If you realize any of the above problems and notice the misalignment of the track, you don’t have to panic or call an expert to fix it for you because you can easily realign it yourself like a pro. In most cases, it may be necessary to realign both tracks and because you’re reading this article, we will tell you simple steps on how to adjust garage door tracks.

Adjusting the Tracks for a Binding Garage Door

Step One: Loosening the Track Screws

If the garage door is secured in the tracks, loosen the screws with the help of a screwdriver which will bind the tracks in the garage door frame.

Step Two: Adjusting the Track Position

Using a rubber mallet, tap the bottom of the track so it is perfectly vertical. For maximum effectiveness, use a spirit level to confirm that the track is indeed back in vertical alignment.

Step Three: Tightening Track Screws

After confirming that the track is in the correct alignment, tighten the screws to ensure that the track can’t move.

Step Four: Adjusting Other Track

After adjusting one track, you’ll have to adjust the other track as well. Therefore, use a rubber mallet to tap the bottom of the track and ensure it’s perfectly straight. Then, tighten the screws.

With those simple four steps, you have excellently adjusted the tracks for a binding garage door. Many people would ask, how can I adjust the tracks for a garage stop rubbing against rubber molding or has a large gap appearing between the door and the molding? Interestingly, you can do this in the simple steps below:

Adjusting the Tracks for a Garage Stop Rubbing Against Molding

Step One: Loosening Track Bolts

First things first, you have to loosen the bolts that secure every track to its lower track bracket using a wrench. Before you proceed with the next steps, confirm the bolts on both tracks are loosened.

Step Two: Adjusting Door Gap

Move one of the tracks either left or right until you leave a gap of about ¼ inch between the stop molding and the gap. Remember that the gap should be uniform and to the opposite track, do the same and confirm the gap is uniform.

Step Three: Tightening Track Bolts

Last but not least, tighten the track bolts using a wrench. Confirm they are well tightened, but avoid over-tightening them.

Bottom Line

After following the above steps keenly, your garage door should be running freely without rubbing or binding and you’ll know how to adjust garage door tracks like a pro. If you realize that the garage door isn’t working properly, or should you suffer any complications when aligning the garage door track, don’t psych yourself out; consult a professional garage door maintenance provider to see if they offer services that will remedy the issue, and the problem will be history.