Service 06 of 12 · Glendale, AZ
Garage door cable specialists in Glendale, AZ
You heard a snap and one side of the door is sitting low, so tell us which side dropped and we call you back.
What you get
A door that comes down level on both sides
Garage door cable repair in Glendale, AZ usually starts with both cables, not the one that broke. The pair carries the door between them, so the twin of a cable that snapped has been carrying more than its share. Both cables come off, both drums get checked, and the door goes back level. The tension is off while that happens, which is the best time to look at the parts.
Never cut a cable. Never run the opener on a slack cable.
- A door that closes level, with no gap at one corner.
- Both cables changed as a pair, not one at a time.
- Drums checked for a worn groove while the tension is off.
- A bottom bracket checked for the bend that started the trouble.
Signs
5 signs a cable is going
A cable hanging slack
The line has lost its tension and is no longer carrying its half of the door. The door will drop on that side.
A gap at one bottom corner
The door sits crooked in the opening, and the seal shows daylight on one side. That is a cable, a drum or a spring, and the door needs to stop moving.
A bang, then a door that will not lift straight
A cable lets go with a noise that sounds like a spring. The door comes down on one side and jams.
Frayed wire at the drum
Broken strands catch the light and feel like a rough brush. HomeGuide lists frayed wire strands as a warning sign that a cable needs replacing.
Cable wound over itself on the drum
The wraps cross and the cable binds, then jumps the groove and wedges between the drum and the plate.
3 steps
How it works
Tell us what the door is doing, by phone or the form
Someone from our team calls you back and goes over the options
The tension comes off, both cables and both drums are checked, and the pair is replaced with the door balanced afterward
Costs
What cable repair costs in Glendale
| Job | Published national range | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Cable repair | $150 to $350 | HomeGuide, Oct 2026 |
| Spring and cable together | $200 to $500 | HomeGuide, Oct 2026 |
| Service call fee | $50 to $75 | Angi, 2026 data |
| Repair labor, per job | $150 to $450 | Angi, 2026 data |
| Track replacement | $125 to $300 | HomeGuide, Oct 2026 |
| Garage door repair, average | $150 to $350 | HomeGuide, Oct 2026 |
Published ranges, read October 25, 2026. One source per row, not a quote.
HomeGuide's cable page puts a standard replacement of both cables at $150 to $250 and cable parts alone at $20 to $50, so most of the price is labor. A cable that went with a spring lands in the spring and cable row, and HomeGuide notes that when a spring breaks, the cables take the full weight of the door, which often snaps them. The cost page runs the numbers for springs, openers and doors beside these.
Tracks and cables
Types of cable hardware in Glendale homes
The bottom bracket. A steel plate at the bottom corner of the door, and the point where the cable attaches. It bends when the door is hit, and a bent bracket pulls the cable off line.
The drum. A grooved spool at the end of the torsion bar, or a pulley at the end of an extension spring. The cable winds into the groove, and a worn groove lets it jump.
The torsion bar or the extension spring. A torsion setup carries the door on a bar above it. An extension setup carries it on springs running along the tracks, one per side.
A cable on each side. 2 cables, 2 drums, 1 door. The 2 are changed together, so the door stays balanced.
Panels and doors
Repair or replace?
A cable is a repair, and a cheap one next to a door. A snapped cable, a frayed cable or a cable off the drum is a part, and the pair gets changed. What turns it into more is the cause: a bottom bracket bent by a car, a drum with a groove worn through, a track pushed out of plumb, or a spring that lost tension and let the cable go slack in the first place. A cable with a clean drum, a straight bracket and a spring still carrying its share is a straightforward pair to change. The pair gets changed, the drums and the bracket get checked, and the cause is found before the door runs again. A cable that came off once can come off again if nothing else changed.
Tracks and cables
Why a cable walks off the drum
A cable does not leave a drum for no reason. The wraps have to stay in the groove, under tension, one layer deep. When a spring loses tension, the cable can go slack, and a slack cable can climb out of the groove and wind over itself. When a drum wears, the groove rounds off and the cable steps out at the edge. When a door takes a hit, the track can go out of plumb, the drum can pull at an angle, and the cable can follow the angle off the spool. A bent bottom bracket does the same at the other end. The drum is worth checking, because a worn groove can throw a new cable. A cable off the drum is a symptom, and finding the cause helps the new cable stay where it is put.
Springs
What slack means for the door and the springs
Slack means the cable has stopped carrying its half of the door. The weight moves to the other cable and to the springs, which were sized for a door in balance and are now holding a door that hangs crooked. The panels take the strain at the hinges, the bottom section twists, and the opener lifts a door that is binding in the track. A door run on a slack cable for a week can wear a hinge oval and leave the bottom section bowed, and those become panel and hinge work on top of the cable. This is why a slack cable is a stop sign rather than a noise to live with, and why a cable is never cut to release tension. HomeGuide notes that cables are under high tension and that installation is a job for a professional.
6 questions
What people ask us
Still have a question? Call (747) 243-2089 and say what the door is doing.
Can one cable be replaced?
Not usually. HomeGuide notes that both cables are replaced at once to keep the system balanced, even when only one looks damaged. Both get changed, both drums get checked, and the door is balanced before it runs.
Is a snapped cable dangerous?
It can be when the door is used, and HomeGuide says never to operate a door with broken or damaged cables. The door drops on one side, the panels twist, and the opener keeps pushing. The cable itself is under heavy tension and can whip if it is cut. Leave the door down, keep hands off the cable, and call.
How do I know it is the cable and not the spring?
A spring often goes with a bang and the door will not lift at all. A cable shows as a slack line, a gap at one corner or frayed wire at the drum. Both can happen together, which is why the pair gets looked at with the tension off.
Can the door be used until the repair?
No. If the door is closed, leave it closed, keep people and pets clear, and call. A door on one cable can come down crooked, and the panels and track are what pay for the wait.
Why replace the drums too?
Not always, but they get checked. A drum with a worn groove or a bent flange will throw a new cable the same way it threw the old one. The check is part of the job, and the drums are only changed when the wear is there.
Does a cable come with a spring?
Sometimes the 2 fail in the same week, and the spring and cable row covers that. A spring that lost tension is often what let the cable go slack, so the spring gets checked while the tension is off and priced with the cable if it is tired.
Keep reading
Guides and next steps
- Spring repair: the part that often takes a cable with it.
- Off track repair: the crooked door and the roller out of the rail.
- Tune up: cables, drums and balance checked once a year.
- What repairs cost in Glendale: every published range on one page.
- The Glendale garage door guide: how each part fails, in order.
- Opener repair and replacement: Garage door opener repair in Glendale, AZ, is mostly a process of elimination.
- Panel repair and door replacement: One damaged section can come out and a matched one go in, and the rest of the door stays where it is.
- Stuck door help, day or night: A stuck door is a problem with a sequence, and the sequence starts with the door left alone.
- New door installation: Garage door installation in Glendale starts on the ground, with a tape on the opening.
Sources
HomeGuide, Garage Door Repair Cost (https://homeguide.com/costs/garage-door-repair-cost (opens in a new tab)), read October 25, 2026. HomeGuide, Garage Door Spring Replacement Cost (opens in a new tab), read October 25, 2026. HomeGuide, Garage Door Cable Repair Cost (opens in a new tab), read October 25, 2026. Angi, How Much Do Garage Door Repairs Cost? 2026 Data (updated October 21, 2026), read October 25, 2026.
