Garage door springs are torsion or extension springs that help to raise and lower your garage door. If you notice a broken spring, it is important to replace the damaged one immediately because this can lead to injury as well as damage to your car in case there’s an emergency shut-down.
If you want to be safe, don’t wait for your garage door springs to give out before replacing them. Torsion springs are the most common type of spring in a residential garage door and will eventually fail with enough use over time. The best way is prevention: regular inspection during the expected life cycle of torsion springs together with replacement as they approach end-of-life cycling can extend their lifespan by up to three times or more. Waiting too long means that when they finally do snap, it’s much harder on both the individual homeowners and emergency services who have less than ideal conditions when dealing with snapped garages doors.
How Long Do Garage Door Springs Last?
Garage door torsion and extension springs can last up to about 10,000 cycles or 3-5 years. It can vary depending on how often you open and close the garage door daily.
Reasons Why Garage Door Springs Break:
Age
The most common reason for a broken garage door spring is simply that it has worn out. A garage door spring’s life expectancy is not unlimited, and sooner or later, like every part, it just has to give. How long do garage springs last, typically? The average garage door spring, if correctly installed, should last about 10,000 cycles of opening and closing.
If you only go in and out of your garage once a day, that means you should expect a broken garage door spring around 14 years after the spring is first installed. If you go in and out twice a day, you’re down to 7 years. If you have kids using the garage door as an alternative entrance, a spouse who runs errands multiple times a day going in and out of the garage each time, or regularly bring storage items into or out of the garage, that number drops fast.
One way to prevent your garage door spring from breaking too soon is to purchase extended lifespan torsion springs. They’re more expensive, but they can last around four times as long.
Rust
One of the most common reasons why your garage door springs may break prematurely is because they are corroded. Rust can increase friction on a coil spring and eventually lead to it breaking, which means you will need to replace them sooner than usual. One way that many people have found success in keeping their steel torsion coils rust-free for as long as possible is by spraying down all parts with WD40 before putting up the equipment every season after each use!
Too Much Pressure on the Spring
Garage doors may have either one long torsion spring or two shorter ones. Single springs are more likely to fail, so we recommend our customers install the two-spring model for higher quality garage door service in San Antonio and surrounding areas from Efficient Garage Door.
