2026-04-18 7 min read
If you've ever gone out to your garage in the morning and the door just won't budge. motor humming, nothing moving. there's a good chance you're dealing with a broken spring. It's one of the most common calls we get at Palm Beach Garage Doors, and it almost always comes as a surprise. Springs don't announce themselves before they fail. One day they're fine, the next they're not.
In Palm Beach, that timeline tends to be shorter than in most parts of the country. Here's why that matters. and what you need to know before you call anyone.
Palm Beach sits directly along the Atlantic, and the Gulf Stream passes just over a mile offshore. That proximity brings warm, salt-laden ocean air straight into your garage every time the door opens. Salt air is corrosive. It works on metal from the inside out. attacking spring coils before you can see any visible rust on the surface.
Add in the year-round humidity and the fact that torsion springs are constantly under high tension, and you've got a component that's under near-constant stress in one of the harshest coastal environments in Florida. Homes in South End, along South Ocean Boulevard, or near the Intracoastal take the worst of it. But honestly, even properties further inland in areas like West Palm Beach or Lake Worth experience accelerated spring wear compared to drier climates.
There's also a door weight factor unique to this area. Palm Beach County's building codes require hurricane-rated garage doors on most homes. These doors are heavier. sometimes significantly. than standard residential doors. Heavier doors put more load on springs with every single cycle.
Most homes in Palm Beach have one of two spring systems:
Torsion springs mount horizontally on a steel shaft directly above the garage door opening. They work by coiling tightly under tension to store energy, then releasing it to lift the door. They're the more common setup on heavier sectional doors, and they're generally considered safer and longer-lasting than the alternative. Torsion springs typically last 10,000 to 20,000 cycles. roughly 7 to 15 years depending on how often you use the door.
Extension springs run along the sides of the door tracks and stretch and contract as the door moves. They're less expensive upfront but have a shorter lifespan. typically 5,000 to 15,000 cycles. When they snap, they can release with significant force, which is why safety cables alongside them are essential. If your home has an older door setup, there's a decent chance you have extension springs.
If you're not sure which type you have, look above the door when it's closed. A horizontal coiled spring above the opening = torsion. Springs running parallel to the ceiling tracks along the sides = extension.
Don't wait for a complete failure. These are the warning signs to watch for:
- The door moves unevenly or looks crooked when opening or closing. this often means one spring in a two-spring system has failed - Loud bang from the garage. a snapping torsion spring sounds like a gunshot. If you heard it and now the door won't open, that's almost certainly the culprit - The opener strains but the door barely moves. once a spring breaks, the door becomes dead weight. Standard openers aren't designed to lift that load alone - Visible gaps in the spring coil. on a torsion spring, a separation in the coil is a clear sign of failure - Squeaking or grinding that wasn't there before. this can signal corrosion stiffening the coils
For more on how lubrication plays into spring longevity, see our guide on proper bearing and spring care.
For a single-car garage door with a standard torsion spring system, you're generally looking at $150 to $350 for a single spring, with most homeowners paying in the $200,$400 range for a complete two-spring replacement including labor. Extension spring jobs tend to run a bit lower. typically $120 to $200 per spring.
A few things can push the price up here in Palm Beach specifically:
- Heavier hurricane-rated doors require stronger, higher-rated springs. those cost more - High-cycle spring upgrades (rated for 25,000+ cycles) are worth the extra investment in a coastal climate where standard springs corrode faster - Emergency service. if a spring breaks at 7 p.m. on a Friday night and your car is stuck inside, expect to pay a premium for same-day or after-hours response
One important note: always replace both springs at the same time, even if only one has broken. The remaining spring has the same wear and is likely to fail within weeks or months. Replacing both in one visit saves you a second service call and keeps the door balanced.
You'll find spring replacement kits at home improvement stores. You can also find YouTube tutorials. We're going to be straight with you: this is one of the few home repairs where the risk of serious injury is genuinely high.
Torsion springs are under extreme mechanical tension. Mishandling them during installation. wrong winding, wrong size, improper tools. can result in the spring snapping violently. This isn't a scare tactic; it's a real hazard that sends people to the ER every year. The spring also needs to be correctly matched to the specific weight of your door, which requires knowing your door's exact specs.
For most Palm Beach homeowners, professional replacement is the right call. The job typically takes under an hour, and a qualified technician will test the door balance and check cables and rollers while they're at it. You can learn more about what a full service includes on our garage door services page.
You can't stop salt air, but you can slow its effects:
- Lubricate springs every 3,6 months with a silicone-based or lithium spray lubricant. avoid WD-40, which attracts dirt - Rinse the exterior of your garage door periodically to remove salt residue, especially after storms - Schedule annual tune-ups. a technician can catch early corrosion and adjust spring tension before a failure happens - Consider galvanized or oil-tempered high-cycle springs on your next replacement. they hold up significantly better in humid, salty environments
If you have questions about what's right for your specific door setup, reach out to our team. we're happy to give you a straight answer before you commit to anything.
Q: How do I know if my garage door spring is broken vs. the opener being bad? A: Disconnect the opener by pulling the red emergency release cord and try to lift the door manually. If the door is extremely heavy and won't lift more than a few inches, the spring is almost certainly broken. If the door lifts normally by hand but the opener won't pull it, the issue is with the opener.
Q: Should I replace both springs even if only one broke? A: Yes, almost always. Both springs wear at the same rate. If one failed, the other is close behind. Replacing both at once is less expensive than two separate service calls and keeps your door properly balanced.
Q: Can I still use my garage door with a broken spring? A: You shouldn't. Operating a door with a broken spring puts enormous strain on the opener motor and cables. It also creates a safety risk. the door can come down suddenly and unevenly. Leave the door in the closed position and call for service.