Sometimes, we find compromising situations, such as not closing the garage door when leaving for work or an errand is, to have a broken garage. Action must be repaired instantly; otherwise, you would leave your home unprotected, offering an open door. In this way, we find limitations because we do not have experience in the area.
For such a reason, we will offer you all the relevant information that will help you, how to fix the garage door cable that came off.
The main cause; of not opening or closing your home’s garage door is failures in the cable in charge of the process. Its system is based on winding and unwinding the cable to exert pressure when opening or closing the door, which must have periodic maintenance of grease and oil to prolong its useful life.
Maintenance and Garage Door Cable Service normally is not performed because it is a remote system or to have the routine of discovering that it exists when it stops working, causing failure of the garage door opener system.
The cable connects the door with the torsion spring, allowing the opening and closing process of the garage door. In addition to this, it has tension springs, which generate the force to lift the door; depending on the weight, the greater the tension will be.
These tension springs last a long time and normally do not require garage door cable replacement. It is difficult to find a broken spring. For this reason, we will focus on the common failure, how to repair a garage door cable.
FAQs About Garage Renovation
What Causes The Garage Door Cable To Come Off?
Slack in the wires or the cables breaking is the two most common causes of the drums. A cable drum assembly with loose cables is doomed to fail. User error, faulty springs, or cable corrosion are the most common slack causes.
Can I Open The Garage Door With The Broken Cable?
Wait until an expert can inspect the door before using it again. Your home is exposed if your garage door is stuck open due to a damaged wire. To avoid this, cut the unbroken cable and lower the door, locking your home until an expert can inspect it.
How Much Does It Cost To Replace A Cable On A Garage Door?
Garage door wires are approximately $15 each and $30 for the pair. We recommend having cables installed or replaced by a professional door provider. Thus the service/installation charge should be included. The overall cost of replacing wires should be between $90 and $115.
When Should I Replace My Garage Door Cables?
At least once a year, cables should be inspected and replaced if the damage is discovered. Fraying wires are the most typical cause of failure. If the cables are fraying, you’ll notice that some of the wires are damaged. The cables are starting to separate from one another during a visual check.
Can I Manually Open My Garage Door With A Broken Spring?
If your garage door spring is broken, industry experts recommend against attempting to open it. Extension springs along the rails on either side of the door help counterbalance the door’s weight as it is lifted or lowered. The hard lifting is done by torsion springs across the top of the door.
Top 4 Reasons Why Your Garage Door Cables Have Come Loose
The cables on your garage door are what transfer the energy from the garage door springs to the door itself. The system of pulleys and drums these cables run through makes this process possible by applying the right amount of tension on the lines whenever you use your garage door.
If one or more cables slip off one of the drums, your garage door will refuse to work properly or even at all. But why does this happen, and how do you prevent it from reoccurring in the future? How do you perform San Diego cable repair on a garage door cable that has come loose?
In previous articles, we explained how garage door cables work and how to determine if your garage door cables are at the end of their life. We’ll examine the four most common reasons why the cables on your garage door may slip out of place. Keep reading to learn more.
First off, it’s important to note that garage door cables and springs tend to be under an enormous amount of tension. Unless you’re sure you know what you’re doing (e.g., you’re a trained garage door technician), you should always leave these repairs to the pros.
Here are four common causes of garage door cable problems:
Improper Drums And Cables
Using small cables with heavier doors can cause the cables to fray and snap sooner. Likewise, taller doors need longer cables and therefore need larger drums that can hold the full length of these cables.
The Door Has Hit An Obstruction.
Modern garage doors are equipped with auto-reverse mechanisms and photo safety eyes designed to keep the doors from closing on people or objects below them. If these safeguards are faulty, or if the door is so old it lacks these features, it may hit an obstruction beneath it while closing.
In addition to damaging the lower sections of the garage door and whatever it collided with, this can also cause a cable on one side of the garage door to come loose.
Improper Installation
Garage door springs have to be tensioned correctly for the size of the door they’re attached to. This is typically done during installation. Improper tension can cause the cables to jump off the drum (if the tension is too strong) or unwind from it (if the tension is too weak).
The Torsion Spring Is Busted.
If your garage door uses torsion springs, it likely has one or two of them. If one or both of these springs snap, the cables will automatically lose tension and come loose. If the door were open when this occurred, it would come crashing down.
This is one of the reasons why doors with two torsion springs are considered safer than models with only one. If one torsion spring breaks, the other will be able to keep the garage door from falling long enough for the emergency technicians to arrive.
Know Before Repairing Garage Door Cables
Before attempting a garage door wire repair, it is important to know what cable system it is and how it works. There are two common cable systems used to lighten a garage door for safer operation. One is a torsion spring-controlled cable, and the other is an extension spring-controlled system.
Torsion Spring-Controlled Cables
Torsion springs are commonly mounted horizontally to the header above the garage door opening. It’s a long bar with two high-tension springs coiled around it with a grooved roller drum at each end.
A cable runs from the bottom of each end of the lowest door panel and is secured to the grooved roller as the door goes up, the cable winds around the roller and loosens the tension on the spring.
When lowered, the cable unwinds, and the tension on the spring winds up. The coil springs are under higher tension when the door is down, making it easier to lift and putting greater stress on the cables.
Extension Spring-Controlled Cables
Historically, extension springs were reserved for garages with limited headroom for mounting a torsion system. Still, they have become more common in the past two decades as they are easier and safer to install. Instead of mounting the springs above the door and always being under tension, they are attached to each horizontal track.
The cables thread a pulley at the end of the spring, go through another pulley where the track bends to go vertical, and attach to the bottom-most door panel. When the door is up, the spring is relaxed, and the cable is often slightly loose.
As the door lowers, the spring stretches with the pull of the cable and the door’s weight. The spring is fully extended when the door is closed, so it is ready to assist with the door’s weight when it is lifted to open.
Safety Cables
Safety cables thread through the extension springs and fasten to the door track framework. They don’t impede the spring’s movement but are intended to hold the spring-suspended should the door cable break or the spring itself break. Its only purpose is to prevent damage or injury.
Tips On How To Repair A Garage Door Cable
Garage doors are heavy and have multiple moving parts to keep track of and maintain. The cables transfer energy from the coiled springs to assist with lifting the door and slowing its descent.
A cable can become worn or frayed, disconnected or unbuckled, slip off a pulley, stretch, or break. When that happens, it’s good to know how to repair a garage door cable. The type of cable system, whether torsion or extension spring, affects how to reattach garage door cables and how to replace garage door cables.
Inspect The Cable
Regular inspection of the lift cables can help prevent damage or injury. Frayed or rusted cables should be replaced before they break. Cables that sag or appear loose when the door is fully open are more likely to become unwound from drum rollers or slip off pulleys. The cables may have stretched, or a clamp slipped, causing the sag. Tighten the cables if this occurs.
Clamp The Door
Depending on where the door is, when the cable breaks or releases influence this step. If the door is fully open or only partially open, attach a C-clamp to the track as near as possible but under the bottom wheel. This will prevent the door from moving downward. If the cable breaks, jumps a pulley or becomes unattached and the door is fully closed, it doesn’t require clamps.
Disconnect Garage Door Opener
To prevent damage to the garage door opener, it is best to switch off its power source and disconnect it from the door lifting mechanism. This will also allow you to move the door if needed. Locate the release pull rope and give it a tug to unlatch the coupling.
Open The Door
The door will need to be fully open to release the tension on the torsion or extension springs, making it easier to replace or reattach cables. Lift the door until it is fully open and clamp it into position to prevent it from rolling down. Heavy doors may require 2 or 3 people to lift, so the door is raised in a level manner to prevent binding or injury.
Check The Springs
When a cable breaks, it can send a spring damaging shockwave of energy into an extension or torsion spring. Inspect the springs for cracks or breaks and replace them if damaged. Loose cables may result from slippage by a torsion spring, which may necessitate tightening and rewinding of the spring.
Be Proactive
If you need to replace one cable due to fraying, rust, or breakage, it’s best to replace both lift cables simultaneously. It’s also a good practice to replace the bottom mounting bracket when replacing the cables too. With extension spring doors, check for wear where the cable attaches to the upper frame and replace parts if required.
Use Proper Tools
Use C-clamps or blocks and clamps on both tracks to hold the door in place. Use a ladder or step-stool when working above your chest height. It’s safer and provides more strength for tasks than reaching. Use pliers, vice-grips, a hammer, wrenches, screwdrivers, and winding bars. Wear safety glasses and gloves for protection too.
How To Fix The Garage Door Cable That Came Off
Examine The Tracks
Garage doors move along metal rails on both sides to open and close. To begin your repairs, examine the metal tracks to see if anything obstructs the door’s smooth operation. The brackets holding the tracks may be loose and easily tightened with a tool.
Examine The Cables
Open your garage door entirely and unhook the automatic opener to test the wires. After that, physically open and close the garage door. The door should glide freely along both sides of the tracks. If manually opening and closing the door is problematic, there is likely a problem with the wires.
Regain Control Of The Cables
A problem with the cables may be as simple as the cables falling off the pulley system. Begin by partially opening your garage door until it is a few feet off the ground. Vice grips affixed to the track on either side keep it in place.
Get on a ladder and climb towards the top of the door to check the pulley system. You can reattach the cable to the pulley system if it has slid off. If this is the case, look for signs of wear and deterioration.
Cable Replacement
When examining your garage door cables, you should replace them if you notice signs of wear and corrosion. To do so, take the old cables out of the brackets and discard them.
Buy new cables and replace the old ones, clamping them in the brackets and tightening the nuts to keep them in place. Always conduct a last test on your wires to confirm that the issue has been fixed.
How To Replace A Garage Door Cable: Steps
In most cases, the cable breaks or grinds; by adopting a position, not by the operation of the cable drum. We recommend replacing it, to have efficient work and avoid; mishaps in the short term.
- Next, we will name the steps and actions to be taken to accomplish this goal:
- Disassemble the door; the door must be completely lowered to the floor; disconnect the electricity to the motor as a precaution.
- At this point, we must remove torque from the spring force. Loosen all the pressure until the cable is completely loose and without pressure. It should be noted how many tension turns were removed from the spring and then put back on. Normally, they are given to the spring to loosen; it is advisable to count them. It will help us in future steps.
- At this moment, the cables must be loose and without pressure from the rollers. If the cable is broken or ground, we remove it from the pulleys from the top and vice versa from the tensioner. We must count on the replacement cable; normally, they are obtained by brand and type of door with which it works in any hardware store. Its density and length must be in accordance to perform opening and closing of the garage door.
Be Careful With This.
At this moment, we proceed to replace the cable; we place a tip tied to the tensor at the bottom. If it has a sectional door, it is located on the first hinge. If it is hinged, the tensioner is located in the lower corner on both sides.
We moved the cable to the pulley from right to left, using the cable guide that was not broken. If the two cables have to be replaced, they will be routed based on the guide of the automatic door until they reach the pulley, where they will rest.
Once the cable is positioned on the pulley, it should be screwed down to a suitable length. It should not be too tight or too loose, and when it reaches the spring tensioning process, it will provide the required force.
We must give it the same turns removed from the tensioner when disassembling the door. The two cables must have the same length to provide a correct position for the door and not be twisted.
It is time to test, energize the motor, and close. The door will make a sudden movement, do not panic because it is only positioning. It will go up with a slight push, and if the process is satisfactory, it will finish its common closing and opening.
Garage Door Cables Are Repaired The Same Day In Most Cases.
With the steps that we have just indicated, it is simple to work, which requires patience and will to carry it out in a day without inconveniences. It requires having the replacement cable and the necessary tools to carry out the process.
The Function Of The Garage Door Cables
The main function of the garage door cables is to perform the closing and opening process in a uniform and balanced way. With the purpose to work based on the tension received; from the garage door spring and the speed of the motor and pulleys found in the door system. It is the heart of this system, providing the proper motion to fulfil the purpose.
Understanding Garage Door Cables
Your garage door features different cables depending on what types of springs.
- Lift cables are found in garage doors with torsion springs. In this configuration, the cables are attached to the bottom corners of the door and routed to the torsion springs located above the door.
- Retaining cables are found in garage doors with extension springs. In this scenario, the cables are located inside the springs, which run vertically along the left and right sides of the garage door. The purpose of retaining cables is to prevent the springs from flying across the room if they break.
Both are heavy-duty twisted cables consisting of several strands of galvanized wire. They usually operate for years without incident, but problems such as faulty bearings in a pulley, excessive moisture near the bottom of the garage door or poor track alignment may accelerate wear, rust and corrosion. With routine visual inspections, you may be able to prevent a fraying cable from snapping.