Will you be bringing a baby home from the hospital soon? If so, you probably know that a newborn requires roughly 16 - 17 hours of sleep a day, and you're probably spending much of your time trying to create a calm, quiet environment so those sleep needs aren't disrupted. You may have requested that your family and friends only call your house during certain hours or yanked the batteries from the coo-coo clock on your wall. You might be trying to train your dog to not bark at the mailman in preparation of your new family member's sleep schedule, but have you thought about quieting your garage door? 

Garage doors can get pretty loud when they're not maintained, and if your garage is attached to your house, there's a good chance any squeaks or bangs its door produces will be heard from inside your home. Here are some tips to keep your garage door quiet so it doesn't interfere with your newborn baby's sleep needs.

Kill The Vibrations

Start your garage door quieting plan by tightening every single screw and bolt on your garage door assembly. Loose components can cause your garage door to rattle more than necessary when it is opened and closed. Check your garage door owner's manual to find out what screwdrivers or wrenches you'll need to get the job done.

The plastic cover over your garage door opener's motor is a notorious source of noisy vibrations. For this problem, you can purchase rubber adhesive strips that fit in-between the motor and its cover. The strips work to cushion the cover from banging on the motor while the door is in operation. Just visit your local hardware store and ask for a chassis cover isolator kit. 

Consider Switching To Nylon Rollers

Your garage door's rollers are the little wheel-shaped pieces that slide up and down the track. Rollers come in steel and nylon. While steel rollers are great for longevity (lasting up to 20 years), they're absolutely terrible when it comes to noise control. If you want your garage door to operate quietly enough to not wake a sleeping baby, it's best to opt for nylon rollers. Nylon rollers need to be replaced every few years, but you can always switch back to steel rollers once your little one's sleep schedule is cemented. 

Lubricate Moving Parts

If too much friction exists between the moving parts of your garage door, the result is an awful screeching or scraping noise. To make sure your baby isn't startled awake by such sounds, lubricate all moving parts of your garage door thoroughly. You'll want to use regular engine oil for this task; grease will gum up and cause problems. Just dip a cloth in a small amount of oil and use it to gently wipe your garage door, tracks, hinges, and chains (if your garage door has them).

If your garage door opener has springs above the tracks on both sides of the door, then it uses extension springs and you can go ahead and oil these, too. If, however, the door only has one spring that is located above the center of the door, then it uses a torsion spring. Do not attempt to oil a torsion spring yourself. These springs store energy and can be very dangerous to anybody not trained to work on them. Contact a garage door specialist to assist you with oiling a torsion spring door.

Nylon rollers don't require lubrication, so if you've installed them, don't worry about lubricating them. If you're still using steel rollers, however, they'll require oil, too.

If you're trying to eliminate unnecessary noises around your house in preparation of bringing home a baby, don't forget about your garage door. Of course, if you find yourself too busy to perform the above maintenance tips, don't hesitate to call a garage door specialist and ask them to do some garage door noise-proofing for you.

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