Garage Door Repair in Hayward & the Bay Area

Common Garage Door Problems We Fix

After 17 years of pulling up to Bay Area driveways, I can tell you that about 80% of the calls we get fall into the same handful of categories. That does not make them simple — it means we have seen every variation of these problems and know exactly how to handle each one efficiently and safely.

Broken torsion springs are the single most common repair we do. You will know it when it happens — there is usually a loud bang from the garage, and the door suddenly feels impossibly heavy or will not open at all. Standard springs are rated for around 10,000 cycles, which works out to about 7-10 years for an average household. We carry the most common residential spring sizes on every truck, so we can replace yours the same day you call. We always replace both springs as a pair, because if one broke, the other is running on borrowed time.

Snapped cables are the next most common issue. The lift cables run from the bottom bracket on each side of the door up and around the cable drums at the top. When a cable frays or snaps, the door can hang crooked, jam in the tracks, or drop unexpectedly. We inspect the cable drums, check the bottom brackets for cracks, and replace both cables to ensure even tension on each side.

Track problems — bent, misaligned, or corroded tracks — cause the door to bind, squeal, or come off track entirely. A door that has jumped its track is a genuine safety hazard. We straighten or replace the affected track sections, re-level the horizontal runs, and verify that the vertical tracks are plumb so the door seats flush against the weatherseal when closed.

Damaged panels from a car bump, a basketball, or just age and weather can be replaced individually in most cases. We match the panel style, color, and insulation rating so the replacement blends in. If the damage has warped the panel enough to compromise the hinge or strut attachment points, we will let you know upfront whether a panel swap makes sense or if you are better off with a full door replacement.

Opener failures range from a stripped gear set in the motor head to a fried logic board or a misaligned safety sensor. We work on every major brand — LiftMaster, Chamberlain, Genie, Linear, Craftsman, Marantec — and carry replacement gear kits, capacitors, and sensor eyes on the truck. If your opener is beyond repair, we will give you an honest recommendation instead of pushing a replacement you do not need.

Our Diagnostic Process

Every service call starts the same way: we watch the door operate. Before we touch a single bolt, we run the door through a full open-and-close cycle (if it is safe to do so) and listen. The sounds a garage door makes tell you a lot — grinding means worn rollers or a dry track, popping means a spring or cable is binding, and rattling usually means loose hardware.

Next, we disconnect the opener and test the door manually. This is how we check balance. A properly balanced garage door should stay in place when you lift it about three feet off the ground and let go. If it drops, the springs are weak or broken. If it shoots upward, the springs are wound too tight. Either way, the opener is working harder than it should, and that shortens its lifespan.

From there, we do a visual inspection of every component in the system. We check each roller for flat spots and bearing wear, inspect the hinges for cracks at the bolt holes, examine the cable drums for groove wear, and look at the bottom brackets and lift cables for fraying. We check the track alignment with a level and verify that the horizontal tracks have the correct pitch — about a quarter inch of rise per foot heading toward the back wall, so the door stays closed on its own.

We also test the opener safety features: the photo-eye sensors that stop the door if something crosses the beam, and the auto-reverse function that should kick in if the door contacts an object. These are federally mandated safety features, and we make sure they are working correctly on every service call, regardless of what you originally called us for.

Once we know what is going on, we give you a written quote that covers parts, labor, and warranty — before we start any work. No trip charges tacked on, no "well, while we are here" add-ons. If you approve the price, we get to work. If you do not, you owe us nothing.

Why DIY Garage Door Repair Is Dangerous

I understand the temptation to save money and fix it yourself — I am a hands-on person too. But a garage door is the heaviest moving object in your home, typically between 150 and 400 pounds, and the torsion springs that lift that weight are under an enormous amount of stored energy. A standard torsion spring on a two-car door stores enough force to cause serious injury or death if it releases uncontrollably.

The bottom bracket on each side of the door is another component people underestimate. It is under full spring tension when the door is closed. We have seen homeowners unbolt a bottom bracket thinking they were just going to swap a cable, and the bracket released violently. The professional winding bars, c-clamps, and vise grips we use are not optional safety theater — they are the difference between a controlled repair and an emergency room visit.

Even tasks that seem straightforward, like replacing rollers, can be hazardous if you do not know which rollers are safe to remove and which ones are load-bearing. The bottom roller on each side, for example, is connected to the cable system through the bottom bracket. Removing it without securing the spring tension first means the cable can whip free and the door can drop. We strongly recommend leaving anything beyond basic lubrication and weatherstrip replacement to a trained technician with the right tools and the experience to use them.

Pricing

We believe in straightforward pricing, so here is what our most common repairs actually cost — parts, labor, and warranty included. These are the same numbers we quote on-site; we are not hiding a trip charge or a "diagnostic fee" that magically disappears if you hire us.

• Complete Tune-Up — $169: Full safety inspection, lubrication of all moving parts, hardware tightening, spring balance adjustment, and opener safety check. This is the single best thing you can do to extend the life of your door and prevent breakdowns.
• Roller Replacement — $270: Full set of 13-ball nylon rollers to replace worn, noisy steel rollers. Includes track inspection, lubrication, and a balance test. Nylon rollers are dramatically quieter and last two to three times longer than steel.
• Spring Replacement — $608: Both torsion springs replaced as a pair, using high-quality oil-tempered springs. Includes all hardware, full balance adjustment, and a safety inspection. We carry the most common residential sizes on the truck, so this is typically a same-day repair.

For less common repairs — panel replacement, cable drum swap, track replacement, or opener motor rebuild — the pricing depends on the specific parts required for your door. We will always give you an exact quote before starting work, and we are happy to explain why a repair costs what it costs. We have been in business since 2009 because we price fairly, not because we price cheaply.