Exposed Spring on Gate Lift

[Hughes Landscaping]

I just bought a new 16' trailer that has a lift assist installed. As you can see, the spring is pretty big and I am concerned about it snapping and injuring someone. What do you guys install over the spring or put inside thge spring to prevent exploding flying parts if it ever breaks? Thanks in advance.

I have attached a picture of the gate assist and exposed spring for reference. Thanks!

 

[Kelly's Landscaping]

Iv never seen one installed like that. I have springs very similar to that on 2 of my trailers and can say the design is superior over the cable in the tube design.


This is how they are on my trailers these pics are during a restoration I did last season on this beast of a trailer.

 

[orangemower]

WOW, you started a thread about it? You already posted this in another thread. I wouldn't be concerned about it myself. Have you won the lottery yet? The chances of that spring breaking while you're standing there are about the same odds of you winning the worlds largest jackpot lottery.

With that said, I had a garage door spring break on me. I put the door down, walked to my truck and all of a sudden I heard a loud bang. I went back and couldn't get the door to move. Went around to the back and saw the cable dangling. While it does happen that a spring can break, I doubt it will break while standing next to it.

Besides that, the spring isn't being pulled out like a garage door spring. The door springs on my garage pull out almost twice the length. For the record, I have Gorilla lifts on my trailer.

 

[Kelly's Landscaping]

One thing on mine your set doesn't seem to have is the ability to adjust the tension on the springs with the threaded rods. I am able to make it so light the gate needs to be pushed down. I prefer it with the weight around 30-40 pounds so its very easy to do one handed. Now on my 16 footer I have the original springs so they are going on 10 years with out breaking. Only thing that ever failed was a weld that held the bolt on the gate started to rip but with your own welder that a non issue.

Now the 20 footer in the pics I got this from my ex boss when he failed and went out of business its a year older then my 16 footer but same company made it so I snagged it. Only problem he didn't take care of anything so I spent a ton of my time fixing and upgrading things on it. The springs were among them he hit a storage building after he got evicted from his shop and ripped the spring off on the passenger side. The other spring did snap on its own but I wasn't there so I do not know what caused it or how much tension he had on it I also do not know if anything flew off it. But one spring snapping in a combined 20 years of use isn't that big a deal.

 

[Hughes Landscaping]

I don't think that I can adjust the tension on my springs. I lowered the gate earlier today and the spring was stretched really tight and that's when I started getting worried about injuring someone if it snapped.

 

[orangemower]

You talk highly of your ex boss. LOL

 

[unkownfl]

just slide a piece of pvc around it or ridge/emt electrical pipe.

 

[MarkintheGarden]

I have a similar gate assist spring. I do not worry about it breaking, but I hate it when I have to take it off to remove the gate and putting it back on, it is tricky and potentially dangerous.

The pvc does sound like a good idea, although it would not prevent all possible damage or injury.

One thing I do is oil the spring from time to time to prevent rust and hopefully keep it in one piece.

I have yet to see one of these big coil springs break, but when the small springs break it has always been into two pieces, not shattered into many pieces. I do not think there is much potential for fragments flying here and there. I think if one of these breaks both pieces will swing and bang into something. From now on, I will be making sure that I do not stand close to it when the gate is going down.

 

[Richard Martin]

This is how they are on my trailers these pics are during a restoration I did last season on this beast of a trailer.

Do those springs actually do anything? They should be much further out of the gate to get the leverage thing working.

 

[Jason Rose]

I didn't see the pic because I on an old blackberry, but a solution for the spring is to run a wire rope/cable through the middle of it, securing it on both ends. Of course it will have to be long enough to accommodate the spring fully stretched and will need somewhere to go when its not, its not that much of a length difference usually. Your garage door springs should have these safety cables as well. These springs could kill if it breaks and hits you in the head. I've had one on a door break before and the end of the spring shot to the front of the garage and through the drywall.
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