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One of the most overlooked parts of the garage door is the cables.
Along with the springs, it is actually also one of the essential components that keep the door together, in terms of lifting and lowering it down when it is being opened or closed.
Various reasons can be behind the garage door not opening, but one of the most obvious ones is due to the broken cables.
It can be such a pain when the overhead door just refuses to open, hindering the person from entering or getting the vehicle out.
Furthermore, it causes inconvenience, especially if time is of the essence.
When that happens, homeowners should be able to prepare for the worst, and even before the event takes place, they should understand how and why the door is malfunctioning.
Understanding and knowing the ins and outs of the door, albeit not expertly, can at least give homeowners an idea of what the mechanism is facing, and what kind of repairs should be done.
Even if a garage door repair company is on the job, knowing the root cause of the overhead door not opening is essential.
If it is because of the broken cables, find out why and how.
Types of Garage Door Cables
The door has three different types of cables, like springs, to cater to the multiple jobs it needs to achieve to keep the door balanced and running smoothly.
1. Torsion Spring Cables
These cables are typically found to be placed horizontally on top of the door’s entrance.
When the door lowers down, these cables located at the edge of the door will result in the springs’ winding upward.
Likewise, when the door lifts, the springs then are unwinded, and the stored energy extends a hand in lifting the overhead door.
Thus, if the torsion spring cable is broken, the springs will not be able to unwind, and the door will refuse to move.
2. Extension Spring Cables
These extension spring cables are located at the bottom corners of the door and are likewise attached to the extension springs themselves.
If the door is closed, the springs extend, and they are stretched.
If it is opened, the springs lift the door, and so if the cables are broken, it will prevent the extension springs from pulling back into its original place and will hinder the door from opening.
3. Safety cables
This kind of cable is installed to prevent the garage door spring, if broken, from flying off the door that can cause injury to anyone nearby.
They are found attached to the tracks of the door or the wall beside the stationary pulleys.
They wind together with the springs and are also linked to the same system where the spring is.
Therefore, when the safety cables are broken, the springs can easily hit the nearest person or object in the vicinity.
Why do cables malfunction?
1. The cable drum is winded incorrectly.
The garage door will be jammed if the cable drum has incorrect winding.
An obvious indication of this is when the door is out of balance and drops off on one side.
2. The cables are unwinded.
Cables can become unwound, and when they do, they will need to be replaced.
3. The pulleys are worn out.
Some pulleys can affect how the cables operate.
If they are already worn out, they need to be replaced by all new ones, as repairing them will not guarantee that it will not wear out again.
4. The cables are worn out.
Like any other part, the cables are also susceptible to wear.
When this occurs, the overhead door cannot be used at all, therefore causing more inconvenience.
They will need to be replaced with new ones.
5. The cables are frayed.
Smaller cables are wounded together and resemble a rope.
Thus, if one is frayed, there is a good chance that the others are too.
For broken cables other malfunctions involving the garage door system, let the professionals handle it, as it most likely requires replacing.
Overhead door repairs need the attention of an expert technician; hence homeowners need to reach out to a garage door repair company so they can immediately open the door.
