HELP! garage door is ****-eyed

[Makoto]

So we were leaving for church this morning and the garage door wouldn't come down. Being the manly man I am I decided to just force it down to deal with it later. well this was bad because one cable came off its spool the door was coming down unevenly with rollers coming off their tracks.

Long story short I finally got the door down after getting filthy thanks to my neighbor being awesome but now I've got a door that raises unevenly.

So I've got 2 questions:

1. My tension spring doesn't appear to be broken nor does the cable. If the cable just came off would that indicate another issue or can that just happen sometimes?

2. I'm inclined to remove the other cable just so that I can operate the door manually until I get it fixed, is that a bad idea?


Thanks guys, I'm sure you'll be a big help as always!

 

[LB-1911]

What type of springs do you have - extension or torsion?

Until more specific guidance comes along you may want to have a look over @

Introduction to Garage Doors
http://ddmgaragedoors.com/index.php

 

[Makoto]

They are torsion springs.

 

[Daniel Dudley]

You should have a stripe on each spring, so you can look at the stripe and count how many turns the spring is wound. It sounds like a spring slipped and unwound a bit, if there is nothing broken.

 

[Makoto]

I took tension off both sides. one side was very smooth (the good side) and the other side felt like it would bind a little bit.

anyhow, i got the door back on track and am using ratchet straps on each side to lift it up so I can get my car out (which was my main issue, i didn't want to be working and have something fly into my lexus, that'd be bad).

 

[Daedalus]

Check the tracks to make sure they're square, and have the correct distance between them.

After you fix the door, make sure the cables don't go slack when the door is up. There should be a bit of tension on thems up; otherwise they have a chance to jump off.

 

[Rusty Kustoms]

This happens with my Dad's door sometimes, the cable will hook on one of the door panels and pull it off the roller at the top. You should be able to force the cable back on with a screwdriver or prybar as you raise the door back up. It may take some work and it is a 2 person job but me and my brother have to fix it for the old man at least once a year, we then have to lecture him on opening and closing the door a little slower and carefully.

 

[rcalmus]

Now that you have the tension off both sides and the spring completely relaxed. Close the door, place a vise grip on the track right above the roller so it can't go up. Then release the drums and check your cable alignment. It's important to have the same tension on each cable or when you tighten your spring the door will be uneven again. So roll the drums tight, turn the bolts back in, and place another vise grip on the bar that goes through the spring and against the header. Now you should be able to tighten spring, most springs tight upwards. Each spring is different but if you don't know I would start at 8 rotations and go from there. Good luck


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