Installation of a sectional garage door – step by step

Installation of a sectional garage door – step by step

Investing in a convenient garage door that opens automatically and operates quietly greatly increases comfort during frequent trips and car entries inside. How to make a sectional garage door in your garage? When choosing a model tailored to your personal requirements, think carefully about every element of the installation, from the gate itself to the operator, guides, sensors and control components. How to install a sectional garage door and do motorized sectional garage doors have special requirements for installation? Here is our guide that explains the most important issues in a few steps.

What do you need before you start installing a sectional garage door?

One-touch automation, coupled with state-of-the-art drives, guarantees years of operation without major service worries. All, of course, subject to operation as intended and correct and precise installation. It is at this stage that it is worth focusing and carefully studying the instructions and detailed recommendations of the manufacturer. A rangefinder, level, tape measure, impact drill and mounting pins are the basic things useful during installation, while it is an open question whether it is better to entrust this task to a professional team or try your hand at it yourself after carefully studying the instructions. Fixing and adjusting the entire opening system really requires millimeter precision to enjoy how smoothly and without jerks our sectional garage door moves. How much opening must be prepared is determined by technical and design considerations of the building, while if it is measured incorrectly in relation to the gate purchased, it will result in the inability to install it. An opening that is too large, on the other hand, will result in leaks and potentially significant heat loss in the heated garage space.

Step 1: Installation of guide rails and garage door frame

The placement of the sectional door in the opening that is the entrance to the garage should follow the final stages of interior finishing. The most important thing is to prepare the garage’s lintel and carbs, i.e. the narrow side parts of the walls around the entrance, where the gate structure will be fixed. It is good for them to be already plastered and painted, as well as the ceiling – the appearance of the guide rails and the frame will significantly restrict access for painters or plasterers, in addition, it carries the risk of splashing the panels of the sectional gate. When sectional garage doors are installed, the dimensions of the opening must be carefully checked, as any mistake will affect later operation. When measuring, you need to be sure that the recorded values, such as the depth of the room, the height of the lintel and the level of the floor will be in the same state during installation, that is, there will be no additional layer of plaster or screed. In a properly installed gate, an even distribution of forces will be very important, otherwise the more heavily loaded components will wear out faster during operation. All planes must be straight and parallel to each other in order to install the guides correctly. Unstable and too weak mounting poses a direct threat to health, among other things, by the risk of balancing the guides and the gate falling out, so the selection of appropriate mounting dowels and preparation of the holes is of paramount importance here – under no circumstances should you use the so-called “pins”. “rapid assembly.”

Step 2: Installation of the sectional door panels

If the guide rails and frames are ready, you can proceed to the next step and install the gate panels one by one. It is best to entrust this task to an authorized and experienced team, while in the case of self-assembly you need to follow the instructions closely. Inserting the segments and joining them with special hinges will not pose any difficulties, as long as no mistakes were made when preparing the guides. The individual panels are arranged in order relative to each other, and the first one from the top can be identified by its characteristic seal. It is to it that the hook handles should be mounted, to which the cables that move the gate will later be attached. Next, attach the lower roller bracket and hinges and slide the entire panel into the door tracks, preparing the hinges for connection to the next panel. The whole thing is screwed together with screws of the appropriate length – do not use others, so as not to pierce the panel through when tightening the hinge!

Step 3: Installation of springs and tensioning mechanism

When installing sectional garage doors, the dimensions of the opening and the order in which the panels are arranged are the most important, but the other elements that are responsible for the movement of the whole must not be forgotten. An incorrectly fitted spring will result in the smoothness of closing the door being significantly impaired, thus, the springs installed in different places should always be fitted according to the direction of the coils and matched to the intensity of use. A badly installed spring increases in diameter, jumps on the handle, and also remains twisted and wavy, so reverse installation can lead to irreparable damage and the need for replacement.

Step 4: Install the garage door operator

What kind of sectional gate operator to choose? This is always related to the size, or basically the surface area and weight of the gate. A drive that is too weak will be overloaded and will not be able to handle its opening, so this should not be underestimated. Given the weight or width that some sectional garage doors have, the installation of automation responsible for its smooth and fast opening is an obvious part of the investment, because it affects the comfort of use. When installing a garage door motor, its connection depends on the specific system of the manufacturer in question and must be based on the accompanying instructions. On the other hand, for the installation of such a drive to be possible at all, it is best to take it into account already at the design stage and also think about where accessories such as photocells or a code keypad will be installed. It will therefore be useful to run the wiring for the electrical system intended for the drive, including the outlet located in the ceiling, before plastering the garage, thus avoiding the subsequent stripping of plaster.