A typical sectional roll-up door is made up of three or more hinged metal or wooden panels, which are significantly damage-prone compared to other parts. Common culprits behind panel damage include wind, weather, age, and impact from vehicles. If a panel ends up looking less or working less efficiently than it should, you can either call a technician to reverse the damage or make arrangements to have the whole thing replaced.

Your decision will depend on the age of your garage door/panel, the cause of the damage, and the projected cost of repairing or replacing the panel.

The life expectancy of a typical garage door is between 20 and 25 years. If your door is in its first 10 years of service, then repairing it would be a more cost-effective solution. If it is in its twilight years, consider removing the damaged panel and replacing it with a new one.

Cause of damage is another factor that may determine the solution our professionals recommend to you. Natural wear and tear may result in minor aesthetic blemishes such as dents, scratches, warps, and cracks. A professional will assess the extent of the problem during diagnosis and determine how many of the panels are affected by the issue.

In cases where the garage door is hit by a car or a natural disaster, or someone uses the automatic opener while the door is locked, the damage may spread to other parts of the door. Continuing to use such a door without consulting a professional would be jeopardizing the safety of anyone who uses the garage. Mechanisms such as the opener, the struts, the spring, and the track may be affected too, and the damage may prove hard to detect.

As regards cost, of course, replacement is significantly more expensive than repair. Be sure to have a look at all factors, including age and nature of the damage, before going for a full replacement of the panel, especially if you have a tight budget.

Lastly, put safety at the top of your priorities. Whichever option you go for, ensure the safety of your family is protected. You should never continue to open and close a broken garage door until you know the extent of the damage and have had it fixed. Even a small case of panel damage can escalate into a full-blown safety risk if you don’t fix it promptly. A small dent, for instance, may lead to crack with continuous opening and closing of the door. The crack will let in water leading to rusting of the panel and parts adjacent to it. Eventually, you may end up replacing the whole garage door, and that’s not even the worst-case scenario. A damaged door would attract burglars and put your family’s well-being in jeopardy. Just give us a call if you detect any damage on your panel, and our technicians will help correct the issue before it gets out of hand.