Your garage door, like any other machine, is composed of several different parts. While many of its parts can be easily found at your local hardware store, others are not as readily available and can only be purchased through a garage door company or licensed vendor. Torsion springs are just one of these parts.

Garage door torsion springs are specifically designed to bear the weight of your garage door, allowing it to open. Even with regular maintenance, these springs wear out over time and can sometimes snap or break. When this happens, your garage door may malfunction. Many garage door designs require two torsion springs to operate. If one breaks, it is best to replace both at the same time to save yourself the time and inconvenience of having to replace the other one later.

It is important to note that each garage door has its own specifications, which directly affect the measurements of its torsion springs. It is important to get these measurements correct when replacing your torsion springs.

Safety

Replacing torsion springs is a dangerous task because of the amount of tension held within the tightly wound coils. Failure to exercise proper safety precautions or the correct tools may result in serious injury. Those who choose to tackle this project on their own should exercise caution and carefully research and understand each step of the process. If you don’t feel comfortable or confident replacing your torsion springs, it is best to contact a professional.

Below is a step by step guide on how to replace the torsion springs on your garage door. For your safety, we recommend referencing several credible resources and guides before beginning, as the replacement steps may vary depending on your garage door.

Materials

• torsion springs
• eye protection gear
• a chalk or colored felt pen
• proper torsion rods
• vice grip or clamps
• a stable ladder

Safety Precautions

• Open the garage door all the way up and use clamps to hold it in place.
• Unplug the garage door opener in order to prevent any other person from accidentally closing the garage door.
• Do not stand in the path of the springer. Remember that the springer is highly-tensioned. If anything goes wrong, it could snap and cause serious injury or damage to property.

Getting Started

1. To remove the torsion springs, insert the torsion rods fully into the springer holes to ensure that they don’t slip during the exercise. Hold the pipe very tightly and unscrew the two square bolt nuts located on the springer.  Once you unscrew the bolts, the total weight of the torsion spring will shift to the rod.
2. Ensure that you have a good footing.
3. Unwind the torsion rods making sure to count the number of turns it takes you to completely remove the spring. This will help you know the exact number of turns you will need to make to wind up the new springs you intend to replace.
4. Disconnect the brackets that are holding the torsion springs together.
5. Remove the cable from the drum on both sides of the garage door and unbolt the drum from the bolt, then take it off in order to remove the spring.
6. Replace the new springs. Align them so that the red side of the spring faces the right side when you are looking into the garage from outside. This is the correct way to install the springs. If you place the red colored spring on the left, the springs will appear flipped. Keep the old gasket in place as you install the new springs.
7. Reattach the pipe that holds the spring and cable drums making sure that they are equally distanced from the wall in order to ensure that your garage door will open and close easily after the replacement exercise.
8. Tighten the new torsion springs and adjust the tension accordingly, winding to match the number of turns it took to remove the old springs.
9. Remove the vice grips or clamps you had put in place to hold the garage door.
10. Plug your garage door opener back in.

 

Congratulations! You have successfully replaced your garage door torsion springs.