You probably take your garage door for granted and expect it to open every time you need it to. However, all that opening and closing over the years wears out the springs. You'll probably need to have the springs replaced long before the garage door wears out and needs to be replaced. Here are a few things to know about bad springs and what to do when yours breaks.

How To Tell When A Spring Breaks

If you happen to be around when the spring breaks, you'll hear it. The spring is under a lot of tension so it makes a loud pop when it breaks. If you don't hear the pop or if you hear it and don't know what it is, then you can still tell the spring is broken by the way the door operates. Your door may not work at all or it may struggle to open and make unusual noises as it operates.

What To Do When A Garage Spring Breaks

A broken spring is a nuisance when it causes your door to stop working. While it might be possible to raise the garage door with the help of another person, it's not a good idea. A garage door is very heavy and without a spring to control its fall, the heavy door can crash down on you and cause a serious injury.

You also want to avoid opening the door with the opener because that can damage the opener. Instead, you'll want to call a garage door repair service to come to your home as soon as it can be arranged. Fixing a broken garage door spring isn't a DIY repair.

How A Professional Replaces The Spring

A professional needs to repair a broken garage door spring because it is under a lot of tension. If the tension releases suddenly, you could be injured or killed. The old spring is unwound to remove it. At any point, something could go wrong and the spring could snap or lash out.

A professional knows how to deal with dangerous springs and will remove the old one safely and replace it with a new spring. Garage doors have one spring along the top of the door or two springs with one on each side of the door. Usually, only one spring breaks at a time. If your door has two springs and only one is broken, the repair person will probably go ahead and replace both springs so they wear out evenly.

You can keep the springs and garage door tracks lubricated in good repair so they function well for as long as possible. However, the springs will wear out eventually depending on how much you use the door. If you rarely use your garage door, the springs will have a much longer life than if you use the door multiple times a day. To learn more, contact a company like Eudy Door Co.