Garage Door Spring Repair Is Best Left In The Hands Of A Professional Service

There is a feeling of security when a homeowner steers their vehicle into the driveway after a long day and realizes that the warmth and comfort of their home are just seconds away. Unfortunately, these feelings can disappear in a flash when it is discovered that the garage door will not open – and further examination reveals that the cause of this renewed stress and frustration is a broken garage door spring that will need repairing before the door can be used again.

Garage door springs are fundamental to the smooth and uninterrupted operation of a door, whether it opens/closes manually or with the aid of an automatic door opener. On the other hand, a broken garage door spring is not only inconvenient; it can also lead to several other safety or repair issues as well:

• Door becomes jammed or comes off its track
• Tracking can become twisted or bent
• Door falls heavily without resistance – can seriously damage its panels
• Damage to other door mechanism components (cables, hinges, rollers)
• Door weight shifts unevenly leading to extensive re-balancing/repairs
• Undue strain is placed on automatic door openers
• The potential for damage to vehicles or other garage contents near the door
• Personal injury concerns for family members and pets

When there are obvious signs that a garage door spring is broken, it is imperative that any repair work is completed as soon as possible to minimize the overall inconvenience as well as to eliminate any potential safety issues for the homeowner and their family.

More importantly, however, this is not a task for the do-it-yourself homeowner. Garage door springs are under a significant amount of tension or torque to counterbalance the actual weight of the door and therefore any repairs or replacements should only be attempted by qualified professionals, such as the service team from Markham Garage Doors.

The Difference Between Torsion-Style And Extension-Style Garage Door Springs

As noted previously, garage door springs basically act as a counterweight to balance the door while it opens and closes. This is much the same principle as those huge blocks of stone or poured concrete which were once used in raising and lowering lift bridges or suspension bridges to allow the passage of boats along a waterway. Imagine the repair work that must have been required if one such counterweight ever came crashing to the ground from high above – and visualize the parallel type of impact damage to a garage door if it fell uninhibitedly because a spring gave way.

To appreciate the amount of tension in garage door springs, one only has to envision what it might take to lift the equivalent weight of a garage door without any assistance (either human or mechanical). If a garage door weighs 50 kilograms, that person would need to deadlift that amount of weight using only their physical strength/muscles – and do this repeatedly as well.

There are fundamentally two types of garage door springs, easily identifiable by their design and by where they are situated in relation to the door itself:

Torsion springs

• Secured to a metal rod/shaft running above/across the top of the door
• Rod/shaft usually passes through the spring but may sometimes house it
• Spring can either be mounted in the middle or at the end of the rod/shaft

Extension springs

• Are mounted along the sides of the door or above the horizontal tracking
• Residential garage doors have two extension springs (one on each side)
• Commercial garage doors can have multiple extension springs

Although both types of garage door springs can break and therefore require repair or replacement, torsion style springs have been found to be more durable, longer-lasting, and less dangerous/less damaging in the event that one should break. In terms of their durability, it has been estimated that torsion springs may last up to twice as long as the extension type springs under normal usage conditions.

If you are looking for garage door spring repairs or have an interest in replacing extension springs with the torsion style, call the experts at Markham Garage Doors today at (905) 472-9178 or (416) 570-3667 to arrange your service visit as soon as possible.