Garage Door Cable Repair
Frayed or snapped lift cables replaced — across Wellesley, Newton, Natick, Needham, Framingham, Weston, Brookline.
A frayed or snapped lift cable means the door has lost part of its support, and the safe move is to leave it closed and call. Two cables run from the bottom brackets up to the drums or pulleys, tied into the spring system, and together they carry the full weight of the door. The bottom brackets are tied into the spring system, so DASMA wants cable work left to trained technicians.
On a cable job we look past the cable. A grooved or wobbling drum, a bent bottom bracket or a roller riding off the track is often the reason the cable failed, and a new cable on a worn drum will fray again. We usually replace both cables, set the length so the door hangs level, seat each cable on its drum, and check the spring and the tracks before the door goes back into service.
Signs a Lift Cable Is Failing
- A cable hanging slack or coiled on the floor
- Frayed or rust-flaked strands near the bottom bracket
- One side hangs lower than the other
- One cable slipped loose from the drum at the top
- A pop or snap, then a door that jams on the way up
- The door lifts crooked and wedges in the track
❄️ The MetroWest Winter Factor
The bottom bracket is the cable's weak point in a salted climate. Cars come home with slush on them, and the meltwater drips onto the brackets and the lowest few inches of cable, where braided steel holds moisture between its strands. The Charles River Watershed Association identifies chloride as the most common road de-icing ingredient, and DASMA's spring data sheet explains how rust eats into steel wire. In our experience the lowest foot of cable fails first, so we inspect it on every visit.
How We Handle It
Make the door safe
The door is secured and the spring tension is controlled before any cable or bracket is touched.
Inspect the whole path
Cable, drum, bottom bracket, rollers and track are checked to find why the cable failed.
Replace and set length
New cables of the right length and gauge go on, seated on the drums so the door hangs level.
Level and test
We check balance, travel and the lower rollers, then cycle the door until it runs straight.
Cable replacement pricing
Cables are priced per cable, and both sides are usually changed together so the door lifts evenly.
- Garage Door Cable Replacement
- from $150 per cable
- Diagnostic Service Call
- $0 with a completed repair
