Garage-door spring reinforcement and repair kit

A safety reinforcement and repair kit for a garage-door extension spring having first and second spring ends, a wire diameter, a coil axis, a coil inner diameter, and a relaxed length, and being characterized by a first spring constant, comprising:

• (a) a rigid first hook element having first and second ends, said first end having a first hook adapted for fastening one of said first and second garage-door spring ends to a fixed support, said second end having a retaining portion, and said retaining portion including a bend;
• (b) a rigid first disk having a thickness, a center, and a first rim defining a first disk diameter, said first disk diameter being larger than the garage-door spring inner diameter, said first disk having an aperture through which said first hook element is inserted, said first disk having a slot extending inwardly from said first rim sufficiently to removably engage said retaining portion of said first hook element for preventing rotation of said first hook element, and said first rim of said first disk having a first flat portion adapted for contacting a wire diameter of the garage-door spring when said first disk is inserted into one of said first and second garage-door spring ends to attach said first hook to a fixed support;
• (c) an auxiliary coil spring characterized by an auxiliary spring constant smaller than said first spring constant of the garage-door spring, having an outer coil diameter smaller than the garage-door spring coil inner diameter, having a relaxed length smaller than the garage-door spring relaxed length, and having first and second auxiliary spring ends;
• and
• (d) an auxiliary reinforcement kit made small enough to fit within said garage-door spring coil inner diameter, said auxiliary reinforcement kit comprising:
• (i) a rigid second hook element having first and second ends, said first end having a second hook for fastening one of said first and second auxiliary spring ends to said bend of said retaining portion of said first hook element;
• (ii) a rigid second disk having a thickness, a center, and a second rim defining a second disk diameter, said second disk diameter being larger than the auxiliary spring inner diameter, said second disk having a second aperture through which said rigid second hook element is inserted, said second disk having a second slot extending inwardly from said second rim sufficiently to removably engage said retaining portion of said second hook element for preventing rotation of said second hook element and said second rim of said second disk having a second fiat portion adapted for contacting a wire diameter of the auxiliary spring when said second disk is inserted into one of said first and second auxiliary spring ends and said auxiliary spring is extended in tension to attach said second hook to said bend of said retaining portion of said first hook element;
• whereby said auxiliary coil spring is attachable at said first auxiliary spring end to said first hook element retaining portion using said auxiliary reinforcement kit, and attachable at said second auxiliary spring end to a remote one of said first and second garage-door spring ends, to hold any broken coil segments should said garage-door spring break after said safety reinforcement and repair kit is installed.

A safety reinforcement and repair kit for a garage-door spring having first and second spring ends, a wire diameter, a coil axis, a coil inner diameter, and a relaxed length, and being characterized by a spring constant, comprising:

• a) a rigid hook element having first and second ends, said first end having a hook for fastening one of said first and second garage-door spring ends to a fixed support, and said second end having a retaining portion having a substantially rectangular U-shape and having a base portion extending between first and second bights, wherein said first bight connects said base portion of said retaining portion to said first end of said rigid hook element and said second bight connects said base portion of said retaining portion to a dogleg portion characterized by an axial portion, by a third bight, and by a salient extension portion extending from said third bight radially outward to prevent said garage-door spring from turning,
• b) a rigid disk having a thickness, a center, and a rim defining a disk diameter, said disk diameter being larger than the garage-door spring inner diameter, said disk having an aperture through which said hook element is inserted, said disk having a slot extending inwardly from said rim sufficiently to removably engage said retaining portion of said hook element for preventing rotation of said hook element, said rim of said disk having a flat portion disposed for contacting a wire diameter of the garage-door spring when said disk is inserted into one of said first and second garage-door spring ends to attach said hook to a fixed support, and
• c) an auxiliary coil spring characterized by an auxiliary spring constant smaller than the garage-door spring constant, having an outer coil diameter smaller than the garage-door spring coil inner diameter, having a relaxed length smaller than the garage-door spring relaxed length, and having first and second auxiliary spring ends, said auxiliary, coil spring being attachable at said first auxiliary, spring end to said hook element retaining portion and attachable at said second auxiliary spring end to a remote one of said first and second garage-door spring ends, to hold any broken coil segments should said garage-door spring break after said safety reinforcement and repair kit is installed.