Symptom check
The garage door is loud enough to wake the house
A grinding or squeaking garage door usually has worn or rusty rollers and dry hinges, which new rollers and hinges quiet. Listen for where the noise starts first, because a few sounds point at the spring or the opener instead.
Updated
Run the door once and note where the noise starts
Open and close the door one time while you stand to the side and listen. A squeal that travels along the tracks with the door is rollers or hinges, a grind from the ceiling unit is the opener, and a creak from the shaft over the opening is the spring or its bearings. Note which one before reaching for any spray can.
What usually causes it, in order
Each part of the door has its own sound, and where the noise comes from narrows the cause quickly.
- Most common
Worn or rusted rollers
What you notice: A rumble or grind follows the door along the tracks, and the steel wheels wobble on their stems or show rust and flat spots.
The repair: Replace the rollers with sealed-bearing nylon rollers, which run quieter than bare steel. Garage Door Roller and Hinge Replacement, from $195
- Common
Dry or cracked hinges
What you notice: A sharp squeak at each joint as the sections bend over the curve at the top of the track, sometimes with a hinge cracked at its knuckle.
The repair: Oil the hinge pins, and replace any hinge that has cracked or worn its pin hole oval. Garage Door Roller and Hinge Replacement, from $195
- Common
A dry torsion spring or rough bearings
What you notice: A creak, squeal or crunch from the shaft above the door, loudest as the spring winds and unwinds.
The repair: Clean and oil the spring coils and bearings at a tune-up, and replace a bearing that has gone rough. Garage Door Tune-Up, from $135
- Common
A slack or dry opener chain
What you notice: A rattle and slap runs along the rail overhead, loudest in any room above the garage.
The repair: Tension and lubricate the chain, or plan a quieter drive if the noise reaches a bedroom. Garage Door Opener Repair, from $155
- Less common
A worn opener drive gear
What you notice: Grinding comes from inside the opener head itself, sometimes with the door hesitating or the trolley jerking along the rail.
The repair: Replace the drive gear and sprocket, or the opener itself when the old one is due for retirement. Garage Door Opener Repair, from $155
- Less common
A track rubbing or out of line
What you notice: A scrape at one point in the travel, trip after trip, with a roller rubbing the lip of the track or a bracket working loose.
The repair: Realign and refasten the track so the rollers run clean down the center of the channel. Garage Door Track Repair, from $165
Safe checks before you call
Use your ears and a flashlight; none of these involves touching the spring or the cables.
- Stand beside the door while it runs and note whether the noise moves with the door, comes from the ceiling unit or comes from the shaft above.
- Shine a light on the rollers: wheels that wobble, rust or show flat spots are worn.
- Look at the hinges between sections for cracks or a pin hole worn oval.
- Check the tracks for a dent, a loose bracket or a roller rubbing the edge.
- On a chain-drive opener, watch whether the chain droops onto the rail or slaps it as it runs.
Which garage door noise means what
Rollers rumble along the tracks, hinges squeak at each section joint, a dry spring creaks over the opening, and a chain or worn gear rattles or grinds at the ceiling.
| What you hear | Where it starts | Likely cause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rumble or grind that moves with the door | Side tracks | Worn or rusted roller bearings | New sealed nylon rollers |
| Sharp squeak at each section joint | Hinges | Dry pins or a cracked hinge | Oil, or new hinges |
| Creak or squeal over the opening | Torsion shaft | Dry spring coils or rough bearings | Spring and bearing service at a tune-up |
| Rattle and slap along the ceiling | Opener rail | A slack or dry chain | Chain adjustment, or a belt drive |
| Grinding inside the opener head | Opener | A worn drive gear | Gear and sprocket kit, or a new opener |
| Scrape at one height every trip | One track section | A bent track or loose bracket | Track alignment |
What to lubricate, and what to leave dry
Lubricate the moving metal joints and leave the tracks dry: hinge pins and the bearings inside steel rollers are yours, and the springs and their bearings are ours at a tune-up.
Use a lubricant sold for garage doors or a light machine oil, a little at a time, and wipe off the drips. A penetrating spray meant for freeing rusted bolts cleans more than it lubricates, which is one reason a door still squeaks a week after it was sprayed. Grease in the tracks collects grit and makes rollers skid instead of turning.
Sealed nylon rollers need no oil at all. If a set of them is loud, the bearings are worn out, not dry, and the rollers are due for replacing.
Why doors in older Vancouver garages grind
Rust is the usual reason a door grinds in an older, unheated garage, because bare steel rollers and hinges sit in damp air for most of the year.
Census figures show more than 8,000 Vancouver homes built before 1950, and November through January at Pearson Field each bring 19 to 20 wet days. In a detached garage with no heat and a door that rarely opens, roller bearings rust stiff and the wheels drag. In Carter Park, where garages sit on the alleys, replacing rollers and hinges as a set beats chasing one squeak at a time.
How to quiet a door with a bedroom or bonus room above
With a room overhead, quiet the door hardware first and the opener second, because rollers and hinges are cheaper to change and often carry most of the noise.
Sealed nylon rollers and fresh hinges take the rumble out of the door itself. A chain drive on a joist under a bedroom passes its rattle into the room; a belt unit, or a jackshaft opener mounted beside the door on the torsion shaft, moves it away. The two bottom rollers sit in brackets that hold the lift cables under spring tension, so leave those for the roller visit.
Grinding or squeaking: questions and answers
What does a grinding noise from my garage door usually mean?
Grinding that moves with the door is usually worn or rusted rollers dragging in the track, while grinding from the ceiling unit is the opener gear. Stand beside the door while it runs to tell which. Roller grinding is fixed with new sealed nylon rollers, and opener grinding with a gear kit or a new opener.
What should I use to lubricate a squeaking garage door?
Use a lubricant labeled for garage doors, or a light machine oil, on the hinge pins and the bearings of steel rollers. Apply a little and wipe off drips. Skip penetrating sprays meant for freeing rusted bolts, which clean more than they lubricate, and keep grease out of the tracks. Leave the springs to a tune-up.
Why is my garage door still squeaking after I lubricated it?
The noise is usually coming from parts that are worn rather than dry. A roller with a failed bearing or a hinge worn oval keeps squeaking however much oil it gets, and a solvent spray may have washed out the lubrication that was left. If the squeak survives one careful oiling, the part needs replacing.
Are nylon rollers really quieter on a noisy garage door?
Yes, sealed nylon rollers are clearly quieter than bare steel ones, because the wheel does not ring against the steel track and the sealed bearing keeps grit out. They also hold up to the damp in an unheated garage. On a door with a bedroom overhead, a full nylon set is a sensible first step.
Is the opener or the door making my garage door so loud?
Stand by the door while it runs: noise from the ceiling unit and rail is the opener, and noise that travels down the side tracks is the door. Chains rattle and slap, worn gears grind inside the head, and rollers rumble in the tracks. Fixing the right one first saves buying a quiet opener for a noisy door.
Where to go next
Nearby service areas
This call comes in from Burnt Bridge Creek and Parkside, Edgewood Park and Southcliff, Harney Heights and the rest of our Washington service area.
Want a price before anyone drives over?
Call and describe what the door is doing, or text a photo of the door and the spring above it. You hear the likely repair and where its price starts, then decide.