Morton Grove, IL · Same-day service
Extension Springs on Morton Grove's Surviving Original Hardware
An extension spring that lets go does not simply stop working. It releases everything it was holding at once, and unless a cable runs down the middle of the coil it can leave the ceiling entirely. That single length of aircraft cable is the difference between a loud morning and a hole in the drywall.
Serving Morton Grove
Free on-site estimates. Emergency work available.
Extension springs stretch along the horizontal tracks, one down each side, taking the load as the door comes down. The village still has plenty of them, mostly on garages whose original door was never replaced and on lighter single-car doors that never needed a torsion tube. We replace them throughout Morton Grove and the near-northwest towns either side of it.
Springs Fitted Before Containment Cables Were Standard
Older installations here routinely have no containment cable at all, because the hardware predates the practice. Where we find that, one goes in as part of the job. It threads through the coil and anchors at both ends, so a break drops the spring onto the cable instead of across the garage.
The same visit tends to turn up S-hooks that have opened up and pulleys with flat spots worn into the sheave. Small parts doing critical work: a seized pulley will saw through a lift cable in a matter of months.
The Two Sides Have to Match
Extension springs are rated by the door weight they carry and by lift height, and each side takes half the load. Pair a new spring with an old one and the door pulls to the strong side, the top section racks in the opening, and the rollers start biting into the track.
That is why they come off together. It is also why the lift cables get inspected at the same time — the bottom of that cable lives exactly where meltwater and road salt collect on a garage floor, and it corrodes upward from the anchor.
When Converting to Torsion Is the Better Answer
Not every door should stay on extension springs. A wide two-car door, an insulated set of sections, or a bay tight enough that the springs run alongside a parked vehicle are all good reasons to move the counterbalance onto a torsion tube above the opening.
It is also not something anyone should be talked into. A single-car door in sound condition with proper containment cables is fine as it is, and that is what you will be told.
Other work we do in Morton Grove
- Torsion Springs
- Roller Repair
- Panel Replacement
- Smart Openers
- Commercial
- Custom Doors
- Maintenance
- Safety Inspection
- Lubrication
- Spring Replacement
- Opener Repair
- Installation
- Emergency Service
- Cable Repair
- Track Repair
Extension Springs in nearby towns
More on extension spring replacement, or everything we cover in Morton Grove.
Questions
Morton Grove questions about this job
The springs run along the ceiling, not above the door. Is that wrong?
No. That is a normal extension setup and it is how most doors of that era were built. It only becomes a problem when the containment cables are missing or the pulleys have worn.
With the door shut, one spring is stretched further than the other. Why?
Uneven tension, usually because the two springs are different ages or one has taken a permanent set. The door starts sitting crooked in the opening and the top section takes the strain.
Can I keep using the door with one spring broken?
No. The remaining spring is carrying a load meant for two and the opener is carrying whatever is left. That is how gear sets strip and cables snap.
Book Morton Grove extension springs
Pick an arrival window online, or call and speak to someone now. Free on-site estimates.
Emergency service available · Free on-site estimates