# Signs a spring is wearing out or has broken

Source: https://garagedoorscience.com/academy/how-your-garage-door-works/signs-a-spring-is-wearing-out · part of [How your garage door works, and what to do when it does not](https://garagedoorscience.com/academy/how-your-garage-door-works) · 4 min

You can spot the signs of a tired or broken spring from normal use, or by looking up from the floor. You never need to touch the spring to check. Springs are always a technician's job.

Clopay, a door maker, lists four signs:

- **Look.** The most obvious sign is a visible break or gap in the spring above your door.
- **Feel.** If the door feels unusually heavy, or the opener is straining more than usual, the spring may have lost its tension.
- **Watch.** If the door looks crooked as it moves or gets stuck partway, one spring could be weaker or broken, and that throws the whole door off balance.
- **Listen.** Loud banging or snapping while the door runs is a strong sign a spring has let go.

If you have two springs, only one may be broken. Both should be replaced at the same time, because both are wear and tear parts. That is work for a technician, not you.

## Why cold mornings matter

Springs break most often in cold weather, when the metal is more brittle, and while the door is down, because that is when the spring is under the most tension. The lab further down this page shows why.

Springs also wear out with use. A standard spring is rated for about 10,000 cycles, one cycle is one full open and close, and at four cycles a day that is about seven years (IDC Spring, a spring maker). Rust from rain or moisture can age a spring sooner.

## What to do

Stop using the door. DASMA, the door makers' trade group, says springs are under high tension, and if one is broken, do not run the door until the spring is replaced. A broken or worn out spring can give way suddenly, so the door slams shut or even falls. Call a technician, and do not attempt this on your own.

## Try this

Take a photo of the spring above your door from the floor and try [the photo check](/visual-diagnose). It tells you what it sees, how serious it looks, and what to do next.

## Go further

- Lab: [Spring Fatigue & Cold Weather](https://garagedoorscience.com/labs/spring-fatigue-cold-weather)
- Video: [Garage door spring broke on a cold morning? Why winter snaps tired springs](https://garagedoorscience.com/videos/blog-springs-cold-weather)
- Article: [Why Garage Door Springs Break in Cold Weather](https://garagedoorscience.com/blog/springs-cold-weather)

## Sources

- [Garage Door Spring Systems: A Buying Guide for Homeowners](https://www.clopaydoor.com/residential/buyingguide/garage-door-spring-system)
- [Do I Have a Broken Garage Door Spring?](https://www.clopaydoor.com/blog/post/blog/2021/03/05/do-i-have-a-broken-garage-door-spring)
- [Garage Door Spring Lifespan](https://idcspring.com/resources/articles/garage-door-spring-lifespan/)
- [Residential Sectional Garage Door and Electric Operator Checklist for Home Inspectors and Consumers](https://www.dasma.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/TDS167.pdf)