5 Signs Your Garage Door Spring Is About to Break

The good news: springs don't always fail without warning. There are signs. Knowing what to look for can save you from a full breakdown at the worst possible time, and potentially a more expensive repair down the road. The team at Go Nuts Garage Doors put this together to help you catch the problem early.

First, What Do Garage Door Springs Actually Do?

Your garage door weighs anywhere from 130 to 350 pounds depending on the material and size. Springs are what make it possible to lift that weight with one hand — or with a motor that costs a few hundred dollars. They store mechanical energy when the door closes and release it when the door opens, doing the heavy lifting so your opener doesn't have to.

Most homes have one of two spring types: torsion springs (mounted horizontally above the door opening) or extension springs (mounted on either side of the door, running parallel to the tracks). Both wear out over time. The average spring is rated for about 10,000 cycles, which works out to roughly 7 to 10 years of normal use.

When they go, they go. Here's what to watch for before that happens.

Sign #1: You Heard a Loud Bang From the Garage

This is usually how people find out their spring already broke — not that it's about to. A snapping torsion spring sounds like a gunshot inside the garage. If you heard a loud bang and now your door won't open, that's almost certainly what happened.

If the spring is still intact but you're hearing sharp cracking or popping sounds during operation, take it seriously. Springs under tension that are starting to fail will sometimes make noise before they go completely. Don't ignore it.

Sign #2: The Door Feels Unusually Heavy

Try this: disconnect your automatic opener (there's usually a red cord hanging from the rail) and try to lift the door manually. A properly balanced door with healthy springs should feel relatively light and stay in place when you let go at waist height.

If the door feels like you're lifting a refrigerator, or drops immediately when you let go, the springs aren't doing their job. A door that's getting progressively harder to open over several weeks is a spring that's losing tension — and it won't fix itself.

Sign #3: There's a Visible Gap in the Spring

Torsion springs are wound tightly in a coil above your door. When they break, the coil separates, leaving a visible gap — usually an inch or two — somewhere in the middle of the spring.

This one is easy to check. Stand inside your garage, look up at the spring above the door opening, and see if the coil looks continuous or if there's a break in it. If you see a gap, the spring is broken and the door should not be operated until it's replaced. Don't try to close the gap yourself or operate the door manually — a broken spring under tension is genuinely dangerous.

Sign #4: The Door Opens Crooked or Jerks to One Side

Some garage doors have two springs, one on each side. When one breaks and the other doesn't, you get uneven tension. The result is a door that lifts unevenly, looks tilted when it's up, or jerks and shudders during operation.

This is also hard on the tracks and rollers. If the door is running crooked for any length of time, you can end up with bent tracks or worn rollers in addition to the spring problem. Catching it early keeps the repair contained to just the spring.

Sign #5: The Door Opens Slowly, Then Stops

Automatic openers are designed to work with springs that are doing most of the heavy lifting. When springs weaken, the opener has to compensate. Most modern openers have a built-in safety feature that cuts power if the motor is straining too hard — which is why a door with a failing spring will sometimes open a few inches and then stop.

If your door has been sluggish lately, takes longer than usual to open, or reverses back down after only partially opening, check the springs before assuming it's the opener. Replacing an opener when the real problem is a worn spring is an expensive mistake.

A Word on Safety

Garage door springs are under extreme tension, and DIY spring replacement is one of the more dangerous home repair jobs you can attempt. If you suspect a spring is failing or has already broken:

• ✦Stop using the door until it's been looked at
• ✦Don't try to manually force the door open or closed
• ✦Don't attempt to remove, adjust, or replace the spring yourself
• ✦Keep kids and pets away from the door

When to Call a Pro

If you're noticing any of the signs above, it's worth getting eyes on it sooner rather than later. A spring that's showing wear can often be replaced before it fully breaks, which means you get to schedule the repair on your timeline instead of dealing with a door that won't open on a Tuesday morning when you're already late.

Go Nuts Garage Doors handles spring repair and replacement for homeowners throughout Granbury and the surrounding area — Pecan Plantation, DeCordova, Weatherford, Aledo, and beyond. If a spring has already snapped and you need help fast, we're available for emergency service too.