O/T Broken Garage Door Spring

Re: O/T Broken Garage Door Spring

Ernie Miller Topeka

>Which type of spring is it? the one on the sides of the door or the ones above the door that you have to wind up?I might mess with the ones on the sides but them other ones can do some damage in the ouchee department. I don't think the springs cost much it is the labor.

Re: O/T Broken Garage Door Spring

Barry Va Beach

>Todd, sorry about your door. Not sure what type of springs you have - but on the ones with one spring on each side, and a series of pulleys so that the springs are stretched when you close the door - then you can open it even though one spring is broken. The two problems are that the door is extremely heavy and you have to position yourself very close to the side with the broken spring so that the door won't rack when opening it. Before I opened mine, ( when one spring was broken) I gathered a couple of 2 x4 of different lengths so I could prop it open at various stages so I wouldn't have to lift it open in one shot. A new spring is pretty cheap - though they come in different strengths depending on how wide your door is and how heavy it is. Balancing the two springs so the door opens evenly takes a little while but isn't too hard. If your door uses a torsion rod with springs, ignore the above.

Re: DANGER WILL ROBINSON!

William R. Duffield, on the Cohansey

>If you have the wind up springs on the top of the door, if you have to ask, get a pro. They can be extremely dangerous if you don't understand them and don't have the proper equipment. They will throw a wrench with enough force to kill you. I know a guy who wore a cast for months and needed major surgery on his hand after he tried to repair one himself. I stil don't think he has recovered full use of his fingers, after the spring shattered all of them.

Re: O/T Broken Garage Door Spring

David Linnabary

>True enough they can hurt ya. If it is a tortion spring set around a shaft over the door, those are the ones people get hurt on. The tools for adjusting those are a set of steel rods (aprox 12" long) that fit into round mortices in the adjustment head and are used to walk the spring in and out of tension. I got a set for free from a local door retaler who sells used doors. I wouldn't recommend using a substitute unless they are a perfect fit.

If they are tension type springs (stretched by a cable and pulley mechanism) those can hurt you too. I use a come along or a small block and tackle set to install/deinstall those.

My mom tells a great story about visting my dad on a job site before they were married and how he got distracted while installing a garaged door and wound up with a broken nose. :)

David

Re: O/T Broken Garage Door Spring

Rob Gateson

>Try this if you have overhead springs. Find a friend to help you and lift the door by holding down the side with the good spring a little and lifting hard on the other side. If you are carefull you will be able to get the door up without the door comming out of the tracks. Check the good spring has no tension on it and remove it. Now with you friends help lower the door to the ground (doors are heavy be carefull).

Get your self a bathroom scale and put it between the ground and the door this will give you the weight of the door. Armed with the weight of the door and the length of the good spring you will be able to buy yourself a new pair of springs wihh lots of $ saved and all body parts intact.

Thanks All

Todd O. Cronkhite Native of Maine

>Guess I'll just leave this job up to a pro, as I am in no position to spend time healing up from an injury, nor do I think I could stand the inability to go about my daily life due to injuries. I've never had a broken bone and am in no hurry to have one. I jammed my left wrist back in '82 and it still bothers me from time to time, so that has been enough of a PITA for me.

My springs are the coiled high tension type which I though I had heard before that they where dangerous and you all confirmed that. I was going to dive right into the job, but a little voice told me to check first.

Thanks again for all your inputs and concern for my Safety and Well Being.

Todd O.