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Winter14 January 20264 min read

Cold mornings and a door that won't close

A door that goes down, touches the floor and springs back up on a frosty morning is rarely broken. Here is what is going on and what to try first.

A grey-blue timber garage door in an old stone mews building with a clock tower behind

Every winter we take the same call: the door goes down, touches the ground and goes straight back up again. Or it stops a foot short. On a cold morning that is usually not a fault in the door at all.

Frozen to the ground

Rubber bottom seals freeze to wet concrete overnight. When the opener tries to lift the door, it feels the resistance and stops or reverses to protect itself. Do not force it.

Pour lukewarm (not boiling) water along the seal, or use a hairdryer, and the door will lift. To stop it happening again, sweep standing water away from the threshold in the evening and wipe a little silicone spray onto the rubber seal. Never use oil-based products on rubber.

Stiff grease

Ordinary grease thickens in the cold. Rollers and hinges that were greased years ago can drag enough on a frosty morning for the opener to think it has hit something. A dry silicone lubricant does not thicken; it is what we use on every service.

The safety sensors

The two small sensors either side of the door at ankle height stop the door if anything breaks the beam between them. Condensation and frost on the lenses do the same. Wipe them with a dry cloth and check the small lights on each are steady.

Springs in the cold

A spring that is near the end of its life is more likely to break in the cold. If you hear a loud bang and the door is suddenly very heavy, that is a broken spring. Leave the door shut, unplug the opener and call us. A matched pair is £245 fitted, usually the same day.

When to call

If the door still reverses after the seal is free, the lenses are clean and the tracks are clear, the opener’s force or travel limits need resetting. That is a short job and part of any repair visit.

More guides

A detached garage with an anthracite sectional door at the end of a tree-lined drive Autumn5 min read The ten-minute autumn check before the cold sets in Springs break most in the first cold snap. Ten minutes with the door in October tells you whether yours is likely to be one of them. A white garage with two blue timber-clad doors beside a house with a clipped box hedge and a block-paved drive Spring6 min read A spring clean for the garage door: lubricate, tighten, test Twenty minutes, a can of silicone spray and a socket set. What is safe to do yourself, and the three parts you should always leave to us. A row of three white up-and-over garage doors in a brick block with a red tiled roof behind a hedge Any season5 min read Repair or replace? What the age of your door tells you Most doors we see are worth repairing. A few are not. The age of the door, and how many times it has failed lately, decide which.

Door stuck open, or stuck shut? Ring before 2pm.

Tell us what it is doing and you get the fixed price on the phone. A van with the parts on board is with you the same day.

Call 01632 960 391 Book online