Q. Why does my overhead (canopy)
door feel rather heavy to lift and doesn’t open easily of its
own accord?
A. The spring has either become dry / dirty and needs some lubrication
or the spring needs an extra turn or two to increase the lifting
power. First of all, oil the door as per the instructions in your
handbook and open and close the door a few times to let the oil
penetrate, then check the opening action again. Often oiling the
door has the same effect as increasing the spring tension. If the
door is still sluggish / heavy to operate then add a bit more tension
following the instructions in the handbook / on the back of the
door. It is always a good idea to lubricate the door and check the
opening action on a regular basis to ensure optimum performance.
Be careful when retensioning as the spring is under a great deal
of tension – follow the instructions carefully, or if you
have any concerns, call your local Cardale / AGDS distributor.
Q. Can I paint my Weatherwhite steel
door?
A. Unfortunately it is a very difficult task to make a satisfactory
job of painting a plastisol door and we do not recommend it.
Q. Can I install an electric opener
on my Cardale door fitted with overhead (canopy) operating gear?
A. Most doors can, provided the door was manufactured with CD45
or CD Professional gear (introduced after 1989). The Cardale Autoglide
remote control electric opener was designed specifically to automate
doors with overhead gear and do it safely and without the protrusion
into the opening that you get with a bow-arm type converter. We
recommend that you use a professional installer to carry out this
work as the safe and correct operation of the door needs to be set
accurately at time of installation.
Q. Can I use an exterior grade (Yacht
type) varnish to finish my Cardale timber garage door?
A. We do not recommend the use of varnish as it does not allow
the timber to breathe and can store up problems. There are some
excellent micro-porous stains available from your local paint supplier
which will give long lasting protection to your door – if
applied according to the manufacturers instructions. Always remember
to coat the inside as well as the outside of the door with the same
materials - if you don’t, the door has a high probability
of twisting, warping or cracking and will not be covered by the
manufacturers warranty.
Q. How often do I need to treat my
Cardale Timber garage doors?
A. That depends on the finish already applied.
Timber is a natural product and will respond differently to different
environments and different surface finishes. A good quality micro-porous
finish properly and adequately applied should last for approximately
2 to 3 years. The only way to be certain is to keep a close eye
on the finish and if any failure of the surface covering is spotted
anywhere on the door, it’s time to treat it again.
Q. What is GRP?
A. Glass Reinforced Polyester (also known as fibreglass or glassfibre)
is a term used for a two component ‘plastic’ type material
that is stiffened and reinforced by bonding polyester resin to a
multi-stranded fibrous glass ‘mat’. The whole product
cures chemically into an inert ‘mass’ that will not
warp, shrink or rust and is remarkably stable. GRP has no joins,
seams, rivets or welds visible on the face of the door and its gel-coat
face is capable of picking up a completely faithful woodgrain pattern
from the moulding process that will even leave the timber experts
fooled
Q. What door size do I need?
A. All door sizes shown in Cardale literature are the actual size
of the opening that the door is to go into. Sizes shown are given
as opening width x height in feet & inches. Therefore a 7066
door is made to fit an opening 7ft wide by 6ft 6 inches high. Similarly
a 1470 door is made to fit an opening 14ft wide by 7ft high. Cardale
generally build a tolerance of approximately 19mm into the width
and 25mm into the height of the door panel supplied, this leaves
a gap around the edges of the panel to allow for the unhindered
operation of the door gear.
Q. Can I have my new door fitted
to my existing timber frame?
A. Yes, provided it is fitted firmly, is in good condition (no
rot – especially at the bottom), fitted squarely in the opening
and is a minimum of 70 x 70mm. If all of these conditions are met
then it should be satisfactory. An alternative is to replace it
with a Cardale steel frame that comes pre-fitted on single doors
or as a knock-down kit on double doors, which is available with
a fully-finished plastisol exterior in white or Van dyke brown.
Q. Can I paint my white GRP door
another colour?
A. White gloss GRP doors can be overpainted in a different colour
if required. There are proprietary primers, undercoats and finish
coats available from specialist paint manufacturers for use on GRP.
The easiest source of supply and advice is from yacht chandlers
(see Yellow Pages). Unfortunately, as we have no control over the
effectiveness of the preparation and painting, no warranty will
be available on any door so treated. |
