Keep Your Garage Cool During Summer
Summer is in full swing, which means your home’s cooling system is working overtime to keep you and your family feeling comfortable indoors as the temps soar outside.June is Garage Door Safety Month
Did you know that June is garage door safety month? At Shuster Door, we take garage door safety seriously and we hope you do, too.
Common garage door injuries range from getting fingers caught between sections of the door to malfunctioning doors that fall, to injuries from broken springs and the myriad of others caused when you try to repair your garage door yourself.
The good news is that injuries can be avoided. Below are some garage door safety tips to follow this month and every month.
Check the cables. If you check the cables that are at the sides of your door, you can see if they are frayed or breaking. If you notice significant wear like this, contact a technician and schedule an appointment. If a cable breaks, it can result in very serious injury.
Replacing broken springs. Garage door springs are vital to your garage door working safely. As the springs get older, they break, which can be dangerous. Always call a professional to change your springs as this can be very dangerous and unsafe. And when you have them replaced, always choose to replace both (if your garage door uses two), even if only one is broken.
Maintain regular service. No matter how old your garage door is, you should get it serviced once a year by professionals. Our team can insure that every component of your garage door system is working properly. This isn’t just for safety reasons, but for cost too. Regular garage door service can save you on costly repairs.
It’s not DIY it’s NDIY: When it comes to garage door repair, we say “Never Do It Yourself.” It can be tempting to try to install a garage door or repair one on your own, but please don’t do it. We’d rather you sit back, relax, and let us handle the job. Shuster Door technicians are experts and stand by the work they do for businesses and homes.
Don’t ignore a struggling door. When your door isn’t moving up and down normally, or if it is making sounds like creaking or crunching, it should be checked by a garage door technician. Sometimes springs can become out of balance and cause the door to not move properly. Other times, it can be normal wear-and-tear, especially if it is an older door.
Let this summer be about enjoying time with family and friends, not about trips to the ER from faulty garage door parts or after a DIY project goes awry. Contact the team at Shuster Door and let us handle the work so you and your loved ones can stay safe and secure.
Our Top Five Places for Garage Door Inspiration
Spring is the perfect time of the year to invest in a new garage door, and now is the time to start looking at garage door ideas that will inspire you to choose the right garage door for your budget and style.
To help you get started, the team at Shuster Door put together a list of the top five places to look for garage door inspiration. Some you can do in the comfort of your own home, maybe with a cup of something warm. The last tip (and our favorite) requires you to get up off the couch, but it’s well worth it!
Houzz
We absolutely love Houzz for it’s huge collection of garage door photos, as well as photos and ideas about how to repurpose your garage into something unique and special. Houzz also features a great Advice and Stories section where you can read about home owners experiences with choosing a garage door and how they customized the door to suit the look of their home.
The Clopay Website
Not only can you view Clopay’s entire collection on their website (tip: you can do this on Shuster Door's site, too) but here you can also find an ideas book and a buyer’s guide. You can also compare doors on the site, so you can choose doors you’re interested in and then check them out side-by-side to see which one will work better for your home.
Pinterest
As you peruse the web for great garage door ideas, you’ll need a place to keep track of what you’ve found. Pinterest is our favorite way to organize garage door photos and inspirations. It’s easy to navigate, and as you build your Pinterest board for garage door ideas, you’ll get cued into what others put on their Pinterest boards, too, which will give you even more inspiration.
Your Neighborhood
That’s right. Inspiration can be found just outside your door. Take a look at the homes in your neighborhood that you love and check their garage doors and what you like about them. You’ll notice that some of the best-looking houses on the block are the ones with garage doors that work with the look of the home.
Shuster Door's Design Tools
The design tools on our website, including the Clopay Door Imagination System, photo gallery, look book, and our virtual showroom puts the ability to design your new door right at your fingertips.
The Shuster Door Showroom
The Shuster Door showroom lets you get up close and personal with doors by Clopay. Here, you can talk to our sales team who will make sure you’re getting the perfect door for your home and budget. We love talking about garage doors and meeting new customers.
Ready to get started? Come visit us at Shuster Door today!
Get Your Garage Ready for Spring
What a winter! Ready for spring? We sure are. Get your garage in top shape for the spring with these tips below. It doesn’t take a lot of time to spruce up your garage, which is one of your home’s most versatile and used spaces.
Here are some tips for garage spring cleaning from the team at Shuster Door. With just a few hours of elbow grease, you can sit back, relax, and be ready for the warmer months ahead.
1. Clean the garage good. That means throwing away trash and the old items in the garage that you’ll never use. Consider taking some of those things – like bikes you’re not going to ride and old tools – and donating them to charity. Or, hold a garage sale or sell the stuff online.
2. Don’t forget about the floors. You’ll need a broom, hose, a sponge and the soap you use to wash your car. If you’re floor is concrete, look for a concrete floor cleaner, and maybe an oil stain remover, too. Of course, if your garage door floor has lots of oil, we recommend a mechanic, too!
3. Clean the garage door. You can do this with a dry rag or sponge. Be very careful to only clean the doors themselves. Don’t try to clean the garage door springs, cables or rollers. Leave that to us.
4. Invest in some shelves or plywood and peg board. Your garage is an excellent place to store tools, gardening supplies and exercise equipment. Peg board is inexpensive and can be mounted to a wall easily. It’s also surprisingly strong, so it can hold heavy tools. Consider keeping a recycling bin in the garage, too, so you can keep your car cleaner.
5. Make it pretty. You visit your garage every day, and sometimes several times a day, so make it someplace you like to see. Hang a framed poster of your favorite vacation destination or your dream car or paint the walls a color you like.
Need more ideas or a new garage door? The team at Shuster Door can help. Give us a call today!