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Lakewood Garage Door has installed thousands of torsion springs in Denver area garages since 1990. Probably the most common service call we get each week is "our garage door will not open." In most cases, garage doors do not open because of a spring failure, which surprises people since most think that the garage door opener motor opens and closes a door. Instead, it is the torsion springs that do the heavy lifting. Considering this misunderstanding, we thought it would be helpful to educate our customers on the role torsion springs play in the operation of garage doors.

Common Symptoms Of Faulty Or Broken Garage Door Springs

To check for broken garage door springs, pull the emergency release rope while the garage door is closed. Pulling the release rope disconnects the door from the garage door opener. The torsion springs counter the weight of your door, and if broken, the door will be too heavy to lift. Below are tests homeowners can use to test for broken garage door springs:

The Garage Door Open Up A Few Inches and Stops
Garage doors that open up by a few inches and then stop or open at a slow pace are signs of a faulty or broken torsion spring.

A Loud Noise Emanating From a Garage
A thunderous noise coming from a garage usually means that a torsion spring snapped. A large amount of torque energy released in a split-second causes the bang when a spring breaks into two pieces. 

Bent Top/Upper Garage Door Section
The garage door motor bends the section where it is attached to the door as it tries to open the door without the counterbalance supplied by the springs. 

Garage Door "Jerky" Movement When Opening And Closing 
First, try cleaning and lubricating the moving parts of the garage door to solve the jerky operation. Most garage doors use two springs, so the jerky motion means that one torsion spring is broken and that the still-functioning spring is struggling to carry the load by itself.

What Are Garage Door Torsion Springs?

Garage door torsion springs are coils made by large gauge steel wire that use torque or rotating force to counterbalance garage doors' weight. Garage doors weigh between 200 to 500 pounds, depending on door type and size. The garage door torsion springs are typically located above the garage door. When the garage door closes, the spring is twisted, storing rotational energy. When the garage door opens, the spring opens the door and goes back to its equilibrium state. Its rotational energy exerts the force required to lift the door. The garage door opener initiates the opening and the closing of garage doors, with the torsion springs doing the heavy lifting. The tracks and cables keep the door open and closing up and down correctly. 

How Are Garage Door Torsion Springs Manufactured

Garage doors open and close multiple times daily, and they demand strong and dependable steel springs for seamless performance. Commercial garage doors require toughness and longevity. Lakewood Garage Doors selects torsion springs that deliver long-lasting performance and durability. Below is a video that shows the manufacturing of torsion springs.

Garage Door Spring Installation

Lakewood Garage Door uses math to decide spring size and how many turns are required to lift a 200 to 500-pound door. Once installed, we rotate the spring to ensure that the cables have proper tension when the garage door is fully opened. A rotation process is a balancing act because if turned too little, the spring will not generate the necessary force to keep the cables tight at the garage door trajectory's end. On the other hand, if rotated too tight, the spring will generate excessive force causing unnecessary garage door wear and tear.

Why Do Garage Door Springs Break?

Steel springs are elastic objects used to store mechanical energy and found in automotive suspension systems, pendulum clocks, wind-up toys, watches, mouse traps, and the Slinky. Hooke's Law, a physics principle, states that an object's strain is proportional to the stress applied to it within its elastic limit.

Stress over time will eventually cause spring failure, so torsion springs are given a cycle life. At the end of its lifespan, permanent and non-reversible changes of the spring's steel coil occur, such as cracks and fractures leading to eventual breakage. Stock torsion springs are rated at 10,000 cycles, with a cycle being a door open and a close. To calculate a torsion spring's life span, divide its life cycle by the number of times the door is opened and closed each day. For example, a door with a 10,000 cycle life spring that is opened and closed three times a day will last about nine years (10,000 divided by 3 divided by 365 days equals 9.13 years).

Lakewood Garage Door recommends periodic maintenance to keep all parts of the garage door running smoothly to get the most out of your door springs. Keeping the door components aligned and lubricated reduces friction and makes it easier for the axle/torsion tube and torsion springs to do their work. Also, replacing worn out and sticking garage door rollers, bent tracks, and sections reduce friction, ensuring maximum spring cycle life, system durability, and reliability.

Got a Broken Torsion Spring - Now What

Please remember that these powerful springs can cause significant injury or even death to the unacquainted Do-It-Your-Self. If the door is open, be sure not to pull the release rope because these heavy doors may come crashing down, damaging your garage door system. 

As mentioned above, most garage doors come with multiple torsion springs, so if one spring breaks, it is best to replace all the springs at the same time because the other spring is at the end of its lifespan as well. Homeowners will save time and money by having Lakewood Garage Door replace all of the springs simultaneously.

Got a garage door that will not open? Please call us at 303-202-1233 to schedule an appointment. We are at your service.