Your garage door endures immense strain daily. You rely on it to open and close on demand, whether automatically or manually. With so many moving parts, it will eventually experience wear and tear. Garage door springs are particularly susceptible to breaking because they lift and lower the weighty door frequently.
If you have a broken garage door spring, AAA Garage Door is here to help — starting with this guide.
Types of Garage Door Springs
Garage doors typically have either torsion springs or extension springs. Torsion springs are located above the garage door, and they consist of rotating coils that counterbalance the door’s weight during operation. Extension springs are situated on the sides and counterbalance the garage door’s weight by expanding and contracting when in use.
Both spring types are long-lasting, enduring between 10,000 and 20,000 cycles. Although torsion springs are costlier, they provide double the amount of cycles as extension springs. You might start noticing signs of damage when they reach their end of life.
How to Tell if Your Spring Is Bad or Broken
Failure to open your garage door is a possible indication your spring is faulty or broken. While there may be other reasons it won’t open, you can inspect the spring’s condition by checking it for separation, elongation or stretchiness.
We strongly advise against physically touching or handling garage door springs due to the increased risk of injury and even death. Always consult a professional garage door contractor for help inspecting your springs.
In the meantime, you can check out other signs of bad or broken springs without engaging physically. These include:
- Inspecting components inside the garage: Components such as the pulleys, rollers, cables and springs work together to open and close the door. If any of these parts are damaged, the spring may break under the door’s weight.
- Checking for loss of tension: Springs operate with tension. Sagging and other visible signs of tension loss could indicate worn springs that need replacing.
- Performing a force-setting test: To perform a force-setting test of an automatic door, open it and place an object at the bottom as it slowly closes. The door has a sensor that should reverse upon contact with any object. If the door continues closing and doesn’t reverse to its open position, contact a professional right away — this might indicate an issue with the springs or the safety mechanism.
- Manually opening the garage door: Disconnect your automatic opener and lift the door manually. If the springs are working optimally, you’ll experience little to no resistance when you do. If the door opens with difficulty, it may be due to faulty or broken springs.
Can You Open a Garage Door With a Broken Spring?
We advise against handling a garage door with a broken spring. If you try to use the remote, excessive force may cause the motor to burn out. Manually moving the door is dangerous without the appropriate tools and experience. Safety is always a priority, and we recommend seeking help from experienced contractors before opening the door yourself.
How to Open a Garage Door With a Broken Spring
If you’re set on opening your garage door despite the broken spring, you can try the following.
1. Get Helping Hands
Avoid manually opening your garage door alone, especially if the spring is broken. Before starting, ask someone strong to assist you.
2. Detach the Garage Door Opener
Find the red emergency release cord and pull it down to detach the garage door opener from the door mechanism. Once disconnected, you can manage the door manually.
3. Safeguard the Door
Keep the door in place using a vice grip or heavy wooden block to prevent it from falling.
4. Lift the Door
With your assistant’s help, lift the door from the bottom using your full body strength. You can work together to lift it in sections, using supporting objects to secure the door. Remove them carefully at each section until the door is completely open.
5. Secure the Tracks
Once open, place C-clamps between the rollers and tracks to keep the door from sliding closed.
How to Close a Garage Door With a Broken Spring
Closing the garage door requires the same steps as opening it but in reverse. Here’s what you’ll do.
1. Find Help
Ask someone to help close the garage door by pulling it down manually. You and the person helping you should stand on opposite ends to hold the bottom corners.
2. Pull the Garage Door Down
Work in unison to slowly steer the garage door out of the horizontal rails that kept it secure, moving it down until it closes. Don’t let the door close hard or abruptly to avoid damage to components like the cables, tracks and motor.
3. Reattach the Garage Door Opener
Reconnect the garage door opener to the door mechanism. This process requires effort and may be difficult to do alone. We suggest calling a reliable garage door company to assist with your broken springs to avoid potential injury or damage.
Contact AAA Garage Door for Garage Door Spring Repairs
If left unresolved, a bad or broken spring can cause long-term issues. Avoid them by contacting a trustworthy, expert garage door contractor like AAA Garage Door. We’ll inspect your garage door and the springs and provide an overall assessment. We’ll then swiftly replace any broken springs so you can use your garage door as intended.
Call us at 402-307-8013 or request our repair service online to get started.
