- 40.2 inYearly rain, Overland Park
- 17.3 inAverage yearly snow
- 114°FRecord high temperature
01Torsion vs extension springs
Most newer Overland Park homes have torsion springs on a bar above the door. Older garages may have extension springs that stretch along the horizontal tracks. Both store enormous energy and should be replaced by trained technicians using winding bars and safety cables.
02Replace in pairs
If a door has two springs and one breaks, the other has seen the same number of cycles. Many technicians recommend replacing both so the door stays balanced. Ask about higher-cycle springs if your door gets heavy daily use.
03Cold weather breaks
Spring failures are more common in winter, when steel is colder and stiffer. If your opener strains or the door feels heavy, have the balance checked before it breaks. A failing spring can also wear out the opener; see garage door opener repair.
04How a technician sizes a new spring
Springs are matched to the door, not picked off a shelf at random. The tech measures wire gauge, inside diameter and length, weighs or calculates the door, and checks whether it uses one or two torsion springs or a pair of side-mounted extension springs. A higher cycle rating costs more up front but lasts longer on a door that opens many times a day.
After the springs are wound, the door should stay put when stopped halfway by hand. If it drifts up or crashes down, the balance is off and the opener will wear out sooner.
05Signs a spring has failed or is close
A gap in the coil above the door, a door that feels far heavier than it used to, an opener that hums but cannot lift, or a loud bang from the garage while nobody was using it. Rust and visible stretching on extension springs are early warnings.
Winter is when many of these calls come in around Overland Park, since cold makes steel less forgiving and grease thicker.
Spring types
Torsion versus extension springs
On a shaft above the door
Along the side tracks
Door suddenly very heavy
Door lifts crooked or not at all
Mounted on the shaft
Needs safety cables through the spring
In pairs if two
In pairs
Johnson County homes
How this repair fits local garages
Torsion springs
Most newer homes have torsion springs above the door.
Cold breaks
Cold mornings break worn springs.
Decision help
Repair, replace or wait?
One spring broke
Replace both.
Door heavy
Rebalance.
Local scenarios
What this looks like around Overland Park
- A loud bang on a cold morning Torsion springs often break on the first cold mornings. The door will feel very heavy; don't run the opener.
- An older home with extension springs Side-mounted springs in older homes should have safety cables. Ask for them when springs are replaced.
- A heavy wood door in Leawood Heavy doors need springs sized to their weight; undersized springs wear fast.
- A busy family garage Higher-cycle springs last longer on doors used many times a day.
What to expect
How the visit usually goes
- Measure Size springs.
- Install Replace.
Before you book
Questions to ask the tech
- Cycle rating?
- Ask.
- Both?
- Ask.
Photos
