Questions and Answers

Is it possible to have a garage door without the need for a torsion spring?
my garage door has been broken for quite some time now and i want to get it fixed. however, i don’t want to have the liability issues with getting a new torsion spring replaced by a professional. is there a different type of door i can install instead?

Posted by Josh

Admin:

Garage doors must have springs or counterweights to operate properly. You can replace torsion springs by yourself, you just have to be careful. Get a ladder and measure both pieces of the broken spring. Measure only the spring wire, not the cones (ends). Add that together for your spring length. Measure the inside diameter. Measure the length of 10 loops of the spring wire. Note if the spring is on the left or right side of the door. Make sure your accurate. If possible, remove the broken spring and take it to the garage door company. With these measurements any garage door company can get you a new spring. To replace, remove spring tension from any remaining springs. Standard torsion springs can be sprung and un-sprung with a pair of 1/2″ steel bars. Put one steel bar into the winding hole on the spring cone and loosen the bolts holding the spring. On a standard door the spring bar will want to travel downward while under tension. Using the bars, unwind the spring. Loosen the bolts holding the spool in place. That’s the part that the cables wind up onto. Remove the bolts holding the springs to the spring wall bracket. Push the bar toward the spool you loosened to remove one end of the bar. Pull the bar back toward you to remove the spring bar from the wall. Some spring brackets may have to be removed from the wall. Remove the broken spring from the bar and replace with new. Reassemble the spring bar assembly. Make sure the spools are tight to the bearings. Make sure the door is level. If it is not, use a pry bar and level the door. Replace the cable on the spool you did not loosen first. Use a pair of vice grips to hold the bar in place. Put the other cable back on and put the same amount of tension on the cable as is on the other side. Bolt the springs back together and wind the springs. As a rule of thumb it should be 1 full turn per height of the door + 1/4 to 1/2 turn. The springs should wind upward on a standard door. Make sure you tighten the bolts on the springs firmly. Some spring wall brackets are not compatible with certain cones. Measure the holes from center to center and the diameter of the holes. I will note that winding springs is dangerous. Use caution.

Garage door springs conversion to extension springs..?
Thanks for very informative answer,very helpful,i will check with pro and replace broken torsion spring(third broken spring in about 7 years)shouldn’t they last little longer?

Posted by Lau

Admin: You do not want to convert torsion to extension! i would guess this is a
double garage door, the torsion system is much safer . 7 years is not bad. i would bet that this the main entrance to your home. the average
residential spring is rated for 10,000 cycles, a cycle being open and then closed. so if you ran the door 4 times a day this would be 10,220
cycles in seven years. Ain’t bad ! extension springs are very dangerous!