Are you unsure of whether or not you need garage door spring replacement? Check out these five signs that it’s time to get the springs replaced!
Garages are an extremely common staple for the average American home. While not every single dwelling in the United States has one, about 63% of them do. This makes it important to know about maintenance, especially garage door spring replacement.
If you’ve been looking into garage door spring repair or general maintenance, we’re here to help. Read on for five signs that you need to look into repairing or replacing your garage door spring.
1. Loud Mechanics
When you hear the brakes of your car squealing, you know it’s time to get them looked at. The same is the case for most machines, and your garage door spring is no exception.
You may begin to hear loud and generally unpleasant noises when your garage door is opening. This could be loud squeaking, sudden clangs, a low groaning sound, or many other noises. It would be especially loud in a garage, being such a closed-in space.
Not only is this unpleasant to deal with, but it’s also a clear signal that you need to begin looking into garage door spring replacement. This likely means that your spring will be breaking soon and is a good first sign to damage. Just make sure to inspect before you repair, as it’s not uncommon for mechanical pieces like a spring to simply make noises.
2. Difficulty Opening and Closing Door
Another key sign is if you’ve been struggling to open and close your garage door. This can likely mean that your spring isn’t functioning as it’s intended to. If you’ve recently installed your garage door, this could also be a sign that you installed it incorrectly.
This is especially common with faulty garage door opener installation processes. Make sure that your spring is installed correctly before you begin suspecting that it needs to be replaced.
If you’re certain your installation was correct, difficulty opening and closing the door may mean that the spring isn’t holding tension properly. If you go to close it and it shuts too quickly, this can mean that the spring can’t keep it at the proper speed. When gravity takes over like that, it can cause damage to the door or the garage flooring.
It may also open too slowly from the spring failing to coil. The average garage door weighs between 150 to 250 pounds. If the coil is slow to lift the weight, it likely means you’ll need to look into replacing it soon.
3. Visible Wear
One of the most obvious signs that a spring will need to be replaced soon is if there are visible signs of wear. Most commonly, this is seen as rust or some other type of corrosion. This is especially likely in humid clients or seafront locales where the air is especially salty.
You may also notice spots where the coil has worn weak from the tension that it undergoes. Most springs can go for about ten thousand cycles, but that doesn’t mean that it will make it that entire time without any sort of repair.
There may be a visible amount of damage to the coil while it still continues to operate. If you want to be proactive, this is a good time to replace it. Replacing the spring early will prevent having the spring break at an inopportune time, creating damage and inconvenience as well as possible injury.
4. Noticeably Broken or Damaged
Visible wear is one thing, but there are times where the spring is outright broken. Obviously, if you notice something along these lines, you’ll want to replace the spring as soon as possible. If the spring is broken, the door will likely no longer open at all.
Some exceptions may mean that you can still lift the door manually. Still, given the weight, this isn’t something that everyone is capable of. This can be especially difficult for those that may suffer from disabilities.
Regardless of whether you can open your door yourself, that doesn’t mean you don’t need to look into repairs. If your spring is broken, you need to look into garage door repair as soon as possible.
The most likely break for a garage door spring is outright snapping. Given the high amount of tension that these springs are under, it’s very common for a spring to eventually give in to the pressure. When this occurs, the spring will usually have snapped in one place, which can sometimes be repaired.
5. Complete Failure of Garage Door
The final sign that you need to replace your garage door spring is if the door is completely failing to open. While a broken spring isn’t the only cause for this, it is one of the most common.
When using your garage door opener, you may find your door not budging. If this happens, the first thing you check should be the garage door spring. If everything is in order with your spring, you can begin moving onto other parts.
Other common issues could be that there’s a problem with the wiring in your garage door opener. If you use a remote, there’s always the chance that the remote itself has died.
Your door might also have something wrong with the track or wheels that pull the door up. You will want to look into several possible issues before you replace your garage door spring on a whim. Still, the spring is one of the most likely, so expect this as a sign that you need to look into repairs.
Looking Into Garage Door Spring Replacement
If you own a garage, you will inevitably have to look into garage door spring replacement. Thankfully, a garage door spring lasts for years, so you shouldn’t have to worry about garage door repair too often.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us for more information. Our extensive blog also covers many more topics on garage door repair and the solutions to your common problems.
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