Service it in the dry
Townsville is in the dry tropics: most of the rain falls in a six-month wet season from November to April, and the winter months are mostly fine. Townsville Aero averages 9.9 mm of rain in September against 312.9 mm in February, which makes the dry months the time to book a service.
A service is also when the parts that matter in a cyclone get looked at. In the Yasi damage survey, roller door failures usually began with the curtain pulling out of its guides, and doors with wind locks did better. Ask for the wind locks, the guides and their fixings to be checked.
Salt air off Cleveland Bay
Townsville sits on Cleveland Bay, with Magnetic Island 8 km offshore. The Queensland Reconstruction Authority says salty, moist coastal air can corrode metal connections quickly, and that homes close to the ocean need inspecting and maintaining more often than those inland. On a garage door those connections are the hinges, rollers, brackets and tracks.
When the power goes
Cyclone Kirrily left nearly 34,000 homes and buildings without power in January 2024, most of them in Townsville, and the Reconstruction Authority's cyclone category table lists a risk of power failure from Category 2. If your opener has no battery, everyone at home should know the manual release.
Merlin's guide says to pull the red cord down firmly once to disconnect the opener, and warns that an open door can fall fast if its springs are weak or broken. It also says never to drag the door with the cord, because the cord will snap under the load.
After a flood
The 2019 monsoon flood damaged about 3,300 Townsville homes, with Rosslea, Hermit Park and Idalia among the worst hit. Floodwater in a garage reaches the bottom rail, the tracks and anything plugged in low, so have the door and opener checked before you run them again.
Springs are not a weekend job
Steel-Line says spring forces are generally equal to the weight of the door, and are released violently if a wound spring breaks. If one goes, Steel-Line's instruction is not to attempt a repair. Stop using the opener and leave the door down.
Repairs around Townsville
Close to the water
On Magnetic Island and along the bay front, plan on more frequent checks, as the Reconstruction Authority advises for homes near the ocean.
Flood-hit streets
In suburbs that went under in 2019, ask the door specialist to look at the bottom rail and seal as well as the opener.
Licences
In Queensland, building work valued over $3,300 needs a licence, which matters if a repair turns into a new door.
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Keep the tracks clean and free of oil
- Check the remote battery before calling about the motor
- Find the release cord before the cyclone season starts
- Watch the door close and listen for new noises
Leave to a door specialist
- Springs, cables and spring tension
- Wind locks, guides and the fixings behind them
- A door that has left its track
- New power points or hard wiring, by a licensed electrician
What we would do
Get the guides and wind locks checked as part of any repair before November. If a fixing has worked loose, the dry season gives time to put it right before the first cyclone warning.