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View Full Version : Hookup near Inland Empire for Garage Door Openers/Repairs?



ElimJimsOtherHalf
06-29-2007, 08:50 AM
We have a motorhome size garage door that needs new springs and one of those heavy duty openers (Genie) to match the rest. The estimate we got today was $500 for spring replacement and 800/900 for a new opener. Is this reasonable?

BADBLOWN572
06-29-2007, 09:11 AM
We have a motorhome size garage door that needs new springs and one of those heavy duty openers (Genie) to match the rest. The estimate we got today was $500 for spring replacement and 800/900 for a new opener. Is this reasonable?
Definitely replace both springs at once. When one breaks it puts a lot more stress on the other one. Not sure if these are expansion springs or tortion springs. Either way it doesn't matter. If the $500 is for both springs, you are getting a real good deal. My old company (commercial door company) would not touch a spring job for under $750 (usually $1k).
When it comes to an operator, I personally do not like Genie. We have had nothing but problems when they were installed. I would go with a Liftmaster operator and on a motorhome sized garage door, I would go with the Liftmaster 3240. It comes with a Lifetime motor warranty. If the company you are using has an account with Liftmaster, their cost on the operator should be around $250.00-$300.00. Should take about an hour and a half or two hours to install.
Here is the link to the Liftmaster website on the 3240 Liftmaster (http://www.liftmaster.com/pdfdocs/114A3331.pdf)

ElimJim
06-29-2007, 09:14 AM
That $500 was for both springs, with supposedly better quality that won't lose their spring as fast.

BADBLOWN572
06-29-2007, 09:24 AM
That $500 was for both springs, with supposedly better quality that won't lose their spring as fast.
99% of the springs that are installed in CA are purchased through Holmes/Clopay in Santa Fe Springs. There really is no "better spring" than the one before. It all depends on the wire and how it is made. They are all mass produced. Normally the reason why a spring breaks is because the door was never balanced properly from the beginning. If it has too much tension, there is too much pressure on the springs. If there is not enough tension, the operator will struggle to lift up the door (over time burning out the operator). If you have two springs and they are not evenly balanced, that will kill them over time.
If the guy knows what he is doing when he installs the springs & operator, there is no reason why the springs & operator won't last at minimum of 20 years.

ElimJim
06-29-2007, 10:01 AM
I don't know anything about springs on a rollup door. Since there is adjustable tension, and neither of the springs has broken (they just don't hold the door up anymore), can they be retentioned? Or would that make them more likely to break in the future? These are the orig springs and are around 7 to 8 years old.

BADBLOWN572
06-29-2007, 10:09 AM
I don't know anything about springs on a rollup door. Since there is adjustable tension, and neither of the springs has broken (they just don't hold the door up anymore), can they be retentioned? Or would that make them more likely to break in the future? These are the orig springs and are around 7 to 8 years old.
You can always add tension to the springs. After 7-8 years the metal has fatigued, but it is still fine. Just add tension. I was under the impression that the springs were broken. What you want is for the door to be perfectly balanced 1/2 way up. Make sure that they disconnect the arm from the operator when they do this. They need to go and add 1/4 turns to each spring until it gets to the point that 1/2 way up the door holds itself. They SHOULD back off tension from both springs and start from zero. At first, they can do 1/2 or full turns, but to dial it in, they should be adding 1/4 turn of tension each time.
No matter how big the door is, if it is properly tensioned, you should be able to raise and lower the door with 3 fingers. :)

BADBLOWN572
06-29-2007, 10:58 AM
What he said, Genie sucks!
On a door that big, the springs would have to be torsion.
You would be surprised. We do a lot of canopy doors and cantilever (?sp) doors. Most of them use extension springs. SHOULD be tortion springs, but not guaranteed. :)