A broken garage door spring, also known as a torsion spring, can be extremely dangerous. The average garage door has between three and five independent springs; each spring holds the weight of the garage door by exerting up to 400 pounds (180 kg) of force at its center. When a spring breaks, it becomes like a very long and sharp arrow that will shoot out from its coil with a force of more than 40 pounds (18 kg) per inch on the wire. Putting your hand or head in front of one of these springs is not recommended and may lead to serious injury or death.
In most cases, garage door repair technicians can replace broken springs safely on-site by taking several precautions. However, if the cables are also broken on the same garage door system, it may be safer to replace the entire unit so that you don’t have to worry about anybody getting injured by using the door improperly.
If you need assistance with your broken spring, consider hiring a professional garage door repair company like us to help you get back up and running with your garage.
Q: Why do I need new springs?
A: Your garage door may not open or close properly. If it does open but won’t close all the way, or if it crashes to the ground, then your garage door springs may be stretched out. Also, broken springs are a common cause of garage door injuries.
Q: What exactly are torsion springs?
A: Torsion springs are made from tempered steel and twisted to create the tension required to lift your garage door.
Q: How many torsion spring(s) does my garage door have?
A: Garage doors have one or two torsion springs, depending on the size of the garage door.
Q: How do I know if my torsion spring(s) are broken?
A: The most common symptoms are that your garage door is hard to open or close, becomes off-balance, becomes noisy, or will not stay in the up position. In the latter case, a broken spring could result in your garage door falling on you or your vehicle when you go to open it.