garage door spring

[Chuck52]

The spring on one of my garage doors broke. About 2" broke off from the adjustable end of the spring. I thought there might be enough of the spring left to do the job, so I cut off the broken end and tried tightening what was left. No go. If it has any spring left with the door up, it is way too tight with the door down. So....can I buy a replacement spring? Looks like the rod can be removed from the end bearings, so I could slide a new spring on?

Chuck

 

[Travelover]

Garage door springs for do-it-yourself garage door repairs

Most local places won't sell you the parts due to the dangers involved with working with large springs.

 

[Nissan197]

I bought one at Orscheln's last year. I believe ACE Hardware also has them in stock.

 

[ultrarunner]

I just started seeing them at one of the local home improvement stores... in the past, I had to order the roll up door springs on the net.

 

[k0ua]

I got mine from Overhead Door, you will need the 2 rods (make em or buy em) to "cock" or "windup" the spring. just keep your body parts as much out of the path of the rods if you should slip as you can. It is very dangerous, I have done it a couple of times through the years, but never enjoyed doing it. Kinda like handling a rattlesnake, it's gotta be done, but don't get comfortable doing it.

James K0UA

 

[Chuck52]

Thanks, guys. I think one of the garage door places in town may sell me a spring. I kind of remember buying some parts from them for one of the doors in my old house. "Kind of remember" means it was a few years ago and therefor no longer well represented in my apparently increasingly volatile memory. However, I do have the impression that they were pretty helpful.

I got the old spring off, so I can drag it around to get a perfect fit. Only about two inches broke off, and I bet if I messed with it a while I could make the remaining part work, but it doesn't make much sense to spend the time on a part that has already broken once.

There's a pretty good U-Tube of a guy changing a spring and it says for a seven foot door you need about seven turns of the spring for lift, plus an extra turn to keep tension on the cable drums when the door is up. Also seems like you can add a turn or two to make the lift easier.

Should be fun.

Chuck

 

[Mousefield]

Had one of ours break earlier this year. Had a professional come in and replace both. Figure if one breaks the other might not be far behind and as well keeps the same tension on the double garage door. It can be dangerous work to do. I was surprised at the reasonable cost for changing out both springs. At the same time he changed out a couple of the panel rollers as well and lubed the rest.
Operates much quieter now. :thumbsup:

 

[BleedingOrange]

One of mine broke as well. Went in and had a chat with our local garage door guys, and they were very helpfully. Basically they said that for residential, the springs are good for approximately 10,000 cycles, and that to keep everything in balance, they should be changed in pairs. They determine the size of springs required based on the weight of the door. About 100 bucks for all the parts up this way. Definately NOT a job for the clutsy types amoung us. Its not just the spring assemblies that have to be rewound, the cables on each side of the door have to be positioned correctly as well, so mark those with a marker before disassembly. Mark the distance from the end of the rod, and the relative position of the wheel position on the rod as well. It will save you some grief as your trying to put it all back together. Oh, by the way, I changed those cables as well at the same time because they were only about 6 bucks each. If your doing it yourself, be very careful. And make sure you remove your vehicles from the garage before you start, if you can get the door up to get them out. I lubed up all the rollers and track with fluid film, and it rolls much quieter. Good luck, and again, be very careful.

 

[kenmac]

Just had both of mine replaced by garage door company. $210.00. Couldn't find any place that would sell me the springs. They say something about the weight of the door determinds the spring size. I have a 20ft. metal door but have no idea about the weight. Good luck & be careful if you replace yourself

 

[KennyG]

I've bought replacements at Lowes with no problem. They can be bought on line with no problem. Easy to replace. I also suggest replacing both at the same time for balance.

 

[not2old]

I've bought springs from Overhead Door. They make them to order if you want, and can provide new ones that will last a lot longer. I was going through springs every 2 to 2.5 years before they gave me the heavier ones which have lasted for years. Just be careful that you don't order ones that are too heavy duty. The last ones I put in weighed 50 lbs. each, were very difficult to install, and sagged almost too much in the centre.

 

[whistlepig]

I had two off brand overhead doors installed many years ago and they would break spring about every two years. I have three overhead doors now that were made by Overhead Door that are 12 years old now and still have the original springs.

 

[5030]

Loosing your grip on the tightening rods is tantamount to getting sucker punched by gorilla. The guy across the road lost his teeth, broke his jaw and generally improved his appearance by letting go of a rod while tightening the spring......

I have the old style side spring doors. When they let go, the just go through the sheet rock.

 

[inveresk]

In our neck of the woods there are no problems in sourcing springs. I'd be surprised if they weren't available your area. When I had to replace one of mine, I had to take the broken spring with me - the duty is stamped on it, or some such thing. There's no need to weigh the garage door. In a two spring door, they're also wound in opposite directions, I seem to recall. Google search and you'll find a supplier but he'll probably want to see the broken spring.

 

[2458n]

Garage door springs are like any thing else -you can buy good ones if you want. The wire size and the number of coils all effect the amount of lift. When properly sprung a garage door should only require 10 lbs. of lift to get it to raise. The drums on the end of the rods are also different in that you have a left and right side as well as different diameters. Buy two new springs and if you use the door alot get the higher cycle springs. Take your old springs when getting the replacements so the person getting the new ones for you knows what you need. Winding bars are very important and screwdrivers or jack handles should never be used.

 

[Chuck52]

My doors have one spring each. They are darn heavy doors. Look like steel over wood. I have the old spring off and will take it with me to get a replacement. I did play with the left over part of the spring, trying to make it work, so I have a pretty good feel for the effort required to wind the spring. I had some rod stock of the right diameter to use as tools fortunately. I plan to check the big box stores first to see if I can find a replacement, but I think one of the local garage door stores may be my ultimate source unless I have to order on line.

So far I've only poked a hole in one thumb and scraped the back of the same hand during the removal process. Pretty good for me! If I end up in the hospital I'll be sure to have my wife bring me my laptop so I can report to the group!

Chuck

 

[Chuck52]

I got an exact replacement from a local company and installed it in about an hour and a half. As many said, it is good to have the correct tools, including two 1/2" rods. I followed a U-tube video pretty closely and had no problems at all. I think my old spring failed at least as much from not being lubricated as from fatigue. I kept the rollers and hinges oiled, but I never thought about oiling the torsion spring....it is pretty obvious it should be lubricated now that I've worked on one, but oiling a spring that is not in a cylinder just never occurred to me I guess.

I think if I had an old torsion spring under tension I might be somewhat leery of working on it, since it or the winding cone could potentially decide to break while you are working on it. A new spring with new cones is less worrying, if you pay attention to what you are doing. Since most springs are probably replaced as a result of breaking, that takes care of that worry.

I also oiled the spring on my second door since I now know how important it is. After a minor adjustment of one rail, that door, which is manual, opens and closes so easily I have to be careful not to slam it.

Thanks to all for the help and suggestions.

Chuck