Garage Door Torsion Spring Repair

brand new torsion springs

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What Type of Garage Door Counter Balance System do you have?

  • If you don’t see any springs above your garage door, just a oval tube -you have a  Wayne Dalton torque master system.
  • If you see 1 or 2 large springs above the garage door you have a torsion spring setup.
  • If you have springs on the side of the garage door you have – 1 Piece Garage Door Springs
  • If your Springs are above the horizontal track you have extension springs. (not very common – suggest replacing them with a standard torsion system)

torque-master-conversion -torsion springA garage door torsion spring counterbalance system consists of one or two tightly wound up springs on a steel shaft with cable drums at both ends. The entire apparatus mounts on the header wall above the garage door and has three supports: a center bearing plate with a steel or nylon bearing and two end bearing plates at both ends. The springs themselves consist of the steel wire with a stationary cone at one end and a winding cone at the other end. The stationary cone is attached to the center bearing plate. The winding cone consists of holes every 90 degrees for winding the springs and two set screws to secure the springs to the shaft.
Steel counterbalance cables run from the roller brackets at the bottom corners of the door to a notch in the cable drums. When the door is raised, the springs unwind and the stored tension lifts the door by turning the shaft, thus turning the cable drums, wrapping the cables around the grooves on the cable drums. When the door is lowered, the cables unwrap from the drums and the springs are rewound to full tension.

FAQ’s about Garage Door Torsion Springs

How do I know my torsion springs are broken?

If your garage door opener is struggling to lift the garage door you may have a broken spring. If you have a torsion system you can look above the garage door and see the spring is broken in half. On a Wayne Dalton torque master the springs are inside a oval tube so its harder to determine – but if you put your door in manual and it’s hard to lift then its probable that your spring is broken inside.

Why did my Garage Door Torsion Spring Break?
Torsion Springs break simply from use, the more you use the door, the sooner the springs will break. They usually last 8-10 years normal use.
Should I Replace Both Torsion Springs?
Yes! If one broke the other has had the same amount of use and should be replaced as well.
Are there any other parts I should change when the springs are changed?
Generally no…..a good garage door repair guy will take a look at the cables to see if they are frayed or damaged. Also the door should be looked over to make sure the door was installed correctly in the first place. It’s not uncommon to do a spring repair and find that the door was not leveled and shimmed correctly when originally installed. So often times we hear our customers saying ” Our door has never run so smooth”. We correct any problems before we install the new torsion springs.
We don’t like call backs so we do everything right the first time.

How to open a garage door with a broken spring?

We do not recommend opening the garage door with a broken torsion spring.
You can cause more damage to the garage door.  If you use the the operator to open the door with the spring broken, the weight of the door can cause the j-arm to strip out from the top section or worse bend the top section. It can also effect the garage door motor.

But if you absolutely have to open the garage door with a broken spring or springs. Here is how I would do it. First I look to see if there is still tension on the cables if its a dual torsion spring setup that is usually the case. If the cables are still set and everything is normal except the spring is broken. I will have someone push the garage door button(or I can hit the remote if I have it), I will be ready to lift as soon as the button is hit. What I am doing is doing the work of the spring and helping the door up. I would not try this on a garage with a loose cable or especially if one of the cables is off or broken.

If I see its a one torsion spring setup and its broken and there is no tension on the cables, then I would have to have a couple of strong people to help open the door and I would do it WITH THE OPERATOR DISCONNECTED on manual. We would lift and have some vise grips ready to clamp on the rail so the door cant come down.
I do not recommend opening the garage door with a broken torsion do so at your own risk. Call a professional. 

The Video Below- “Hidden Camera Investigation: Garage Door Repair Exposed”
by reporter Tony Kovaleski on ABC 7 News
Exposes how some garage door companies scam customers on torsion spring repairs.