Garage Door Cable
Repair & Replacement
"Very communicative, showed up on time, was accurate in his financial estimate, and laid out options to help me choose the repair we wanted." — Scott Klein, Eastside
Cables Are the Unsung Part of Every Garage Door System.
The lift cables on your garage door work with the springs to move the door safely. When a cable snaps, unspools, or frays, the door can drop suddenly, come off its tracks, or put dangerous strain on the remaining hardware.
This is not a repair to put off. We replace the cable, check the spring system, set the correct tension, inspect the drum alignment, and test the full system before we leave.
A garage door operating on one cable or a frayed cable is under severe unbalanced load. It can fall, jump the tracks, or cause the remaining cable and drum hardware to fail.
Broken cable? Tell us what's happening.
Leave your number and we'll call back quickly. For fastest service, call directly at (425) 500-6708.
What to Look For
Cable failures are sometimes obvious and sometimes subtle. Here is what we see most.
If one side of the garage door is higher than the other, a cable has likely snapped or unspooled from the drum on one side.
Steel lift cables fray from the inside out. If you see individual wire strands separating, kinks, or corrosion, the cable is near end of life.
Sometimes the cable stays intact but unspools from the drum. This usually happens after a spring breaks or a door is forced open manually.
A cable failure can leave the door feeling stuck or dead because the spring tension has nowhere to transfer safely.
Visible slack or a loose loop means the cable has lost tension, often from a broken spring or a drum that has worked loose.
A partially unspooled or misaligned cable can scrape or grind as it moves on the drum. Catching this early can prevent full failure.
We fix the cable.
We check everything connected to it.
Cables do not fail in isolation. A broken spring, worn drum, or misaligned track can cause cable failure.
If one cable is near end of life, the other usually is too. We inspect both and explain whether replacing both makes sense.
A cable replacement is not complete without proper winding on the drum and tension that matches the spring system.
We test balance, run full cycles, check opener force settings, and verify safe operation before leaving.
We stock common cable sizes. Most Eastside cable repairs are same-day.
$139 standard labor covers most cable repairs. Additional hardware is quoted before work starts.
Same-day cable repair.
Safe before we leave.
A cable failure can leave the garage door unsafe or unsecured. We treat these as priority calls.
Cable length and gauge need to match the door and spring setup. We install the right cable for the system.
Cable failure is often tied to spring failure. We inspect both so the problem does not repeat.
We run the door through full open and close cycles after tension is reset.
Standard labor covers most cable repairs. Related parts are quoted before work starts.
License # EASTSGD755KG. Your home is protected.
Real Reviews from Eastside Homeowners
"One of the best contractor experiences I've had in years. Very communicative, showed up on time, was accurate in his financial estimate, and laid out options to help me choose the repair we wanted."
"Jon was a total professional, showed up on time, very knowledgeable, gave me a fair and accurate estimate on what the cost would be, and also gave me great information to know going forward."
Flat-Rate Cable
Repair Pricing
Cable repairs are covered under our standard flat-rate labor. If we find a related issue, such as a worn drum or a broken spring that caused the failure, we quote that separately before proceeding.
View All PricingCables failing alongside a broken spring are common. We assess on-site and give you the full picture before any work starts.
Cable Repair FAQ
No. Operating a garage door on a broken or frayed cable is unsafe and can cause the door to fall suddenly, jump the tracks, or damage the opener and remaining hardware. Stop using it and call us for same-day repair.
A broken spring often causes the cable to snap or unspool because the two systems work together. We diagnose on-site and tell you exactly what needs replacing. If the spring broke first, we will recommend fixing both in the same visit.
Most cable replacements take 45–75 minutes, including tension adjustment, balance check, and safety testing. Combined cable and spring repairs typically run closer to 90 minutes.
Often, yes. Both cables usually have the same age and cycle count. If one failed from wear, the other may be close behind. We will inspect both and tell you honestly whether paired replacement makes sense.
Common causes include a broken spring, manually forcing the door open, uneven spring tension, a worn drum, impact damage, or running the garage door while it is unbalanced. We fix the root cause, not just the cable.
Call (425) 500-6708. Tell us your location and what the garage door is doing. Cable failures are urgent, so we prioritize these calls across the Eastside.
Tell Us What's Going On
No trip charge. Tell us whether the cable is broken, frayed, slack, off the drum, or if the garage door is crooked, stuck, or extremely heavy.