Garage Door Damaged After a Storm

Why the garage door takes the brunt of a storm

A garage door is a wide, relatively light wall that has to move. Unlike the rest of the house, it is built from hinged sections, carried on rollers in a track, and held by springs and cables. When the wind pushes against it, the load goes straight into those moving parts rather than into a solid wall.

That is why storm damage to a garage door tends to show up in several places at once. A panel may bend, a track may pull away from the wall, a roller may leave its track, and the opener may be stressed by a door that no longer moves freely. Looking at the whole assembly, not just the face of the door, is the only reliable way to judge it.

On the Space Coast, the combination of thunderstorms, tropical systems and salt air means doors face harder conditions than in many places. If you want the background first, how a garage door works describes each part and how the parts depend on one another.

Safety comes before inspection

Before you walk toward the garage, think about the surroundings. Storms leave fallen branches, loose debris, standing water and sometimes downed power lines. A line on the ground may still carry current, and water can carry it too. If you see a line down, stay away and report it to the utility.

Inside the garage, never assume that a stalled door is stable. A door that has been pushed off its track can drop or shift without warning. Springs and cables hold a great deal of stored force, and a damaged one can release it suddenly.

If anyone is hurt, call 911 first. Everything else on this page can wait for that. Keep children and pets out of the garage until you have looked it over from a distance.

• Stay away from any wire lying on the ground or hanging low
• Do not stand under or beside a door that looks bent, tilted or partly off its track
• Do not touch the springs, cables, brackets or the bottom fixtures at the corners of the door
• Keep people and pets clear while you assess the damage

A calm first look from the outside

Start at the driveway with the door in whatever position it was left. Do not try to operate it yet. Stand back far enough to see the whole door and the area above it, and look first at the outline rather than the surface.

A door that is tilted, bowed inward or outward, or no longer sits square in the opening has been moved by force. A gap at one side that did not exist before suggests the door has shifted in the track. Fine cracks in trim around the opening can show that the frame itself took some of the force.

Take note of debris around the door too. A branch, a fence panel or a loose item can be the cause of the damage, and it can also be pinned against the door in a way that makes the situation riskier to disturb.

Signs of wind damage on the door itself

Wind tends to cause a recognizable set of changes. Some are obvious and some are subtle, and the subtle ones matter because a door can look nearly normal while a track or bracket has been pulled loose.

Walk along the face of the door and look at each section in turn.

• Panels that are creased, dented or bowed, especially along the horizontal stiffeners
• Cracks or splits at the corners of a section, or around the hinge areas
• A bottom section that has curled or separated from its seal
• Windows or inserts that are cracked, loose or missing
• Gaps between the door and the weather seal at the sides or top
• Scrapes or marks on the track side, showing where the rollers moved out of line

Damage you can see at a glance

Bent or folded panels and missing window inserts are plain to see. They usually mean the door took direct force or was struck by debris. If a section is badly creased, it will probably not travel through the track correctly.

Damage that hides in the details

A small gap at the edge of the door, a roller that sits slightly out of its channel, or a bolt that has backed out of a track bracket can be easy to miss. These are the findings a technician looks for, because they change how the door behaves the next time it moves.

What to look at inside the garage

If the garage is safe to enter, look at the door from inside with the door left alone. The tracks should run in straight lines on both sides, and the vertical track should sit parallel to the door edge. A track that leans away from the wall, or a bracket that has pulled out of the framing, shows that wind force reached the hardware.

Look at the cables on each side. They should lie neatly against the drums with no slack or kinks. Do not touch them. A cable that hangs loose or looks frayed means the door has lost its support on that side, and you should avoid the door entirely.

Check the horizontal tracks overhead and the opener rail. A door that was pushed up against the opener arm may have bent the arm or bracket. For more on how off-track doors behave, remember that a door which has jumped out of its track is one of the most common storm findings, and it explains why the door may sit crooked or refuse to move.

Make a mental note of anything that looks different from yesterday. Photograph it before you leave the garage, because later it can be hard to remember which side had the gap or which roller sat outside the channel. Those small details help the technician understand how the force moved through the door.

When not to operate the door

It is tempting to press the button and see whether the door still works. Resist that, at least until you have looked it over. Running the opener on a door with a bent panel, a loose track or a slipped cable can make the damage worse and can be dangerous to anyone nearby.

If the door is partly open, crooked or stuck, leave it where it is. If it must be secured, close and lock the entry door from the house and keep people out of the garage. A door that is stuck open is a security concern, but it is a lesser concern than a door that falls.

A power outage after a storm adds another layer. If the door will not respond because the power is out, that is a different situation from physical damage, and a door stuck after a power outage covers it. Do not use force to move the door by hand until you know which situation you are in.

Using the manual release with care

The emergency release cord disconnects the door from the opener so it can be moved by hand. It is meant for ordinary situations, such as a power cut, and it is generally safe when the door is in good condition and fully down.

After a storm, do not pull the cord unless the door is closed and appears undamaged. A door that is open, bent or off its track can fall or twist the moment it is released from the opener. If you are not sure, leave it connected and wait for a technician.

The normal use of the cord during a power outage is simple, and the stop points are important. If the door feels heavy, binds or makes a noise as you move it, stop and let it rest.

Documenting damage for an insurance claim

If you plan to make a claim, begin recording the damage before anything is moved or repaired. Take wide photos of the door from the driveway, then closer photos of each damaged area. Include the surrounding debris, the trim and the ground in at least a few of the shots.

Write down the date and time of the storm, when you first noticed the damage and anything you did afterward, such as closing the entry door or keeping people out. A simple dated list is easy to follow and helps whoever reads the claim.

What an insurance policy covers differs from one policy to another, and we cannot tell you what yours will do. Your insurer or agent is the right person to ask about deductibles and requirements. What we can do is look at the door and describe in plain terms what we find, so your records match what is actually wrong.

What a written description from a technician can include

When a technician examines a storm-damaged door, the useful record is a clear description of each part that was affected and how it was affected. That might include which panels are creased, whether the track is bent or pulled loose, and whether the springs, cables and drums are intact.

A good description separates damage from the storm from wear that was there before. A rusted bracket, a worn roller and a bent panel can all appear in the same door, and they have different causes. Being honest about which is which keeps the record accurate.

We will explain what we find and what the options are. Where an insurer needs specific information, we can describe the condition of the door, and you can decide how to pass it on.

Temporary protection while you wait

If the door cannot be closed or locked, the garage is open to weather and to anyone who walks by. Moving valuable items into the house, covering what remains with plastic sheeting from the inside and parking vehicles elsewhere are sensible steps, provided they do not require you to go near the damaged door.

Do not try to prop up, brace or wedge a damaged door with lumber or jacks. A door under uneven load can shift suddenly, and a brace can become a hazard. Leave structural support to a professional.

If a section of the opening is exposed to weather, a tarp stretched outside and weighed down at ground level can limit rain. Work only where you can stay clear of the door's path, and never lean over or beneath it.

Repair, partial replacement or a new door

The right answer depends on how much of the door was damaged and what shape it was in beforehand. A single bent section may be replaced on its own if a matching panel is available. Damage to several panels, or a door that was already worn, often leans toward a new door.

Track and hardware problems are a separate question. A bent track is normally replaced rather than straightened, and loose brackets need proper fastening into sound framing. Springs and cables are handled only by trained technicians because of the tension they carry.

For the first kind of damage, see bent garage door panels. For a full replacement, new garage door installation describes how a new door is chosen and fitted. Our repair or replace guide helps you weigh the choice.

Wind ratings, building rules and what they mean

Florida has building rules that address wind, and some garage doors are built and labeled to resist stronger forces than a standard door. A label inside the door or on a panel often lists the design details. If your door was damaged, it is useful to know whether it carried a wind rating and what the label says.

We do not make claims about codes for specific addresses. Rules vary by location and change over time, and the building department for your area is the authority. Our general overview, garage door wind and building rules basics, explains the ideas in everyday language.

If you are replacing a door, ask the technician what the labeling means and whether the new door is built for the conditions where you live. It is a fair question, and a straight answer is part of the service.

Getting ready for the next storm

Once the repair is done, it is a good time to think about the next one. A door in good adjustment, with sound tracks, tight brackets, healthy rollers and clean seals, handles wind better than one with hidden wear.

Maintenance matters before the season starts, not after. A visit to look at the hardware and balance of the door can catch loose fasteners and worn parts that a storm would otherwise find for you.

Our hurricane season garage door service describes what we look at before the season, and the garage door hurricane preparation guide covers what to do at home. Preparing early is simpler than reacting afterward.

Small signs worth watching in the weeks after

Some damage reveals itself later. A door that seemed fine after the storm may start to rub, shake, run noisily or stop short a few weeks afterward. Those are signs that a track, roller or bracket was moved and is working loose.

Pay attention to new noises, a door that sticks in one position, or an opener that strains. Any of these deserves a look, and none of them should be pushed aside because the door still opens.

Keep your photos and notes, and add a line whenever a new symptom appears. If you decide to have the door examined, that record makes the visit more useful.

Also check the seals and the bottom edge of the door after the next rain. Water creeping under a door that sat tight before can mean the bottom section shifted or the seal was torn. It is a small clue, but it tells you the door is not sitting where it used to.

Questions and answers