The two cables on a garage door run from the bottom corners up to the drums by the springs. They carry the door's weight every time it moves. When one fails, the door usually ends up crooked, jammed, or hanging lower on one side — and the other cable is now doing double duty under full spring tension.
Stop using the door. Don't press the opener again, and don't try to straighten the door by hand. This is one of the few garage door problems that can hurt you if you push on it.
How to tell it's the cable
- The door sits crooked — one side higher than the other, or it stopped partway at an angle.
- A cable is visibly loose, frayed, or coiled on the floor next to the track.
- One side of the door dropped suddenly with a bang while it was moving.
- The door binds or jams in the track and the opener strains or reverses.
- The door looks fine closed but won't open evenly — one bottom corner lifts first.
Why cables fail
Age and rust are the usual reasons — cables fray a strand at a time, especially at the bottom bracket where water sits. A broken spring is the other big one: when a spring snaps, the sudden slack lets a cable jump off its drum, so a cable problem is often really a spring problem. A door that's slightly out of balance, or a roller that's come out of the track, will also chew through a cable early.
Why it's a pro job
The cables sit on drums that are wound with the torsion spring. Replacing one means releasing and re-tensioning the spring, seating both cables evenly, and re-balancing the door. Done wrong, the door drops or the spring lets go. It's a routine visit for a technician and a genuinely dangerous one for anyone else.
What the repair usually involves and costs
Cables are almost always replaced as a pair — if one wore out, the other is close behind. If a spring snapped and took the cable with it, the spring gets replaced in the same visit. A cable-only job is on the smaller end of garage repairs; cable plus spring is more because of the tensioned work and parts. The technician confirms the exact price in person after seeing the door.
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Common questions
- Why is my garage door crooked?
- A crooked door almost always means one cable has snapped, slipped off its drum, or frayed. Stop using the door and have it inspected — the remaining cable is under full spring tension.
- Can I fix a garage door cable myself?
- It's not recommended. The cables are wound onto drums with the torsion spring, so replacing one means releasing and re-tensioning a spring that stores enough energy to cause serious injury.
- How much does it cost to replace a garage door cable?
- It depends on whether it's just the cables or a spring too. Cables alone are on the smaller end of garage repairs; cable plus spring costs more. A pro confirms the price in person after seeing the door.