My garage door spring snapped at 6am, took 2 tries and $180 in parts

Woke up Tuesday to the loudest bang I've heard in this house, thought a tree hit the roof. Nope, torsion spring on the door just gave up after 14 years. Called a company and they quoted $420 for the fix. Watched a few videos and figured I could do it myself. First try I got the winding bars in wrong and the cable popped off the drum. Took a breather, rewatched the part where you set the tension, and got it done in about 3 hours total. Drilled out the old bolts on the center plate since they were rusted solid. Ended up ordering a pair of springs from a local supplier on Federal for $180. Door works smooth now, but my arms are sore from winding those things. Has anyone else tackled spring replacement solo, or is that one of those jobs you always pay for?

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jessica_ross382mo ago

Yeah, that loud bang is no joke, I thought mine was a gunshot the first time it went. Getting the cable off the drum is the scariest part for sure, I did the same thing and had to rewatch the tension setup twice before I trusted it. One thing that saved me was marking the bars with tape before I started, so I knew exactly where they sat each turn. 14 years is about right too, most people don't even think about those springs until they fail, and then it's always at the worst time. $180 and sore arms sounds way better than $420 and a contractor's schedule, so good on you.

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