Fix for a Garage Door Stopping Half Way Up. Craftsman Opener Stops in Cold Weather


Does your garage door only go up half way then stop? Here is a solution. I have a Sears Craftsman Automatic Garage Door opener that would stop half way up when it got really cold out. There are several possible reason why this would happen, but let's assume the circuit board is fine and dig into the most probable reasons.
Number 1, the plastic gears may have shaved enough plastic off (see inside the case for white "snow" shavings piled up) and they no longer are tight enough to lift the door. If this is the case, you can buy a replacement gear kit for about $25 or less online. It is not too difficult to replace the plastic gears and takes about 45 minutes.
Number 2, the cold weather has expanded the metal rails a bit and now your opener thinks there is something in the way so it stops the door. This is the easiest fix, just move the force control (little knob sticking out of the unit) a quarter turn towards the up arrow. This will let it have more force to push the door past the increased resistance of the cold/expanded rails. ....... ........................ . Number 3, if there is lubricant on the gears inside the box, it may be gummed up because of the extreme cold. Look at the gears and clean off about 80% of the old gear grease and spray some white lithium grease (found at any hardware store) on the gears. Also, spray some of the rails at about the halfway point in order to decrease the resistance. More than likely one of these three fixes will solve your issue if it is happening in extreme cold. Let me know if this helped you solve your frustrating garage door issue.

Looking for a New Mattress, HELP! Confusing World of Latex, Foam, & Springs. Tuft & Needle?


Our current mattress is an 11yr old Sealy Posturepedic pillowtop that has become uncomfortable. Grooves have formed over the years of where our bodies typically lie and the support just isn't there. My wife and I both prefer a firm mattress and are both side sleepers. Right now, I am torn between going with another old style of spring mattress or trying a memory foam type. That is where the confusion comes in. Looking online, there are several companies with very high ratings (Tuft & Needle, Casper, Leesa, etc) and it is really difficult to initially decide who to go with having never seen or laid on the mattress. The return policies look very good with all the foam style mattress companies so I don't feel that would be a major factor. I guess the benefits of going with a traditional mattress (Sealy, Serta, Simmons) is that I know what they are like and would be happy for a while (until the sag sets in eventually). The memory foam style mattress like a Tuft & Needle 10 inch uses their proprietary foam that has a 10yr warranty but i don't think there is a 10yr history on how that foam will hold up. the good news is that the Tuft & Needle 10 inch Queen mattress is very affordable at $600 compared to some similar mattresses at about $1000. I guess I have some more research and decisions to make before I decide what we will sleep on for the next 10 years....wish me luck