Physics at home: How a garage door opener works and how to fix it
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- čas přidán 3. 09. 2018
- Note: for those waiting for the Cavendish videos, stick around! I had a couple other projects to take care of (including fixing my garage door), and the weather in my area has been really volatile lately. I am hoping for some time without big shifts in temperature and humidity so I don't have to worry about that as a source of uncertainty.
Garage doors are really heavy. It would be easy to mistakenly think that the motor does all the work lifting the door. If you detach the motor and move the door yourself, you might also get the impression that it's pretty light. This mistaken impression is because of the giant springs that help support the weight of the door. One of mine broke, so in this video I'll show you how the opener works, and how I replaced the broken spring.
Twisting a spring works just like stretching or compressing a spring: it takes force (or torque) to make it happen, the spring tries to get back to its "relaxed" position, and the spring stores energy. The giant springs on your garage door opener get twisted up more tightly as the door closes. Since the door is getting lower, it is losing gravitational potential energy. The energy is primarily being changed into spring potential energy, meaning it can be changed back with a little assistance from the motor.
In this video, I'll show you how all the pieces fit together, explain the role of the springs and why they make the door feel so consistently light, and how to go about replacing a broken spring. I'm no expert on garage door repair, but am fairly mechanically inclined and have a thorough understanding of the physics of the situation. Don't put yourself at risk if you don't have the skillset to complete something like this safely; I am dealing with huge amounts of energy in the springs, which are poised to release that energy right at my face. Be smart and safe, and hire a professional if you have any doubts.
Background music is "dance" from www.bensound.com, a great source for duty-free music.
*I need this for homework-*
I keep finding you in a all my homework videos that’s weird
same
same
a r e
I need it to
"This video is sponsored by any hardware store except the one where I told the guy 'yeah I already measured it I know which one I need.'"
I laughed. I'm sorry.
thanks for your video. Clear explanation and just what I needed to understand how they work. Too advanced and risky for me to try myself though. I just needed the segment to 4:27. And your music is fine to me.
thats the fashon famous backround music :>
its eerie how perfect this video is for my situation right now. thank you. thank you thank you
Perfect!
Please do a video on the physics of that j arm that connects the opener rail to the door.. The shape of it and how it provides a bit of lift instead of just pulling straight back is all very interesting.
Hi Sir, thank you for explaining how the spring worked. I have a question: since the tension force of the spring is at its lowest level when the door is lifted, it would be safer and easier to move the spring out when the door is lifted. Is that correct theoretically? Thanks!
If i understand your question correctly, you are asserting the torsion spring should be easier and safer to remove and replace when the door is in the up position, while the spring is nearly unwound. Yes absolutely safer. Only problem is the spring is not accessible with the door open.
Good thing you noticed the spring had broken. We didn't and it wore out the bearing where the garage door motor bore against its housing. I was lucky to find the replacement parts I needed.
Looking forward to more Cavendish videos. Good luck!
Thanks, Michael! The weather has been really inconsistent here lately, so I'm stuck waiting for the time being. Hopefully we'll get some nice, cool fall weather soon and I can get it done then ... my wife is not keen on leaving her car in the driveway once it starts snowing!
very nice. Thank you In future videos is it possible to eliminate or sig. reduce background music(noice) please. regards
Where to buy the big spring? Home Depot only sells extension springs. Are they the same thing?
Oh dude
... this is Gold! Hire a professional.
I'm not being hard on you...but I am that professional.... for your safety... hire a professional.
I never thought garage doors could be so interesting. I work in a lot of warehouses. Some of the door there are 20- 30 foot high. Those torsion springs must be incredibly strong.
I heard if those springs break, the door completely destroys itself falling down and kills anyone underneath
@@mikem5475 I suppose that would depend on a lot of things. But there's a lot of weight there. I wouldn't be surprised if people have been killed. And a strangely large amount of potential energy stored there. Who knows what kind of chaos a broken one could do?
I'm actually a trucker. Similarly, I remember hearing how no one should never try to open up the spring brake chamber that stops trucks and trailers. The air brakes on a truck are actually powered by springs. They're in this roughly cylindrical chamber that's maybe 10 inches long 8 inches wide. Something like that. But, you never know what kind of mechanic you end up with. You might end up with some old timer who just fixes stuff like he always has since the 30's or whatever. So we have to learn the things they can't do and opening one of them things up is a really big no no. So much so that they make a particular fuss about it and every trucker knows that you don't open a brake chamber and if you do it could very easily kill you.
@@PaulTheSkeptic trailer mechanic, they told us about the doors and the brake cans as soon as we started. Supposedly a guy got killed by the dropping door at my shop. You definitely can open and replace the diaphragm inside the cans, we had them, dusty on the shelf, so we never did it in my time. It takes common sense, something most people don't have nowadays. Think about struts on a car (spring outside of a shock absorber). Same deal. Needs a tool containing it, like a press, and keeping far away from the trajectory if things go wrong. With the workers comp and liability, I guess it makes more sense to replace the $100 brake can vs the $5 diaphragm
Excellent video. You spoke very well. There was not the slightest ambiguity. The caution at end was perfectly placed. I would have used a full face shield.
How many time turn new spring install?
You cant change spring potential energy in to gravitational potential energy. You can, however, change spring potential energy in to gravitational motion.
Hello there, u have done a good job! But when one spring brakes, its better to change them both.. They have the same age, and u must loosen them anyway.. Just a tip!
I heard that advice at the time as well, and figured I knew better. I got about another 6 months out of the other spring before it snapped. Live and learn, I guess. At least I was better at it the second time!
But that’s actually safer. You leave the good, ie, the dangerous one alone. Just work on the broken one. Work twice, but each time it is safer. Does it make sense?
@@mrweisu You have to loosen both regardless. So no, it's not "Work twice but each time is safer" it's "work twice and each time it's just as dangerous"
i li ke the music
i hear the music more then the u talking lol
im 5
Without music. Your video will be better.