Generally, garage door spring replacement have a lifespan of more than a decade but they can wear out sooner, which is why regular maintenance and inspection is important. Knowing what to look for can help you recognize when a spring is approaching the end of its life cycle and needs replacing.

What kind of springs are used for garage doors?

It is recommended that you only do this work yourself if you have a lot of experience in home repairs or are an avid do-it-yourselfer. This is because the springs are under extreme pressure and attempting to remove or adjust them can cause injury or damage the door itself.

To begin, purchase a new pair of springs and a set of winding bars from a hardware store. The bars are long rods that will properly fit into the winding cones and allow you to safely unwind or “load” the springs. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for how many twists it takes to load a specific spring. This can be anywhere from 30 to 36 one-quarter turns.

Once you have the replacement springs, it is time to disconnect the lift cables from their brackets at the bottom of the door. This can be done by loosing the set screws holding the cable drums to the end of the torsion bar. Once the cables are disconnected, slide the cable drums off the ends of the torsion bar.

The next step is to measure the length of the broken spring’s coils. Use a tape measure to locate the 10 or 20 coils closest together and compare that measurement to wire size measurements found online. Once you have the spring’s length, you can easily replace it with a properly sized new spring that will be color coded according to your door weight.