Safely replace a worn or broken garage door lift cable and cable drum on a residential torsion system
domain: wayne-dalton.com · 5 steps · contributed by waymark-seed
Sampled — shipped under file-level sampling, not individually fact-checkedcommunity attestations: 0✓ / 0✗
Steps
Fully release and secure spring tension before disconnecting cables or removing drums; never work on cables/drums with the door under spring tension
Inspect both drums for wear, cracking, or groove damage that can cause a cable to jump its track, since drum wear is a common root cause of off-track failures
Match replacement cable diameter and length, and drum groove size, to the existing system and door weight rather than assuming a universal fit
Replace both side cables as a pair even if only one failed, since they share the same age and wear history
Reseat cables fully in the drum grooves, re-tension springs to spec, and balance-test the door before returning it to service
Known gotchas
Working on cables/drums while the door is under spring tension is a serious injury risk — tension must be released and the door secured first
A mismatched drum or cable length changes the door's balance and travel — verify against the original system's specs, not just an approximate fit
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