Cables · Repair & Replacement
The cables on your garage door lift it together with the springs. When one frays, snaps or slips off its drum, the door can hang crooked, jam or drop. Swift Lift Garage Door replaces snapped and frayed cables across metro Atlanta and checks the springs, drums and tracks that often fail with them.
Safety first: with a broken cable, don't try to lift the door, don't run the opener, and don't pull the red release cord if the door is open or partly open; it can crash down. Keep people, pets and cars clear and call (470) 257-7192.
Our phones are answered 24/7. Same-day service on most repairs; emergencies usually within about 2 hours.
Right Now
Leave the door where it is and stop using it. The cables work with the springs, which hold the door's weight under high tension, so a door with a snapped cable is unbalanced and can twist, jam or drop without warning. Keep people, pets and cars clear and call (470) 257-7192. Our phones are answered 24/7.
Warning Signs
Look from the floor, without touching anything. Warning signs include broken strands sticking out of the cable, rust, a cable that sags or sits loose, one side of the door rising or closing ahead of the other, a gap under one side when the door is closed, and scraping near the top corners, where the cables wind onto the drums.
Spotted one of these? Call (470) 257-7192 for a free estimate. A frayed or slack cable can snap without warning, so avoid using the door until it's checked. For other reasons a door stops working, see our guide to why a garage door won't open.
Common Causes
Cable failures usually build up over time. The common causes are rust from damp, humid garages, fraying from years of winding on and off the drums, a broken spring that leaves a cable slack or jerks it, a door that came off its track, and worn drums or pulleys. A door that was hit or forced can snap a cable too.
Atlanta's humid summers keep moisture in a closed garage. Once the coating wears through, rust eats into the steel strands and weakens them.
Every time the door opens and closes, the cables run over their drums or pulleys under load. After thousands of trips, the outer wires wear thin and start to break.
When a spring snaps, the cable on that side can go slack and jump off its drum, or take a sudden jolt. Cables and springs often fail together.
Garage door spring replacement →If a roller leaves its track or the door binds, one side stops while the other keeps moving. The cable on the stuck side goes slack and can kink or unwind.
Off-track garage door repair →A chipped or worn drum, or a worn pulley on a door with extension springs, rubs the cable on every trip until it frays.
A bumper tap, a door closing on something in its path, or an opener straining against a stuck door can stretch, kink or snap a cable.
Cable Off the Drum
Yes. The drums are the grooved wheels at each end of the bar above the door, and the cables wind onto them as the door rises. A cable that has come off its drum no longer holds that side of the door, so the door can hang crooked or drop. Stop using it, keep everyone away, and call (470) 257-7192.
A cable usually comes off its drum when it goes slack: a spring breaks, the door comes down on something in its path, or one side binds in its track. The springs can still be wound tight, so don't try to wind the cable back on or move the door. We also look for what made it come off, because a cable put back without fixing the cause tends to come off again.
If it happens at night or your car is stuck inside, see 24/7 emergency garage door repair.
Safety
Because the cable is the link between the door and the springs, and the springs store enough energy to lift a door that weighs well over 100 pounds. Reconnecting a cable means working against that tension. If anything slips, the bar can spin, the cable can whip and the door can drop, which can cause serious injury.
That's why you won't find repair steps for cables or springs on this site. If a cable has failed, leave the door where it is and call (470) 257-7192.
Your Visit
We look at the whole lifting system, not only the broken cable: both cables, the drums or pulleys, the springs, the bottom brackets, the rollers and the tracks. You get a free written estimate and approve it before any work starts. When the work is done, we test the door's balance and the opener's safety reverse.
Both cables, the drums or pulleys, the springs, the bottom brackets, the rollers and the tracks. A worn cable often comes with a worn drum or a tired spring.
You see the price and the parts before any work begins, and nothing starts until you approve it.
When a cable needs replacing, we replace both as a matched pair so the door lifts evenly. A worn drum, a broken spring or other damage goes on the same estimate.
We run the door through several cycles to make sure it is balanced and travels level, and check that the opener reverses when the door meets something in its path.
How Urgent Is It?
If a cable has snapped or come off its drum, or the door hangs crooked, stop using the door and call now. A frayed cable on a door that still runs level is less urgent: book a visit soon and avoid using the door, because the cable can snap without warning. Light rust with no broken strands can wait for a booked visit.
| What you see | How urgent | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| A cable has snapped, hangs loose or has come off its drum | Fix now | Stop using the door. Keep people, pets and cars clear and call (470) 257-7192. |
| The door hangs crooked, one side is lower, or it stopped partway | Fix now | Don't run the opener or force the door. Call us. If it has jammed in its tracks, see our off-track door repair page. |
| A loud bang, and now the door is very heavy or won't lift | Fix now | That usually means a broken spring, and the cables often go with it. Don't lift the door, and don't pull the red release cord if it's open or partly open. See garage door spring replacement. |
| Broken strands, a frayed spot, or a cable scraping near the top corners, but the door still runs level | Book soon | A frayed cable can snap without warning. Avoid using the door until it's repaired, and call or book online. |
| Light rust on a cable, with no broken strands | Can wait for a visit | Have the cables, drums and springs checked before the rust eats into the strands. Book online or call. |
Pricing
We don't price a cable repair sight unseen, because a broken cable can be a cable-only job or part of a bigger repair. The price depends on the spring system, the door's size and weight, and whether a drum, bracket, spring or track was damaged too. The written estimate is free, and you approve it before any work starts.
Torsion doors wind their cables onto drums above the door. Extension-spring doors run them over pulleys and should also have a safety cable inside each spring. Each setup takes different parts.
A taller door needs longer cables, and a heavy double or insulated door needs cable rated for its weight.
If the parts the cable winds on or is fastened to are worn or cracked, they go on the same estimate.
If a spring failed along with the cable, it is priced on the same estimate.
If the door came off its track or dropped, the tracks, rollers or panels may need work too.
We check all of that on site, then give you a free, exact, upfront written quote — and you approve it before we start any work. Our guide to garage door repair cost in Atlanta explains what drives repair prices across the metro.
Real Google Reviews
Two Google reviews from customers whose repairs included cables, word for word.
Charles Bell
11 reviews
Shawn Levi fixed my door and installed a new cables & sensors. Unspeakable skill and perfect professionalism. I would recommend Mr Levi for anyone that needs the ultimate professional
Ashley Meadows Committee
Jamie did a great job, he fixed my all garage door system, spring, cables and the rollers it’s works perfect and the price is good thanks.
Posted by customers on our Google Business Profile, in their own words.
See more customer reviewsGood to Know
No. Don't open it with the opener or by hand. With a broken cable, one side of the door has lost its lifting support, so the door can twist, jam or fall. If your car is stuck inside, call (470) 257-7192. Our phones are answered 24/7. Same-day service on most repairs; emergencies usually within about 2 hours.
Leave the door where it is and stop using it. Don't try to wind the cable back on, and don't pull the red release cord if the door is open or partly open; it can crash down. Keep people, pets and cars clear and call (470) 257-7192. We also look for what made it come off.
No, and we don't publish steps for it. Putting a cable back on means taking up the spring tension that balances the whole door. If a tool or the cable slips, the cable can whip loose and the door can drop. Leave the door where it is and call (470) 257-7192 for an experienced technician.
It depends on what failed. The spring system, the door's size and weight, and whether a drum, bracket, spring or track needs work too all change the price. We check all of that on site, then give you a free, exact, upfront written quote — and you approve it before we start any work. Call (470) 257-7192.
Yes. We replace lift cables as a matched pair. Both cables are the same age and carry the door together, so when one fails, the other is usually worn too. A new cable next to an old, stretched one can also make the door lift unevenly.
Look from a safe distance without touching anything. A broken torsion spring usually shows a gap in the coil above the door, often after a loud bang. A cable problem shows as a steel cable hanging loose beside the door, or one side of the door sitting lower. The two often fail together, so we check both.
Phones answered 24/7 · Free written estimates · Insured
Same-day service on most repairs; emergencies usually within about 2 hours.
Booking online? Our dispatcher will call you back as soon as possible; if it's urgent, call (470) 257-7192 now.
