If you’re familiar with how your garage door system operates, you’ll know that springs play a very important role. Without them, you’d have a garage door that could not lift itself. While the opener powers movement, the springs take on the physical role of moving the garage door and carrying its weight. With this type of labor-intensive role, garage door springs have a limited lifespan.
Garage door spring replacement is a mandatory action that needs to be taken when springs snap so that your garage door can begin working properly again. Spring replacement is also incredibly dangerous because garage door springs carry loaded tension that can explode at any moment. Spring replacement has a rightful reputation of being too treacherous for the average homeowner. If you’re inexperienced, you could install the springs incorrectly and wreak further havoc in your garage. It could also expose you to pretty severe injuries, which is why we recommend that you leave garage door spring replacement to the expert team at J.A.G. and Sons Overhead Door.
Types of Springs
First, understanding the different types of springs can help give you some perspective. The type of garage door springs you have will determine the maintenance they need and how long their average lifespan is. It’s also important to know how they function and where they sit inside your garage.
Torsion Springs
Torsion springs are most commonly used in residential garages. For a lightweight garage door, one spring should be substantial. Typically, a standard torsion spring will be mounted to a bracket on a shaft above the garage door. If two torsion springs are needed, they will also be mounted to the bracket above the garage door. Two torsion springs can be a better option, because they make the garage door safer, especially in the case that one spring breaks.
Torsion springs will balance the garage door by applying torque, a type of rotational force, to the shaft. This shaft has drums attached to each end, which connect to cables that run along the side of the garage door. As the garage door opens and closes, the torsion spring will wind and unwind to balance out the weight. There are three characteristics of torsion springs that determine the lift and cycle life: wire size, inside diameter, and length. The lift, determined by torque, will tell how much weight the spring is capable of lifting. The cycle life is the number of times the garage door can open and close before the spring breaks. The average torsion spring has a lifespan of about 10,000-15,000 cycles.
Extension Springs
Extension springs are usually mounted along the sides of the garage door. They stretch and extend as the door operates to take on the weight. They usually come in pairs of two, which will sit on each side of the door. Commercial doors, however, often have multiple extension springs on each side. Extension springs will come with open loops, closed loops, or clipped ends to secure the spring to the garage track. Sectional garage door extension springs are the most common type installed. They pull on the cables to counterbalance the garage door as it moves.
Wayne Dalton Springs
Wayne Dalton designed a set of TorqueMaster torsion springs to operate safer than the average torsion spring. These springs are nested inside a shaft by way of a stationary cone. Cable drums will support the ends of the shaft, and a center support bracket has a circular piece that sits in the center of the shaft. When the garage door opens, this piece rotates with the shaft and remains in the bracket. As a specialized spring, Wayne Dalton springs are not as common and we frequently perform torsion spring conversions to transition this over to a standard spring system.
Signs Your Springs Need to be Replaced
- Garage door won’t open or close.
- Garage door moves at an angle.
- Garage door slams shut.
- Garage door opens and reverses.
- Garage door is heavy when you try to manually open it.
- Garage door has loose or fallen cables.
- Garage door springs are elongated.
- Garage door makes strange noises.
- Garage door spring coils have 3-4 inch gaps.
Garage Door Spring Replacement Near You
Do your garage door springs need to be replaced? If you’re nearing the end of their lifespan, it’s important to schedule garage repair quickly. If not replaced, they can pose a danger to your system, even causing the garage door to slam shut unexpectedly. Call us for the best garage door spring replacement near you!
