Did your garage door open correctly this morning? If so please join us in thanking a German mining engineer with a hearty high five! Not a high five you give your spouse in passing, we’re talking football Sunday at the local watering hole with a bunch of your buddies right after your team returned a punt for a touchdown! It’s well deserved.
You see back in, or around, 1833 there was a large mining community in the Harz Mountains Germany. Up until that time they were using ropes made of hemp and metal chains to lift and move ore from the mine. Ropes and chains were the standard but moving such heavy objects was hard and sometimes dangerous. We all know that ropes fray and chains are only as strong as the weakest link, or so the saying goes.
Wilhelm Albert, a German mining engineer needed a safer, more reliable way to lift and move material. He invented the original wire rope as it was referred to at that time. We’ve come to know it as cable. Cable is used for so many things nowadays that we take it for granted. Flip the switch on a light in your home and that electricity is brought to you by a metal cable. Take a ride on a gondola or ski lift and you’re betting your safety entirely on a cable and it’s so important most of our TV programming is delivered by; you guessed it, a Cable Company. On and on I can go. The product was further perfected by a Scotsman named Robert Newall and the wire rope became even more reliable.
So, your garage door went up and down this morning? Yes…… awesome. Your cables did most of the heavy lifting for you. The unsung heroes of garage doors they are under constant tension and maintain that for years and years without once even asking for applause.
Well today Mr. Cable, we applaud you! Thank you for all you do for us. Making our lives easier safer and more enjoyable is what you do and we appreciate it. Our collective hats are tipped and we all vow to do a quick inspection of our garage door cables today in your honor.
Below: Inspecting Your Garage Door Cables – A little How-To from you friendly Garage Door Company
Inspect your cables with your door in both the up and closed position. Take a peek at the cables running along either side and look for any fraying or kinking at any point on the cable. We sometimes use a small flashlight to trace the cable for easier viewing. A frayed cable is unsafe and should be replaced. A kinked cable is usually indicative of a problem your garage door had during operation and should also be investigated.
If you happen to find either of these two issues please call us so we can help you determine the severity. NOTE: Please, we urge you, do not to attempt to replace garage door cables yourself. They are under heavy tension and can be dangerous. Please call a trained service company for this type of repair even if it’s not us.
The Overhead Door Help Line: (800) 281-5711
If they look straight, smooth, and intact you’re all set.
Nice Work!
Your Overhead Door Team
