What to do if the door is crooked?

If the door is crooked, whether it is a sectional garage door that is uneven when closed or a swinging door that is tilted, you should stop using it and fix the underlying imbalance to prevent damage and safety hazard. For a crooked garage door, first stop using the automatic opener and pull the red emergency release cord to disconnect opener, as running a crooked door can damage opener gears, bend panels, or cause door to go completely off track. Secure the door by clamping locking pliers onto tracks just below rollers on both sides to prevent it from falling, as crooked doors are unstable and can slam down. Inspect for common causes: broken cable on one side causing slack, broken torsion spring making one side heavy, loose or bent vertical tracks, or worn rollers binding. If cable is off drum or frayed, do not try to reseat it yourself unless experienced with high tension springs, as releasing spring tension requires winding bars and is dangerous; call professional for cable repair costing 150 to 300 dollars. If tracks are loose, tighten mounting bolts and ensure tracks are plumb. For interior or exterior swinging door that is crooked, check hinges for loose screws, tighten them, and use longer screws to pull hinge into framing. After temporary securing, call professional for realignment costing 100 to 300 dollars, which includes balancing and testing to ensure door moves level.