Huh? How does a torsion spring present a 'different danger' than a extension spring? The incident you describe could have just as easily happened with an extension spring door with an opener on it. You should not have pulled the emergency release with children present! Glad your daughter is OK!
I've done the same thing several times and my "new end loops" never fail.
Looking at new extension springs it appears that the end loops come off the spring with a rather sharp small radius bend.
All the breaks I've experienced occured right at that bend which looks neat, but is an obvious stress increaser.
I make my bends with a generous radius. They don't look as great, but they don't break.
Just my .02,
Jeff
Working on a garage door is incredibly dangerous. Even pros often get hurt. Consider hiring a pro for this job. Wayne Dalton stores fix all brands in my area and are very reasonable.
Watch out for ads in the phone book that advertise $ 29.95 service charge in a full page ad. A well dress guy will show up and tell you you need $1000 worth of parts.
On Sat, 07 Jul 2007 14:50:11 -0500, Richard J Kinch wrote:
Although I am the OP on this message, this has nothing to do with the door breaking, but has to do with getting trapped under the door. This happened a month ago or so (same door, but before the cable broke). We have a small farm. To make a few extra dollars we breed show rabbits, which are these fancy kinds, such as the Rex. We had just bought this really pretty doe. I was still building the rabbit pen, so I was keeping the rabbits in the garage. The rabbit pen which I was building is a distance from the garage. About a week before I had taken a piece of 2x4 to the garage to rip it on my table saw. As usual, I got side tracked and forgot to rip the board. Everytime I went to the rabbit pen I would remember that board, but did not want to make a special trip to the garage for it. Everytime I was near the garage I would remind myself to rip the board and take it to the pen, but every time I would forget. I bet that happened at least a dozen times. Yes, I am forgetful, and admit it....
Anyhow one night I went to the garage (in the dark) and opened the door to grab a bale of hay I had taken there for the rabbits feed and bedding. I decided that the particular bale was not the hay the rabbits prefer, so I took it outside and fed it to the ponies. I shut the garage door and headed to the barn to get another bale. Halfway to the barn I remembered the 2x4 and decided that enough was enough. Either I rip that board and take it to the pen, or I will never remember to do it. (Actually, I think there was a voice telling me to go back to the garage). I went back and in the dark I noticed something out of the ordinary in front of the garage door. However, I could not make out what it was until I bent over to get a closer look. Then came the panic. This new doe we had just bought, had once again escaped from her cage, and she was slammed against the concrete under the garage door. When I touched her she appeared dead, and was not breathing. In order to unlatch the door, I had to push down on the door, but time was wasting and since she appeared dead anyhow, I pushed down and unlatched it quickly. As the door went up, she suddenly jumped and ran right over to her cage and stood there. I was amazed, and held her for quite awhile. She was breathing real hard and hear heart was pounding. I put her back in her cage and she went about her business as if nothing happened. She is fine today and did not appear to suffer any injuries. How a 8X9 foot wooden door could come down hard on top of this 3 pound rabbit and she still survived is beyond me.
If it were not for that 2x4, she would have died in another minute or so, because I know she was not breathing. I do think the rubber weatherstrip on the door saved her, plus my decision to go back to the garage. She is now in an escape proof cage, and the scrap piece from that 2x4 is next to her cage, because if it was not for that piece of wood, she would be a goner.
Just one of those weird things that happen....... At least it has a happy ending. She was not the most friendly rabbit when I got her, but after that incident, she is now one of the friendliest rabbits we have, particularly to myself. I guess she knows I saved her butt....
That's just what I was looking for. Thanks !!!! Andy
I had one break as I closed the door from the inisde. It splintered a
2X6 . Then and there I came up with idea of running the extra cable thru the spring. I posted this same info on this site several years ago to warn people of the danger of that kind of door opener. Jack
- Huh? How does a torsion spring present a 'different danger' than a extension spring?
One of the responses was to replace the door with one that uses torsion springs, implying
Sorry about my last post...sloppy mouse click.
Anyway, as I was saying,..
One of the responses was to replace the door with one that uses torsion springs, implying (at least to me) that a torsion spring made garage doors safer. I was simply pointing out that a broken torsion spring can also be a dangerous thing, but not from flying debris, but from the unsupported door - that's a 'different danger'. Sorry for causing a misunderstanding.
torsion springs have a rod going through them making them a bit safer than an un-cabled extension spring correct?
Well for one thing, they're a superior system. and for another thing, when they break, they don't tear shit up.
Yes, they are wound over a shaft. They can break too, but will not launch themselves across the garage. I have had doors with both types of springs, and torsion are superior.
Perhaps safer in terms of becoming a projectile, but when a single torsion spring configuration fails the door is fully heavy, versus a double spring configuration (extension or torsion) where one of the spring pair remains intact so that the door is still a hazard but half as heavy.
I've recently installed two single spring extension spring doors. Depending on the door a double may still be damn hard to lift with only one intact. Around 7 months ago I was in a building with two 12x10 glass doors. One of the torsion springs decided to fail and it sounded like a meteor crashed through the roof but no collateral damage occurred.
Sure, but only half as d*** hard.
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