Garage Door Torsion Spring Repair

A garage door torsion spring is used to move the door up and down and can pose a safety hazard if it is either faulty or not fitted properly. If one or both of the springs are not working correctly, the garage door may not open all the way or even at all. As you can imagine, this can be very frustrating especially if your car is inside with a door that won't open.

You can easily check if your garage door needs servicing by opening it halfway by hand and then letting go. If the door and springs are in good condition the door should stay in the same position. However, if it is either difficult to lift or drops back down when you let go, it is likely that the door mechanism requires repairing

The door springs are in their most dangerous state when the door is closed as that is when they are most tightly stretched. Because of the tension that the spring is under, there is also a lot of stored energy behind it that will release suddenly should the tortion spring either break or come adrift from it's mountings. This can result in bits of metal flying about your garage at great speed, which could cause serious injury to anybody in the immediate vicinity.

Modern roll shutter doors do not pose the same risk as up and over doors in the event of spring breakage. This is because the springs used in these doors are installed over a shaft that helps roll the door up to the open position. In the event that the spring breaks, the shaft will retain it, thus preventing metal shrapnel flying all over the inside of your garage.

Although they do not need to be replaced often, the majority of springs will rust over time giving them an average useful lifespan of around eight to ten years. When the time comes for replacement, you should never attempt any diy repairs or even try to adjust them yourself. They are very difficult and dangerous to replace and require a trained service engineer with the right equipment to change them properly.

Never try to fix anything yourself, especially when you don't know exactly what you are doing. There are many professionals that can be called in to service and overhaul garage door springs and they are trained to fix most types of door. It is in your own interests to hire an expert to do the work for you in order to prevent injury.