From www.justanswer.com/ythi
JustAnswer Customer: My garage door shifts to the right track 1/8 of an inch every time you open and close it.
JustAnswer Customer: how can I adjust it to stay centered in the opening
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Thank you for using Just Answer!
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: There are a few issues that could cause your garage door to misalign such as this.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Check the cables on each side of the door and make sure that they are not frayed or damaged.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: If one of them is frayed then it will cause an uneven pull when opening and closing.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: The door will gradually shift to the side with the greatest amount of tension.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Another item is the extension pulleys that are located at the top corners of the door.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: These little round pulleys have small groove like tracts in them that the cables use to lift the door.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: If these ridges become worn then the cables slip a bit and can shift the door out of alignment.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: The only way to correct or repair these issues is to first release the tension on the springs.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Then replace any frayed cables or worn pulleys.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: DO NOT DO THIS ON YOUR OWN!
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: The springs are under a tremendous amount of pressure and can cause serious injury or death.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: You need to get a trained service technician to come and inspect and fix your door accordingly.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Feel free to post any follow up questions you may have.
JustAnswer Customer: It has been this way from the day it was installed,the contractor that installed it also built the building and went out of bussiness before it was finnished.
JustAnswer Customer: I have checked the track and it appears to be level from side to side,I have put a level on the top of the door and opened it,the door appears to be level from close to fully open,not sure why it drifts to the right
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Have you measured the distance between the tracks from side to side?
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: If the track on the right side is not installed in-line with the left track then it could pull the door to that side ever so slightly.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: The track on the right side may have a bow in it as well that would pull the door ever so slightly.
JustAnswer Customer: measure the distance between the tracks?would I need to measure off a wall to the tracks at several points from the floor to the end of the track
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Measure between the rails every foot up from the floor.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: In order for the door to move up and down evenly, both tracks must be the same distance apart the whole length of the track.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: You dont have to measure off of the walls.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Just run a tape measure between the left and right rails and see if they are installed the same distance apart.
JustAnswer Customer: if they aren't then which track do I need to adjust?the right side ?
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Yes, you will want to adjust the side that the door is pulling towards.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: From what you are describing it sounds as if the garage door rail is misaligned causing it to close and open unevenly.
JustAnswer Customer: thanks Jay I'll try it tommorrow
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: Thanks, XXXXX XXXXX updated.
JustAnswer Customer: well I checked the track this weekend (the bldg.
JustAnswer Customer: is an hour drive away)and it seems to be straight I did find one spot that was off about an 1/8 inch so I adjusted the bracket.
JustAnswer Customer: I raised and lowered it twice and it shifted about 3/8 of an inch.
JustAnswer Customer: I am thinking now I may need to hire a garage door company to come in and take the door down and start over.
JustAnswer Customer: What do you think?
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: The only other possibility is that the tension springs are not correctly installed and that you have uneven tension across the door.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: This could cause the door to shift in the track when opening and closing.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: You definitely want a garage door company to address the tension springs.
Home Improvement Jay: General Contractor: They can be very dangerous and should only be adjusted by a trained technician.