Removing counterweighted (by concrete blocks) garage door

[wahahey]

Not sure if this is the right category for this, but here goes:

I'd really appreciate some advice on how to go about removing an old counterweighted garage door.

It is an old single-skin steel door, minus half that skin and minus the frame. By that I mean there is no frame around the actual door. There is also no frame around the doorway, but I don't think that is relevant to my query. Don't ask me how it ended up in this condition, I don't know!
On each side it is counterweighted by a block of concrete. These are bolted onto levering arms.
The half-door is currently staying up/open thanks to the counter weighted blocks.

Now, my concerns are twofold:
1. If I can release the blocks (by unbolting / cutting the metal), how do I stop them crashing down onto me/the concrete floor (possibly damaging it/me)
2. Where will the rest of the door go when it is no longer counter balanced? How heavy is it likely to be, and is it likely to be too heavy for one person to deal with?

Advice appreciated. I'm fairly confident at giving things a go when I understand what is involved, but I find working out things like this a bit tricky and I can see the potential for real danger!

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• wahahey
• 19 Nov 2014
• 1

 

[Deleted member 174758]

Welcome!

If I can release the blocks (by unbolting / cutting the metal), how do I stop them crashing down onto me/the concrete floor (possibly damaging it/me)

Build a temporary staging just below the level of the block - could be anything, but on site I'd whip a couple of plasterers trestles and a couple of scaffold planks. You could lash-up something temporary like that from 3 x 2 stud with some 18mm chipboard for the top (possibly two layers). plywoods That way you are only drpping the weight a few inches and there's a lot less chance of damage or injury

Where will the rest of the door go when it is no longer counter balanced?

A lot of these doors also have springs. If so they need to be removed as well - with care. Has yours? If the counterbalance weights come off I wouldn't expect the door to clos if it's already open, so you'll need to jam a washing pole (or piece of studding) between the bottom edge of the door and the grond to stop that

How heavy is it likely to be, and is it likely to be too heavy for one person to deal with?

I doubt that the weights are over 50kg. A sheet of MDF weighs hat, and even I, the original stick insect can manhandle those off a lorry and onto site. If you reduce the drop onto the staging, you could always just push the so and so off the staging to the floor if needs be

 

[wahahey]

Thanks JobAndKnock

There are no springs - just weights, as far as I can see.

The staging sounds like a good idea. I might need to improvise using whatever I can find in the shed, but that seems sound advice.

I'm wondering whether I should use some ratchet straps to keep the door in position while I take the weight off. That way I can safely release the straps a bit at a time - especially if I anchor them to one of the old roof joists further down the garage (did I mention it currently has no roof? )

Having done that I suppose it will be a bit easier to work out how to remove the door itself.

 

[Jackrae]

On the basis that the weights are to balance the door weight, I might consider either closing the door or fitting some form of stop mechanism before you remove the weights, otherwise there's nothing to prevent it crashing down

 

[wahahey]

In case anyone else has a similar problem and is scratching their head like I was...

Stage 1:

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

use ratchet straps to hold the door in place while counterweights removed (using cheap angle grinder and thinnest available metal cutting discs). Used an old workbench to stop the weights dropping on me/the concrete floor. N.B. each weight must be over 10kg, probably 15kg - quite glad I didn't assume they were lighter!

Stage 2:

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

carefully/slowly remove the straps, one at a time, and 'manage' the movement of the door - it swung 180 degrees as you might expect, so that all the weight was at the bottom.

Stage 3:

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

move workbench under door and carefully cut door away from pivot point on garage side wall.

Stage 4:

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• wahahey
• 10 Dec 2014
• 1

move bench under centre of door and cut the door away from the other pivot point. At this point the door will come crashing down. As you can see from the pictures, I was helped by having a lop-sided bench, which meant I could work from outside the garage, safely drop the door onto the bench, and it simply slid away from me into the garage.

I'm sure having someone else to help might have been better, but they might just have got in the way or been showered with sparks of molten metal