If you live in Idaho and are looking to have new garage doors installed, we urge you to seek professionals to help you. If you are determined to do it yourself, and you are confident in your skill level, then we trust you… but we want to provide pointers in the spirit of helping you out.

Here are the top 5 things you should not do if you want to successfully install that garage door yourself. Especially if you would like it to work properly once you are done.

5 Common DIY Garage Door Installation Mistakes

Without further ado, here are some of the top mistakes we get called out to fix, in the Nampa area.

1 – Going it Solo

Garage doors are heavy. Not everyone takes this into consideration when they go to install one. It’s a two-person job without a shadow of a doubt. You need someone to hold it up while you attach it, to help you lift it, and to support it so you can make sure the tracks are straight. Skip this step and woe betide you.

Don’t forget, if it all goes to hell you can always drop in to the one-stop shop for garage door needs in Nampa. When the worse comes to the worst, it’s time to call in the professionals. They probably won’t laugh at you. Probably.

2 – Using the Wrong Parts

Were you aware that nails and screws have different shelf lives when attached to something heavy? If you use nails instead of screws, they will eventually work their way out of the wall and the whole thing could come down on you. Screws last much longer all round and should always be the first choice for a garage door installation, even if nails are easier. Now repeat this with all the parts you buy. Choose quality parts, every time.

3 – Consider Space

Your garage door takes up space when it opens. it might slide side-to-side, it might swing open inwards or outwards, it might roll back on rollers suspended from the ceiling. Whatever way your newly installed garage door opens, it is going to take up space when it does so. If you don’t measure this space, you will find yourself in trouble before you even begin.

4 – Plan

Don’t just place it on the tracks, go for a beer and consider the job a good one. You need to adjust the balance and flow of the doors as a final step in the process. This makes for as perfect a finish as you can get. It is even worth calling in a garage door technician at this stage, to check over the job and make the essential adjustments that give it the professional touch. 

5 – Not Finding the Exact Centre

If you don’t place the garage door opener in the exact centre of the doorway, the mechanism will buckle the door. You only get one warning about this so don’t let it pass you by. There is nothing worse than spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on a new set of garage doors, only to break them on the installation. 

Go Professional for Garage Doors

We tell you to get a professional involved for your own good. A single mistake can ruin an exceptionally large purchase for you. Don’t be a DIY disaster. It’s worth the extra few bucks.