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You get a price before we start. It does not change when the truck arrives.
Get your free estimateClopay Cable & Drum Replacement: The Orlando Owner’s Guide
A Clopay cable and drum replacement in Orlando typically runs $130 – $250 installed, and we carry the parts on our trucks so most jobs are finished the same visit. You’ll know this part is failing when the door hangs uneven, groans on the way up, or one side lifts while the other sags. The cable wraps around the drum at the top of the torsion tube, and when either piece wears out, the door stops moving squarely.

In Orlando, the humidity works against these parts year-round. We see cables fray near the bottom bracket where condensation collects, and drums develop hairline cracks along the groove that holds the cable. Most Clopay doors in this market need a cable and drum replacement once in their working life, usually somewhere between year eight and year twelve. That window shrinks for doors facing direct afternoon sun or homes near lakes where morning moisture sits on the hardware.
Here’s what matters: we give you a written price before any work starts, every time. No surprise line items, no upcharge after the fact. You’ll know the installed cost for your specific Clopay model before we touch a bolt.
Which Clopay Models This Applies To
Clopay builds residential doors across several lines, and cable and drum replacement differs by series. The Classic, Gallery, and Coachman steel lines share a common cable and drum configuration on standard 7-foot and 8-foot doors. The Reserve and Grand Harbor lines use heavier-gauge cables and larger drums, sized for the extra door weight. Older Clopay models from the early 2000s sometimes have drum profiles that are no longer manufactured, which means we match them to a current equivalent rather than forcing an OEM-stamped part that costs twice as much for the same function.
The fastest way to identify your door: look for a white compliance label on the left door panel near the bottom, usually inside the garage. It lists the model, serial number, and door dimensions. If the label is gone or sun-faded in Orlando’s UV, a technician can measure the drum diameter, cable length, and cable gauge to spec the right replacement. We work with OEM Clopay parts where they matter for fit, and use quality aftermarket equivalents where they perform identically and save you a meaningful amount on the invoice. Fernbrook Garage Doors Orlando is an independent service provider, not affiliated with Clopay, but our technicians are trained on Clopay equipment specifically.
We also stock parts for LiftMaster, Chamberlain, and Genie opener systems, so if the cable failure pulled your opener out of alignment, we can address both in the same visit.
Styles & brands we work with






Signs Your Clopay Cable & Drum Replacement Is Failing
- The door lifts unevenly, one side higher than the other. This means one cable has stretched or slipped its drum groove. The door is still moving, but it’s dragging the panel frame out of square every cycle.
- A visible strand of wire is poking out of the cable near the bottom bracket. That’s fray, and it means the cable is close to snapping. This is the most common failure point on Clopay doors in Orlando because condensation settles exactly there.
- The door jerks or shudders halfway up. A drum with a cracked groove will catch and release the cable as it turns. You’ll feel it as a stutter rather than a smooth lift.
- You hear grinding or scraping near the top of the track. That’s metal-on-metal contact inside the drum, usually when the drum has shifted on the torsion tube or the bearing is failing.
- The cable is slack or wrapped loosely around the drum when the door is fully open. This points to a drum that has spun out of position. The door still moves, but tension is off, and the cable can jump the drum entirely on the next cycle.
See the difference
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After
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Before
AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
In Orlando, a Clopay cable and drum replacement lands between $130 and $250 installed for a standard residential door. The spread comes down to a few factors: whether you need one cable or both replaced at once (we recommend replacing the pair; the second cable has seen the same wear and will fail on a schedule all its own), the gauge and length of cable your specific Clopay model uses, and whether the drums need to be re-seated on the torsion tube or simply swapped.

Here’s what that price includes:
- The cable or cables, matched to your Clopay model’s spec
- The drum or drums, sized to your door weight and height
- Labor to remove the old parts and install the new ones
- Re-tensioning and balancing so the door lifts evenly
- Lubrication of rollers and hinges with a pet-safe product
- A test cycle with the door opened and closed several times
- Clean-up of any wire debris, plus a photo of the work area before we leave
Warranty: Every Fernbrook job carries the 365-Day Done Right Promise. If the cable or drum fails within a year of our work, we make it right at no charge. No negotiation, no fine print. The written price you approve before the work starts is the invoice total. If a second cable is needed mid-job, we point it out and price it before proceeding, never after.
DIY or Call Us?
Let’s be straight about the danger here. The cables and drums on a Clopay door are under high torsion tension. The spring stores enough energy to lift the door, and when you remove a cable or drum without properly releasing that tension, that energy can release into you or the room around you. This is not a job for a Saturday afternoon with a socket set. People end up in emergency rooms from garage door spring and cable work every year, and Orlando homes with attached garages mean the family is right through that door the whole time.
What you can safely do: visually inspect the cable for fray near the bottom bracket, check whether the door sits level when closed, and listen for new grinding sounds during operation. That’s the extent of safe owner involvement. If anything looks off, call (850) 754-6073 and we’ll come out, diagnose it, and hand you a written price before any tools come out. If the problem turns out to be something minor, we’ll tell you that too.
FAQs
In Orlando’s humidity, cables typically last 8 – 12 years and drums often outlast the first cable but crack shortly after. Homes near water or doors with heavy use cycles may see failures earlier. Regular lubrication and keeping the door balanced extends the life of both. Call (850) 754-6073 if your door is over 10 years old and you’re seeing uneven travel.
No. A cable with visible fray or stretch cannot be spliced or repaired safely. The load on a garage door cable is too high for a patch, and a patch creates a stress point that fails without warning. Replacement is the only safe and durable fix, and it’s priced within the $130 – $250 range in Orlando.
Most single-door cable and drum replacements take 45 – 75 minutes on site. If both cables and both drums need to be replaced, expect closer to two hours. We carry Clopay-compatible parts on the truck, which is why we can usually finish the job the same visit rather than scheduling a return trip.
We stock Clopay cable and drum replacements for the most common residential models in Orlando, including Classic, Gallery, Coachman, and standard 7-foot and 8-foot doors. For rarer Clopay lines, we can usually source the part within one business day. Either way, your written price is set before we order anything, so you’re never committing blind.
Written by Jesse Calder, Owner, Fernbrook Garage Doors Orlando at Fernbrook Garage Doors Orlando, serving Orlando and nearby areas.