You probably have paid very little attention to your garage door springs if you are just like most people. While understandable, this carelessness is also a bit unfair. There's absolutely no other part in your overhead door and garage door opener that is more crucial to the opening and lowering of the door. That's one good reason for giving some respect to the springs. Here's another: Overhead door springs are life-threatening! Very dangerous, in fact. Do yourself a favor and study Garage Door Safety Tips before considering replacements or repairs.
In case you are getting issue with your overhead door, it may be because of some problem with the springs. Overhead door springs sometimes break, and they can be switched out. There are suppliers out there who sell replacement springs to DIYers, and there are DIYers who have securely and successfully switched out their own springs.
This specific information is not a how-to on overhead door spring replacement. It is intended to acquaint you with garage door springs and a number of the repair and maintenance duties you can carry out on your own.
Two Kinds Of Overhead door Springs
There are two different kinds of springs used in overhead door. Torsion springs are secured just above the closed garage door, while extension springs are located over the top tracks on both of these edges.
Garage Door Springs and Your Safety
(For tips on locating a qualified garage door professional, see How To Find the Best Garage Door Installers and Repairmen). In case your garage door is old, or read more if ever it is revealing indications of age, let an experienced specialist check your overhead door springs.
Apply some garage door lubricant to the springs and see if it makes any difference. For suggestions on the best lubricants to apply on your overhead door, check out this site. For some further recommendations on decreasing the noise of your garage door, see How To Quiet a Noisy Garage Door.
Garage Door Safety Cables
The two kinds of garage door springs discussed above work in different ways. A garage door using extension springs will have a safety cord on every edge of the door running through the spring and affixed to the wall or ceiling.
In case you have extension springs on your garage door but can't see any safety cords, get in touch with a garage door professional and get a pair mounted.
Out of Balance Springs
The ideal sign of a well-functioning garage door is that it opens up and closes down smoothly and quietly. Attempt running the garage door manually (pull the cable secured to the arm connecting the rail trolley system to the door). If the door remains to be hard to operate, the problem could be that the springs are out of balance.
Overhead door Spring Brackets
Overhead door springs are connected to brackets on the bottom of the garage door. Similar to the springs, those brackets are also under a lot of tension and can only be readjusted or otherwise maintained by a pro. Newer types of overhead door have tamper-resistant brackets that prevent the not experienced but curious among us from getting into trouble.