Your garage door torsion spring literally does all the heavy lifting when it comes to your garage door. Garage door springs breaking is a perplexing problem for many homeowners who do not know what exactly a torsion spring is, how to fix it, or what causes it – all of which is valuable knowledge to have before you end up late to work because you couldn’t get your car out of the garage. By far the biggest reason for garage door torsion spring failure is simple wear and tear. Most properly installed torsion springs are rated for about ten thousand cycles – one cycle being the garage door going up and coming back down to close. That may seem like a lot, but consider that you go through a minimum of two cycles a day just getting the car out of and back into the garage. If you go on any errands, a spouse goes to work through the same garage, or kids open and close the door for any reason, those daily cycles can add up a lot faster than you may think. You could burn through ten thousand cycles in about a year.

If you are a heavy garage door user, consider getting extended lifespan torsion springs, which are rated for about four times as long for only twice the price. If any rust develops on the spring for any reason, its lifespan will be dramatically shortened. Rust increases the friction on the coil while it moves on top of the corrosive factor of the rust itself weakening the coil. Spraying down the coil with WD-40 three or four times a year can serve to keep it well lubricated and prevent any rust buildup. Most garage doors maintained with care employ two torsion springs, one on each side of the door, to do the job of lifting it. But some builders, seeking to cut costs wherever possible, will instead use one extra-long torsion spring across the whole door, instead of one on each side. For especially small or light doors this may be okay, but most doors will be much better served with two individual torsion springs sharing the load. Single springs have a dramatically shortened lifespan and a failure will release 100% of the incredible amount of power stored in the spring, potentially causing heavy damage.

All garage door springs will fail eventually just due to wear and tear, but proper maintenance can not only prolong the lifespan of the springs, but alert you when they are getting close to failure without dealing with the potentially destructive explosive breaking of the spring as well as the headache involved with fixing it as quickly as possible. front entry doors louisville kyOther than spraying it down with WD-40 a few times a year, check the garage door balance at least once a season, especially in the winter when most springs fail. door entry system handsetTo check balance, lift the door up halfway and let go of it. garage door spares in bristolSprings in good working order should keep it completely still; frameless shower doors oceanside ca

if the door sags and falls a bit, the springs are starting to show signs of wear. Home Garage Doors, Maintenance, Repairs A garage door spring is absolutely critical to the very operation of a garage door. The garage door itself is something that is most likely used on a daily basis. So how long will the average spring last? car window repair pensacolaAnd how can you ensure that you maximize its life potential?iron entry doors palm desert Different Types of Garage Door Springswood stove for sale utah Garage door springs, also called torsion springs, are categorized by number of cycles. A 10,000-cycle torsion spring is the standard spring installed in most garages. Higher cycle springs, including those that last 25,000 cycles and those that will last 50,000 cycles, are even more cost-effective when the cost is analyzed on a yearly basis.

However, when looking at high-cycle springs, you also have to analyze what type of garage you have and what its lifespan might be. If you choose a type of spring that outlasts the garage in which it is installed, you’ve wasted your money. If, however, you have a well-founded structure likely to last as long as the house it accompanies, a high-cycle spring is a worthwhile investment. The life expectancy of a garage door spring can only be calculated in cycles, but you can easily translate that to a time estimate. The average home opens and closes a garage door four times daily, and, with a 10,000-cycle torsion spring, this translates to a lifespan of approximately seven years. Thus, high-cycle springs can have lifespans that last from 14 to 20 years. Common Causes of Premature Aging Your garage door spring, like any other metal component, can be affected detrimentally by wetter climates. Moisture on the metal creates an environment ripe for rust. Rust buildup causes the core friction to increase, thus wearing down the metal of the spring even more rapidly.

Cold is another serious factor. Steel contracts and becomes more brittle with severe cold weather. It’s therefore logical that garage door springs most often break in cold weather. After a cold night, the unsuspecting homeowner expects the garage spring to perform its duty as it does every other morning. But without being allowed to gradually warm up just a bit, a loud crack will let you know it’s taken more stress than it could handle in the cold, and you’ve got a broken spring on your hands. Preventative Measures to Extend Life It’s so easy to prevent the wear and tear caused by both of these environmental factors. In order to prevent rust, every three months or so, spray it with a silicone coating spray. Some advice: avoid WD-40, which is a lubricant rather than a silicone coating spray, particularly if you park your car in the garage, because WD-40 eats paint. And when cold weather strikes, try two things: listen, and warm up. Allow the day to warm up the garage for as long as you can prior to opening the garage;