Stop using the door
Broken garage door spring in Coral Springs, FL
You heard a bang. Maybe it sounded like a gunshot in the garage. Now the door will not lift, or it lifts a few inches and stops dead. That is a broken spring, and it is the most common reason a garage door quits all at once.
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The springs carry almost all the weight of the door. When one breaks, that weight drops onto you, onto the opener, or onto the cables. A double door on a Coral Springs home is heavy. The opener was never built to lift it alone, so if you keep pressing the button you are usually just adding a second repair to the first.
While you wait — please don't
- Stop using the door. Once a spring is broken the door is out of balance, and every attempt to open or close it puts load on parts that were not meant to carry it.
- Do not touch the springs or cables. Torsion springs are under extreme tension even when broken, and the cables and drums are wound tight enough to cause serious injury if they let go.
- Do not force it up by hand. The door suddenly weighs what the springs were carrying, and people hurt their backs, hands and fingers trying to muscle it open.
- Do not keep hitting the opener. The opener can strip gears, burn out or pull the door crooked in the tracks when it tries to lift a weight it was never sized for.
- Get the car out another way if you can. Propping a partly open door with a ladder or a bucket is not safe; if the car is shut in, leave the door alone and call for service.
What the technician does
- The door gets weighed and measuredSprings are sized to the weight and height of the specific door, not guessed at. The technician checks what the door actually needs before anything is ordered or installed.
- You get the price firstThe estimate is free. The technician looks at the door, explains what is needed and gives you the price, and nothing starts until you approve it.
- Springs are replaced in pairsOn a two-spring door, both get replaced together. The second spring has the same cycle count as the one that broke, so replacing only one usually means a repeat visit.
- Cables, drums and bearings are checkedA spring rarely fails alone. Frayed cables, worn drums and dry or rusted bearings get looked at while the system is apart.
- The door is rebalancedWith new springs on, the door should hold its position partway up and move by hand with little effort. That balance is what protects the opener.
- The opener safety reverse is testedThe technician confirms the door stops and reverses the way it should before leaving the job.
Why this happens in Coral Springs, FL
Cycle life decides when a spring goes, not age on the calendar. A household in Ramblewood or Turtle Run that runs the door in and out eight or ten times a day will get through springs faster than a neighbor who uses the garage twice a week. That is why two identical homes on the same street can be years apart on the same repair.
Coral Springs adds humidity to the problem. The tropical climate and the long May-to-October wet season keep moisture in the air, and that moisture rusts springs, hinges, rollers and fasteners over time. The city sits about a dozen miles inland, so direct salt spray is less of a factor than it is on the beachfront, but humid air alone is enough to corrode hardware. Much of the housing here was built between the 1960s and the early 2000s, so a lot of original springs and openers in these concrete-block homes are simply worn out. Demand climbs ahead of and during hurricane season, and again in the dry winter months when seasonal residents come back and catch up on deferred work.
Questions people ask
- Can I just replace the broken spring and leave the other one?
- It is usually a false saving. Both springs have taken the same number of cycles, so the surviving one is close behind. Replacing them in pairs keeps the door balanced and avoids a second call.
- Does humidity in Coral Springs really shorten spring life?
- It contributes. Constant heat and high humidity accelerate rust on springs, hinges, rollers and fasteners across Florida, and Coral Springs has that climate year-round. Cycle count is still the main factor, but corroded hardware does not help.
- Do I need a permit for a spring repair?
- In Florida a permit is typically required when a garage door is replaced, because the door is part of the building envelope and must meet code with approved product documentation. Permits are issued locally, so check with the Broward County or city building department for your address. Your technician can tell you what applies to your job.
- I live in an HOA community. Does that matter here?
- Homeowner associations are very common in Coral Springs, and many have architectural review requirements. That mostly affects replacement doors, gates and exterior finishes rather than a spring swap behind a closed door, but if the repair turns into a new door you may need approval along with county permitting and HVHZ wind-load compliance.
- Are you the company that comes out?
- No. One Call Garage Door is a referral and scheduling service that arranges garage door service with independent local technicians. We are not the contractor and we do not perform the work. Licensing is the technician's own and requirements vary by jurisdiction, so you can confirm credentials directly with them.
One call
Call (866) 394-4210 and we will arrange a Coral Springs garage door technician to look at the door, and the estimate is free. You hear the price before any work starts, and nothing happens until you approve it.
Something else in this area
One Call Garage Door arranges the visit; the technician does the work and gives you the price.