Garage Door Spring Repair in Vancouver
Know the signs, the risks and the typical cost
A broken garage door spring often makes itself known with a sharp crack from the garage, then a door that refuses to open. Springs carry the door's weight under high tension, so the repair belongs with trained hands, and a matched pair keeps the door balanced. Garage Door Repairs Vancouver quotes spring repair across Metro Vancouver: call (604) 216-9380.
Serving Vancouver, Surrey, Langley, Burnaby, Richmond and Coquitlam
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How can you tell a garage door spring has broken?
The clearest sign is a sharp bang from the garage, like a gunshot, followed by a door that won't open or feels far too heavy to lift by hand. A US door maker lists these as the signs of a spring that has already snapped.
You can often see the break. Look at the spring above the door: a torsion spring that has failed shows a gap of 2 to 3 inches between its coils. On doors with springs along the sides, a broken extension spring looks stretched out or hangs loose.
If any of this matches your door, read the safety advice below before you touch it.
Torsion or extension: which springs does your door have?
Sectional garage doors are lifted by one of two spring types, and you can tell them apart by where they sit.
Torsion springs
These are tightly wound coils on a metal bar across the top of the door opening. They twist to store energy as the door closes and unwind to help lift it. When one fails, the coil splits and leaves a visible gap along the bar.
Extension springs
These long springs run beside the horizontal tracks on each side of the ceiling. They stretch when the door comes down and pull back as it goes up. A failed one looks overstretched or dangles from its mount.
Extension springs cost less as parts, though the labour is about the same as torsion work. The typical prices for both are in the price table further down.
Why do garage door springs wear out?
Springs wear out because they are rated for a set number of cycles, and one cycle is one full open and close. A Canadian door manufacturer puts a standard spring at about 10,000 cycles.
The years follow from how you use the door. At four cycles a day, 10,000 cycles runs out in roughly 7 years. At two a day, it takes about 14. A household that uses the garage as its front door uses up a spring much sooner than one that opens it twice a day.
Damp makes it worse. Rain and condensation inside the garage can rust springs, which is why rusty coils are on the warning list above. Door makers give this as general guidance for homes in wet climates.
Why are springs replaced as a matched pair?
On a door with two springs, changing both at once keeps the tension even, so the door stays balanced and closes level. A US cost guide adds that replacing only one puts extra stress on the older spring left in place.
That is why the price table below lists two torsion springs as a single job, priced as a pair.
Is it safe to fix a broken spring yourself?
No. The springs hold a great deal of stored tension, and that is what makes spring work dangerous. A Canadian door maker warns that a door whose torsion spring has broken can come down fast enough to injure or kill someone.
The safety bodies say the same. DASMA, the US door industry association, notes that a door's operation relies on a high degree of spring tension and urges people to consult trained door specialists for repairs like this. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission adds that a door out of balance may come crashing down unexpectedly.
What to do until the spring is replaced
- Stop using the opener. Door maker advice is to stop operating a door with a broken spring until it is repaired.
- Leave the door closed if it is already down.
- Keep children, pets and cars out from under the door.
- Call (604) 216-9380 and describe the bang, the gap or the loose spring you can see.
If the door is stuck open or your car is trapped, read about emergency garage door repair in Vancouver for the first checks to make.
What does garage door spring replacement cost in Vancouver?
Garage door spring replacement in Metro Vancouver typically runs $350 to $700 for a matched pair of torsion springs. One torsion spring on its own and a pair of extension springs sit lower, as the table shows.
| Spring job | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Torsion spring, one spring replaced | $200 to $380 |
| Torsion springs, matched pair | $350 to $700 |
| Extension springs, pair | $350 to $600 |
Typical Metro Vancouver market ranges, 2026, before tax. Where these prices come from
Cable, opener and new door prices sit together on one page, the garage door repair cost guide. Spring repair is quoted in each of the cities on the service areas page, including garage door repair in Surrey and Burnaby.
Garage door spring questions
Can I replace just the broken one?
Yes, when your door only has one spring. Some doors are built with a single torsion spring, and on those one new spring is the whole job. On a two-spring door, the matched-pair section above explains the trade-off.
Can I open the door with a broken spring?
Don't try to lift it. The red release cord only disconnects the door from the opener. Door care guides say to use it once the door is down, and the emergency repair page gives the reason.
How long do springs last?
Sources give different year counts because use varies so much. Door maker guidance puts the average torsion spring at 5 to 7 years; US cost guides give a wider 8 to 15. Counting your door's daily cycles, as shown above, gives you a better estimate for your own home.
What are high-cycle springs?
High-cycle springs are built for more open and close cycles than a standard spring. Published price guides list them at 20,000 cycles or more. They suit a door that gets heavy daily use, such as one used as the main way in and out of the house.
Why did it break in the night?
Springs stay under tension even when the door is shut. One that has used up its rated cycles or has rusted can break then. The first sign may be a door that won't lift the next time you press the button.
If a lift cable is also hanging loose, see garage door cable and roller repair. Langley homeowners can read garage door repair in Langley for what wears first on newer homes there. For any other door problem, start at garage door repair in Vancouver and the region.
Sources for this page
Spring warning signs: US door manufacturer guidance, May 2026. Cycle rating and fall risk: Canadian door manufacturer guidance. Spring tension: DASMA, Door and Access Systems, Fall 2007. Unbalanced doors: US Consumer Product Safety Commission, Publication 523. Matched pairs: a US cost guide.
Last updated October 27, 2026
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