The use of garage doors for both residential and commercial purposes has become more popular as time passes by.
They have become an essential part of our daily lives that it is hard to imagine living in a world without them.
When your garage door stops moving or functioning, the most common reason for this is a broken garage door torsion spring.
Garage door torsion springs are important because they assist in lifting your garage doors open and at the same time they support the garage door’s weight.
However, in spite of the fact that shows how important they are, garage door torsion springs are often times taken for granted.
And when garage door torsion springs are neglected, they wear out a little bit faster than they normally would, which, by the way, can be really troublesome to the involved parties.
When your garage door’s spring breaks down on you, the best thing you should do is contact your local garage door repair company and ask for assistance.
Although doable, attempting to replace your broken garage door torsion spring by yourself can be risky and dangerous if not done properly.
Think you are more than capable to do the job yourself?
If you do, then here are some things you need to know about how to replace a broken garage door torsion spring.
Knowing when your torsion springs are worn-out
There are two different types of garage door springs and torsion springs are the ones located on the top of your garage doors.
They function as counterweights that support’s your overhead door’s weight whilst at the same time, giving your garage door the ability to open and close.
Compared to extension springs, torsion springs can be a little bit more challenging to deal with and as well as very dangerous.
If left unattended for a long time, this could cause a lot more other problems for your garage doors or even worst, result in accidents and injuries happening.
However, how exactly do we know if the torsion springs are no longer in the best condition for use?
Well, to answer that, here are some of the most common tell-tale signs that will tell us when it is time to have our garage door springs replaced.
Poor external conditions
The best way to tell whether your springs are still good to go or already needs to be replaced is through its appearance.
If your spring looks like it is about to crumble or break, then it is probably best to have it replaced right away.
See and check your spring’s physical conditions for any signs of wearing out such as stretching out or gap formation between coils and the like.
Garage door malfunctioning
Your garage door torsion springs are what makes it possible for your garage door to open and close.
So once it snaps or breaks, it can result in your overhead garage doors not working at all.
If you are worried about this, then here are some things you can check out when your garage doors are not working properly or malfunctioning:
- The garage door cannot keep itself open
- Unbalanced garage doors
- The top section of the garage door is misaligned
- Saggy garage door cables
- Garage door no longer opening
- The garage door opens/closes halfway
Yes, it is true that most of these factors can be caused upon by a lot of different things but when these tell-tale signs are present, it is mostly due to a damaged garage door torsion spring.
Check your garage door from time to time for any of the abovementioned signs so that you may be able to prevent it from escalating or have your springs replaced before things get to worst.
Noisy garage doors
Lastly, a good tell-tale sign that something is wrong with your garage door, and this one is not only limited to garage door springs, is if your garage door is making any unnecessary noises.
Usually, if your break snaps on you, it is indicated by a very loud bang, and with this, you know right away that your spring could’ve snapped.
Loud screeching noises during the opening and closing of your garage doors can also be tell-tale signs letting you know that your springs are starting to wear out.
So, when you hear loud noises from your garage door, always make sure to include and check your garage door springs, among all other parts, if they are still in good working condition.
How to replace a broken garage door torsion spring
Before knowing how to replace your damaged torsion springs, there are some things that we need to prepare beforehand in order to do these jobs successfully, and these are as follows:
- Winding bars
- Ladders
- VIse grips and/or c-clamps
- Wrench and Socket sets
Having these items prepared beforehand assures you that your chances of successfully completing the job are increased and better.
Now, once you have these all prepared, you can now go on and attempt repairing your broken garage door torsion springs.
Without further ado, here are the necessary steps you need to follow in order to successfully replace your garage door torsion springs.
- Before starting the task, make sure that your garage door is completely closed. This is done in order to release all the tension and stress previously being stored within your garage door springs. Once your garage doors are closed, unplug and disconnect your openers from your garage doors.
- Use the ladder to reach the spring you wish to replace and loosen the screws holding your garage door spring in place. To do this, place one of your winding bars on the hole found on the bottom side of the winding code, hold it firmly to prevent movement during the loosening of the screws, and then proceed to remove the screws themselves.
- Once your screws are out of the picture, you may now proceed to unwind your garage door springs. You can do this by alternately inserting your winding bars on the holes found on your winding cone and rotating the cone counter-clockwise.
- Next, remove the nuts and bolts connecting your spring to the center brackets of your garage doors. Then, detach your lift cables. Once all of that is done, you may now slide the spring towards the side brackets to remove them completely.
- Having completely removed your garage doors’ broken springs, you may now proceed to install the new garage door torsion springs. Repeat all the removal process above in reverse in order to install the replacement spring without any problems.
- After installing, lubricate your new garage door torsion springs.
- Lastly, check the overall functionality of your garage door after installing your replacement garage door springs. See if there are any problems that you need to address by manually opening and closing your garage doors back and forth and if there are, make sure to fix them accordingly.
- Reattach your garage door opener and plug them into the power source.
After doing the above procedures, you should have yourself a properly functioning overhead garage door.
If the procedures above seem to have left you a bit confused, you may refer to this video below to help you out with the whole replacement procedure.
Conclusion
Fixing your broken garage door torsion spring will require a lot of effort, time, and patience.
It is not something you can just do to pass time.
It needs to be done cautiously and properly in order to not only finish the task successfully but as well as to prevent unwanted accidents from happening.
If you are a complete beginner in this repairing business, then we recommend you not to attempt replacing the spring yourself and instead call your local garage door repair company to help you out.
If you are looking for a garage door repair company in Edmonton that can help you out with your garage door spring replacement problem, then we are the best option for you.
Legion garage door is a garage door repair company in Edmonton that provides 24/7 garage door repair services for both your residential and commercial garage door needs.
We are available to assist you any time of the day or week so you do not have to worry about contacting us even at the oddest hours of the day.
Aside from that, our company aims to only provide quality services for all your garage door related needs that are made to last.
This is so that you would not have to worry about the problem recurring any time soon.
We also offer other services aside from garage door repairs such as garage door installation, replacement, and maintenance.
What are you waiting for?
Pick up your phones now and contact our main offices for more information regarding our affordable rates and other services.
