You walk out to your garage and jump in the car to make a quick run to the grocery store. Upon pushing the button on the garage door opener remote, however, you find that you have a situation to deal with; your door isn't opening correctly. When the door won't open, you can't get your car out, which means you're pretty much stranded at home without a vehicle. You might be wondering, how can something like this happen? How can a garage door that seemed fine before be malfunctioning now? A number of things could be at the root of the issue.

For instance, your garage door could have finally succumbed to water damage. When the inside of your door takes on water, it can bend and warp garage door repair Orange County CA , eventually, become more difficult to open. This is one reason why it's important to make sure the foot of your garage door is protected from water by placing a rubber protective covering over it. This covering can also cushion the contact between your door and the surface of the ground.

Another way your door can become damaged is through contact, either from a vehicle or a person. When something with force hits your door, it can not only damage the door itself, but also the track that keeps the door in place and guides it as it opens. Someone pulling up to a closed garage door can accidentally bump it and cause damage, as can someone outside playing sports who runs into the door chasing a ball.

A third source of garage door damage is one that isn't as common but can creep up nonetheless -- animals. Rodents such as rats and mice will occasionally chew their way into your garage through the garage door, and the little bit of damage they do can make the rest of your door more vulnerable to further damage.

And then, of course, there are the common damages that a door can sustain from wear and tear after long periods of time. The springs connected to the door of your garage can break and put a strain on other parts of the opener, which in turn can cause those parts to become damaged more quickly. On the motorized opener side of things, you could experience issues with gears and pulleys.

All of these issues can be taken care of with a call to an experienced garage door repair specialist. You can usually find one of these companies in the phone book or through an online search. If you aren't experiencing a problem now, it still might be a good idea to contact a company and have them do a routine checkup of your door to make sure everything is functioning properly and no parts are worn and ready to break. It could save you some headaches later if your car ends up stuck in the garage.