Few homeowners forget what the noise of a breaking garage door spring sounds like. Equal parts gunshot and boom, it is exactly what you would expect something with weight and tension to sound like when it snaps in two. While you might think it is a simple repair job you can handle in an afternoon, you need to reconsider.
The entire weight of a single or double‑width garage door is put on the springs in the system. That translates to anything between 125 to 300 pounds for a single-width door (57 to 136kg) or much more. Should you have a garage double‑width door, it can around 16 feet wide (4.9m), and weigh much more than that single door. There is also the weight of the glass and framing for any windows.
This much weight alone shows that a repair job of any kind is never a DIY activity.
How garage door systems work
To better understand why you always want to get in touch with experts should a spring on the garage door break, it is important to know the basics of door openers. To begin with, there are two styles of openers that include torsion and extension.
The torsion styles are mounted above the door and connected to a tube-like structure. If the spring snaps, the tube part ensures that the spring remains suspended above the ground. There are two actual springs, and they rarely break at the same time.
The extension style has springs mounted over the horizontal tracks. These springs are connected to safety cables that serve to keep the springs from falling when or if they break.
How do the springs open the door? They don’t, but they do work as counterweight to the door, allowing you to manually open the door, and also reducing total weight to as little as eight to ten pounds (3.5 to 4.5 kg). Essentially, it is tension made by cables and springs that accommodate the weight and make it easier for the opener to continually lift and shut the doors.
Springs and their life span
The springs are the real workhorses of the whole operation, and basic systems have springs with a 10,000 cycle life span. The cycle is one opening and one closing. When used in the average way, a spring should last for five to seven years without much trouble. There are double life springs with 20,000 cycle life spans too.
You might think “Ten or twenty thousand cycles is more than five to seven years,” but just do the math. The average garage door opener is tasked to do its work at least four to six times each day, plus weekends. When there are kids and pets in a home, the number of cycles can increase substantially. Using six cycles per day puts the life span of a 10,000 cycle spring at roughly five years.
Can’t i do the replacement?
Springs last for five to seven years, and that might make you want to do the replacements on your own. But stop to consider all of the tension it would take for a spring to do its job. It has to counteract the weight of a very heavy door, and it is not a task that you should take lightly.
When a garage door opener is at work, there are many factors that depend on the spring. Whether extension or torsion, a lot can go wrong if the spring fails. Consider that both systems operate in a similar manner. There are the springs connected to a drum that winds up the cables connected to durable brackets at the bottom of the door. Close a door and look at the cables; they are extremely taught.
When you open the door with the opener, the springs go to work to offset all of that weight and help the drum wind up the cables safely. In doing so, the system is lifting from 125 to 250 pounds (110kg) at minimum. That means they have to have enough strength to lift this much or more. Most rely on ½ or ¾ HP motors to do that pulling, but there is also the same amount of force needed to get the doors down. This can make garage doors with broken springs very dangerous indeed.
What should you do?
If you heard that unforgettable boom of a spring snapping, get the door closed safely using the opener. Keep everyone away from the door in case it closes abruptly. Then unplug the system and contact uss immediately to make an emergency repair.
How can you avoid this scenario
It is easy to avoid such risks by doing a bit of twice-annual maintenance. Begin with a visual inspection to be sure no parts are loose, and then do a lubrication of all metal parts – especially those that contact other parts. Springs, rollers and hinges are the biggest areas to give attention each spring and at the end of fall.
You will need to use oil for metal and simply apply small amounts, wiping away excess oil with a dry cloth. This simple task will cut down on rust and even the amount of noise the door makes when in use. This sort of upkeep may also extend the life of the springs.
Do we do this?
Certainly! We will come to your home and do a 28‑point check‑up on your garage doors, inspecting them for any issues, making repairs and doing a full lubrication.
If we find that doors or openers need repairs, we let you know what is needed and what it will cost, and only then do we do the work. We also let you know about the condition of the doors overall and help you to decide if it is time to upgrade or update.
To book an inspection or annual maintenance, plan a service call online or contact us at 709-368-7222 to get a free quote. Thinking of getting a new door? Just use our Design Centre to get inspiration.
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