Just saw how door track adjustment stops that jerky start

I was working on an old elevator in a apartment complex last week. The tenants kept saying the ride was rough at the start. I checked the door guides and found they were out of line. After a quick adjustment with my level, the elevator moved so much smoother. It made me think how often we miss small fixes for big problems. Now I always check alignment first on call backs. Anyone else have similar stories?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_matthew4d ago

Classic case of tenants thinking the elevator's haunted when it's just a wonky track. They probably blamed everything from bad vibes to the building's foundation. All it took was a two minute level check to stop the ghost in the machine.

caleb_thomas4d ago

You ever notice how people jump to the weirdest conclusions before checking the simple stuff? I mean, last year our office elevator would groan like it was possessed, turns out some grit got in the guide shoe. Ghost my butt.

oscarc124d ago

You ever see how a warped sill or worn bottom guide can throw the whole alignment off? Spot on, @the_matthew, they think it's a ghost when it's usually a 5mm gap. Last month I fixed a similar jerk by shimming the track header where the bolts had shaken loose. People were ready to condemn the motor, but it was just the door dragging on the carpet edge.