Finding Better Garage Doors

Your Garage Door Needs Springs To Work

Whether your garage door has an automatic opener or you have to open it manually, it has springs. The springs are a necessary part of your garage door, and if they are failing, you need to have a repair company come out and check them out. Do not try to work on the springs yourself, they can be dangerous and you could get hurt. So, what do your springs do?

Lifting 

The main job that the springs in your garage door have is to lift your garage door up. The doors are heavy and trying to fight gravity to get the doors open takes work. That's where the springs come in. They store energy by being under tension as they are stretched out. As the door gets lifted, the springs start to compress and lose the energy that they stored. They are losing that energy because the springs are using it to pull the door up. When the door closes, the springs are back to their neutral resting state, and their stored energy is expended. When the door starts to go down again, the springs will start to store energy again. There are different kinds of springs that may be on your door. 

Torsion Springs

One kind of spring is the torsion spring. A torsion spring doesn't really expand and contract. Instead, it uses torque, which means that it spins and twists. The tighter the spring is twisted, the more tension it is under and the more energy it is storing up. Torsion springs are probably the most common spring option you will see for garage doors. That's because these springs are generally stronger and last longer than other kinds of springs do. One worry with torsion springs is that they can be under a lot of tension when the doors are closed, so if there is a catastrophic failure, there is a lot of energy there that could get released all of a sudden. If you haven't worked with torsion springs before, you need to let a repair company handle it. 

Extension Springs

Extension springs are usually on either side of the garage door. They run along the tracks for the garage door. They look more like the springs you are used to seeing. You are more likely to see extension springs in garages that don't have a lot of headroom. 

If you are worried about the springs in your garage door, then you need to call a professional to have them come out and check your garage door to handle whatever is broken. 

For more information, contact a company like A Z Garage Doors.


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