Snapped Garage Door Spring, What to Do

A snapped garage door spring is one of the most common issues we deal with. It is also one of the most important to handle correctly, because garage door springs are under enormous tension and can be extremely dangerous if mishandled.

How Do I Know My Spring Has Snapped?

The signs are usually obvious. You may have heard a loud bang from the garage, this is the sound of the spring releasing its stored energy. The door will feel much heavier than normal, may only open partway, or may not open at all. On a canopy up-and-over door, you might see the two halves of the broken spring hanging either side of the bracket above the door.

Do Not Attempt a DIY Repair

This is the single most important piece of advice we can give. Garage door springs are under extreme tension. A torsion spring on a standard single garage door stores enough energy to cause serious injury. Even extension springs on older canopy doors can whip loose with considerable force.

Every year, people are injured attempting to replace garage door springs themselves. The correct tools, training and experience are essential. Please leave spring replacement to a qualified garage door engineer.

Can I Still Use the Door?

We strongly advise against trying to operate the door with a broken spring. Without the counterbalance the spring provides, the full weight of the door (typically 40-80kg for a single steel door) bears on the mechanism, the tracks, and, if you try to lift it manually, on you. Electric operators may stall or be damaged attempting to lift an unbalanced door.

What Should I Do?

1. Stop using the door. Do not attempt to open or close it.
2. Switch the electric operator off at the socket if you have one, so it cannot try to cycle the door. Do not pull the manual release cord: with the spring broken, the operator is the only thing holding the door up.
3. Call a professional. A qualified engineer can replace the spring safely, usually in under an hour.

How Much Does a Spring Replacement Cost?

A typical spring replacement for a single garage door, including the call-out, parts and labour, is usually between £120 and £280. If the cables or other components have also been damaged, the cost may be slightly higher. We always provide a price before carrying out any work.

How Long Do Springs Last?

A standard garage door spring is rated for around 10,000 cycles (one open and one close equals one cycle), with heavy-duty versions running to 25,000. At a couple of cycles a day that is a long time on paper, but in practice most springs we replace have done 10 to 15 years, because a damp garage corrodes a spring long before it runs out of cycles. If your spring has failed after many years of use, it has simply reached the end of its natural life.

If your spring has snapped, contact us and we will aim to attend as quickly as possible, often same-day or next-morning.

Safety note: the Health and Safety Executive's guidance on powered doors and gates sets out what obstruction protection has to do, not just stop when it meets something but back off far enough to release it. Health and safety law does not cover a homeowner's own garage door, but the engineering is identical, and a door that has lost its counterbalance is a door to leave to an engineer. See the HSE guidance on powered doors and gates.