dtuuri
Final Approach
I changed my car strut assembly a couple months ago and ran across this video while looking for DIY help:
Garage door torsion springs
- Thread starter Lachlan
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SoonerAviator
I've changed springs out on 3 vehicles (with struts) and haven't noticed it to be particularly dangerous, but since the spring compressor consists of two units and offers some redundancy for safety. That video shows the strut coming from together when removing from the vehicle (which shouldn't ever happen to a structurally-sound strut). That being said, I still handled the struts with extreme caution when trying to loosen/back-off the upper nut since torquing on a strut with the spring compressed exerts forces on the strut not seen much under typical operation. Gotta beware of that potential energy becoming kinetic!
RudyP
Cleared for Takeoff
Hmm.. That is a good point, I don't know how heavy my doors are but I bet the double width door is not light at all with all that glass and if it came crashing down, that really wouldn't be good. I should probably also do periodic replacement. Not knowing much about garage doors and springs, is 5 years a common recommendation? Aren't the springs more likely to fail when the door is down/closed though?
For reference, here is a picture of the doors - I need to get a better one that shows the tracks better but this is all I have at work. They are aluminum/glass combo and the tracks are at an angle to follow the ceiling slope (there is a car parking lift now in the center bay to get 4 cars in the 3 car garage) I don't know if that makes any difference other than requiring heavier duty springs than if the tracks were horizontal.
flyingbrit
Pre-takeoff checklist
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flyingbrit
I'd say every five years is way overkill. One of my two springs broke about five years ago at age 25. I replaced just the broken one and all has been well since. Yes, they are more likely to break with the door down since that is when the springs are wound up and under the most stress.
. Those things are maybe 4in in diameter and have a lot of stored potential energy.Mtns2Skies
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Mtns2Skies
#HumbleBrag
RudyP
Cleared for Takeoff
That was my thought too. A broken spring when the door is down isn’t a huge deal. It’s an annoyance but doesn’t cause other damage. Broken spring that slams the door down, screws up the motor and results in shards of glass flying all over the place and damaging cars is a whole other problem.
Shuswap BC
Pre-takeoff checklist
Nice cars !!!
timwinters
Ejection Handle Pulled
I had a pair of doors once that had "extension" springs instead of "torsion" springs. (below) This may have been what Bill was thinking of. Those springs did indeed have a containment cable running thru them. Thank god, one broke one day when I was in the garage...made one hell of a racket but was "contained."
Girlfriend's door just snapped one today (torsion). I guess I know what I'm going to be doing tomorrow. Have replaced many, never had an issue or felt it was dangerous as all. Having the proper tools for the job is the key to any project.
Kenny Phillips
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Time means little. A friend of mine who installs them says that 10K cycles is a safe life for an extension-type spring, beyond that, listen for the bang at any time. That was a decade ago, I don't know if they make better springs nowadays, but for as little as I leave the house (work from home, and I don't do the shopping) they'll last 15-20 years.
Lachlan
En-Route
Remember to lubricate the coils after they’re tensioned, but don't put any oil on the last couple inches of both ends to prevent them from spinning on the cones. Also, remember to stretch the coil slightly longer on the torsion rod *AFTER* you wind it up. This is key to longevity. It's an easy job. Might as well put new lift cables on while you're at it, for $10-12 it's worth the 3 minutes to change em out. Get the garage door track lube sray, too- it's clingy without dripping. I snugged/lubed everything on our door after I replaced my springs a couple weeks ago and it's like a brand new door, quite, crisp, and smooth.
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timwinters
Ejection Handle Pulled
Lachlan
En-Route
Once your springs are bolted to the center bracket, spray paint a line from cone to cone so you can count full winds by the spaces once it’s wound up.
PaulMillner
Line Up and Wait
Both time, mine broke while raising the door... and the door slammed to the ground.
The spring on my hangar door (garage door style) broken when closing the door. It was not contained, shrapnel damaged the airplane and my car... fortunately, I escaped injury.
Another commenter said rated for 10,000 operations... for our seven year failure periodicity, that's 3.9 operations per day... and our door does cycle about four times a day. Since the consequence could be a death, I think the five year replacement period is justifiably conservative.
timwinters
Ejection Handle Pulled
BTW...the springs I bought came out of the box with a black line painted on them.