Broken garage door spring: signs, dangers and what it costs

A broken garage door spring is the most common serious garage door fault, and it is easy to spot: the door suddenly feels far too heavy to lift, may open only 100mm to 150mm before stopping, and you often hear a loud bang when it snaps. The spring, not the motor, does the lifting, so a failure leaves the whole weight of the door on the opener. In Adelaide, a single broken spring costs $180 to $350 to replace, and a torsion pair $300 to $550. This is a job for a vetted specialist, never a DIY fix.

How to tell a spring has broken

You rarely need a technician to confirm it. The signs are consistent.

• The door will not open with the motor, or opens 100mm then stops and reverses.
• Pulled to manual, the door feels extremely heavy and will not stay up.
• There is a visible gap in the coiled torsion spring above the door, or a stretched extension spring hanging loose.
• You heard a loud bang, sometimes mistaken for a break-in, hours or days earlier.

If the door still lifts easily by hand, your problem is more likely the motor or opener, so check the garage door motor not working guide instead. Not sure which spring type you have? The torsion vs extension springs comparison sorts it in a minute.

Why a broken spring is dangerous

A garage door spring is wound under enormous tension to counterbalance a door that can weigh 80kg or more. That stored energy is exactly why it is dangerous. A spring that lets go, or a winding bar that slips during an amateur replacement, moves fast enough to break bones or worse. This is the single fault we most strongly advise against fixing yourself. A vetted specialist carries the correct winding bars, the right-rated replacement spring, and the experience to do it in one visit. Compare the full repair cost bands so you know a fair price before anyone attends.

What a spring replacement costs in Adelaide

Job	Indicative cost
Single spring replacement	$180 to $350
Torsion spring pair	$300 to $550
Spring plus cable or roller	$250 to $500
Emergency same-day add-on	$80 to $200

Two things move the price within these bands. Door size is the big one: a double door uses heavier, paired springs, so it sits at the top of the range. Coastal corrosion is the other. In the salt-air belt from Port Adelaide and Semaphore through Henley Beach, Glenelg and down to Hallett Cove, springs rust from the inside and fail years earlier than inland. Marine-grade or galvanised replacement springs cost more but are worth it near the water, because standard springs simply fail again. Try the repair cost estimator for an instant ballpark on your door.

Replace springs in pairs

If one spring on a 2-spring door has gone, the other is the same age and close to failure. Most specialists recommend replacing both at once. It costs a little more now but avoids a second call-out (and a second premium) within months, which is common across the ageing roller doors of Salisbury, Elizabeth and Gawler.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use the door with a broken spring?

Not safely. Without the spring's counterbalance, the full door weight sits on the motor, which will burn out the drive gear or opener. Lifting it by hand risks the door dropping. Leave it down until a specialist attends.

How long do garage door springs last?

Most torsion springs are rated for around 10,000 to 15,000 cycles, which is roughly 7 to 12 years of normal use. Coastal Adelaide doors reach the end sooner because of salt corrosion, and high-use doors (multiple trips a day) wear out faster.

Should I replace one spring or both?

If your door has 2 springs, replace both. They wear at the same rate, so a second failure is usually weeks or months away. Doing both in one visit saves a repeat call-out fee.

Ready to fix it properly? Get matched with vetted Adelaide specialists free and compare 2 to 3 exact quotes.