Garage Door Repair Mount Laurel - Identifying Garage Door Spring Issues

Garage doors are complex mechanisms that contain hundreds, even thousands of parts. Many of these parts are moving and some are electrical (like the motor and the sensors). Also, there are various parts that are under constant tension when the door is in operation. For example, the garage door motor and the garage door springs are under a lot of stress each time you open of close your garage door. The garage door opener is also one of the parts that are under constant stress. However, the most solicited parts of the door are the springs. These parts are designed to last for thousands, even tens of thousands of cycles. However, with poor maintenance, their lifespan can be quite short – especially if you use the garage door several times daily. And remember, some garage door springs will last more than others, depending on their manufacturer and their quality. Of course, springs that last more are also generally more expensive.

What Are Garage Door Springs?

But what are these garage door springs that we are talking about? The garage doors springs are actually pretty simple things. They are two parts that are designed to make your door light enough for you to be able to lift it using only your two hands. They somehow counterbalance the weight of the door. This makes it very simple for the garage door opener and the garage door motor to raise and lower the door. These parts would not support the heavy weight of the door in case the springs would snap. And this is exactly why you want to make sure the springs on your garage door are in perfect working order. If they break, the garage door opener or the garage door motor could get damaged. In addition, you will not be able to open or close the heavy garage door.

The Two Types of Garage Door Springs

There are two types of garage door springs on the market today: torsion springs and extension springs. The torsion springs are designed to use torque to open and close your garage door. They are usually placed above the garage opening and work by twisting and coining inside their shafts when the motor is working. Extension springs are usually placed on both sides of the doors, on the ceiling. They work by extending to counterbalance the weight of your garage doors. Extensions springs are the most popular of the two spring types. However, extension springs are also the more dangerous of the two because they have many more exposed parts than the torsion springs. If an extension spring snaps, it can cause serious damage to property and can even put a human’s life in danger. This is why you want to make sure that the springs on your garage door are free of any kind of damage.

How to Identify Problems With Garage Door Springs

You want to be safe in your garage. You want your family and your children to be out of harm’s way. This is why you want to ensure that the springs on your garage door are working flawlessly and that there are no signs of fatigue. Remember, neither torsion nor extensions springs are designed to last for a lifetime. They will start to deteriorate in time due to wear and tear. You can, of course, prolong the life of your garage door springs by applying lubricants periodically or by contracting a garage door expert to perform all the necessary maintenance procedures from time to time. However, the springs will eventually fail. And you need to learn how you can spot sings of fatigue.

The first thing you should look after are signs of wear. If the garage door suddenly becomes squeaky or if it starts to make strange noises (especially screeching noises), the springs may be the problem. If the door is not operating smoothly, again the garage doors may be at fault. Of course, in case one or both springs are damaged badly, the garage door will simply refuse to open or close. Remember that the opener and the motor do not have enough power to lift and close the heavy door without help from the springs.

Always inspect the springs with the garage door closed so that there is no pressure on these parts. You definitely don’t want one of the springs to snap while you are standing there looking at it. During the inspection, make sure that none of the springs show signs of wear and tear. Make sure there is no separation in the spring. Check to see if there is any kind of loss of tension in either spring. If there is a loss of tension, the springs become elongated or stretched out.

Test to see if you can open and close the door manually. If you have an automatic opener, disconnect it before running the test. Try to open the door manually from inside the garage. If everything is in proper working order, you will be able to relatively easily open the garage door with nothing more than your two hands. Also, keep in mind that a fully functional door will remain open.

Can You Fix the Problems Yourself?

If you find any problems with the springs on your garage door, you may ponder the possibility that you can repair the springs yourself. Do not even attempt to do it. If you don’t know what you are doing and don’t use the proper tools and equipment, you can get serious injured. Keep in mind that people have been severely injured by extension springs while doing do-it-yourself repairs on these dangerous parts. The springs are under a lot of stress and they are very dangerous to handle if you are not an expert.

If you notice any problems with your garage door springs (torsion or extension), you need to call a garage door repair expert. Here at Garage Door Repair Mount Laurel in Mount Laurel, NJ we have just the professionals you are looking for. All our garage door repair experts are certified and have extensive experience replacing torsion and extension springs in complete safety.