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Price

A$99.00

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Course Content

I. Introduction (4 min)
II. Learning Objectives (1 min)
III. Module 1: What the Counterbalance Is Actually Doing (11 min)
IV. Module 2: How People Actually Get Hurt (11 min)
V. Module 3: Recognising a System You Should Not Touch (11 min)
VI. Module 4: Your Responsibility and Your Protection (10 min)
VII. Case Studies (3 min)
VIII. Summary and Key Takeaways (3 min)
For garage door installers, service technicians and automation installers

Springs and Counterbalance

The spring stays loaded even with the door shut, and the person it hurts is the one working on it.

What the counterbalance is actually doing, and how torsion springs, extension springs, cables, drums and bottom brackets fail. How installers actually get hurt, how to recognise a door you should not touch, and the balance test that finds it. Your personal duty under work health and safety law, and the dated photos and same day email that protect you if a door you worked on fails later.

60 minutes, self-paced Beginner level 1 formal CPD point Certificate on completion National, all states and territories
Aligned to NSCA 2021 PC1 PC12 PC16 PC55 PC59
$99 inc. GST
  • Product neutral, no supplier content
  • Audio version and glossary included
  • Certificate saved to your dashboard

Secure card checkout. Tax invoice emailed.

Course content

4 modules, 2 case studies, final quiz and certificate.

Start 5 min

Introduction and objectives

Why the counterbalance hurts the person working on it rather than the customer, and the four things you will be able to do by the end.

Module 1 11 min

What the Counterbalance Is Actually Doing

Treat the shaft, springs, cables, drums and bottom brackets as one loaded system, and know how torsion and extension springs fail differently.

Module 2 11 min

How People Actually Get Hurt

Spot the shortcuts behind serious injuries: the tool that fitted, the spring assumed to be unloaded, and standing where the energy goes.

Module 3 11 min

Recognising a System You Should Not Touch

Read a door from the floor, run the balance test with the operator disconnected, and tell the customer plainly why the job stops.

Module 4 10 min

Your Responsibility and Your Protection

Know why your safety duty is personal and does not pass to whoever gave the instruction, and keep the record that protects you.

Case studies 3 min

A return trip and an automated door

A technician who rebooked rather than wind without the right bars, and an automation job that skipped the balance test.

Summary 3 min

Key takeaways

The habits to take to your next service call, starting with the two minute balance test.

Finish

Final quiz and certificate

A short quiz on the four modules. Pass and the certificate goes straight into your dashboard.

Beginner. For people who already install or service residential sectional and roller doors. Covers the counterbalance as one loaded system, how people get hurt, recognising a door you should not touch, and your duty and records under work health and safety law. It is not a how-to on winding or replacing springs, and it is not legal advice.

Who it is for

Written for the people who work under a loaded spring.

Garage door installers

Every sectional and roller door you hang has a wound spring above it carrying almost all of its weight.

1 CPD hour, certificate on file

Garage door service technicians

You are the one on the ladder when a spring has already broken and the customer wants the door working today.

1 CPD hour, certificate on file

Garage door automation installers

Once you fit an operator to a door, its counterbalance becomes your job whether you touched it or not.

1 CPD hour, certificate on file

Garage door maintenance technicians

You see the same doors year after year, and the cables, drums and brackets tell you what has changed since last time.

1 CPD hour, certificate on file

Garage door repair technicians

You inherit other people’s repairs: mismatched springs, a bolt where a set screw should be, a cable replaced on one side only.

1 CPD hour, certificate on file
How it counts

Where this hour goes on your record.

National Standard of Competency for Architects (NSCA 2021) performance criteria this course aligns with:

PC12

Standards and technical requirements

PC16

Risk management and mitigation

PC55

Record keeping and document control

PC59

Risks associated with documentation

PC1

Regulatory requirements and obligations

If you are

How it is recorded

A garage door installer or technician

1 hour of CPD on stored energy hazards, safe work and records under work health and safety law. There is no licence or CPD requirement for the trade, so your certificate, the learning outcomes and your quiz result are kept in your dashboard as a record of the standard you work to.

An architect

1 formal CPD point. Aligned with NSCA 2021 performance criteria PC12, PC16, PC55, PC59 and PC1.

A garage door business owner or supervisor

1 hour of CPD for each technician who completes it, recorded on their certificate as a dated record of the training your business provides.

CPD On Demand is not a registered training organisation and courses are not accredited by any registration body. Each course is aligned with the relevant competency frameworks and gives you the records to evidence it. CPD rules differ by registration body and state, so check with yours if you are unsure.

  • Explain how garage door counterbalance systems manage door weight and why they contain significant stored energy.
  • Identify situations where work should stop because the counterbalance system cannot be worked on safely.
  • Recognise warning signs of worn, damaged or unsafe springs, cables, drums and other counterbalance components.
  • Apply safe work practices when working around loaded counterbalance systems, including correct tools and positioning.
  • Assess the condition and balance of a garage door before beginning installation, servicing or automation work.
  • Document identified risks, recommendations and decisions using photographs and written records to support your professional protection.
Keep going

Pairs well with.

Garage door installers

Garage Door Safety, Compliance & Installer Liability

The customer side of the door: unattended operation, safety beams, force and reversal testing, and the handover record.

Business

Client Communication & Negotiation Skills

Handling difficult conversations and documenting what was agreed, for the day the answer has to be no.

Business

Contracts & Risk Management for Architects and Designers

Scope, variations and written records, for the job you decline and the advice you put in writing.

Questions

Before you enrol.

Yes. The course works from the duties every worker carries under work health and safety law, which applies in every state and territory. Most use the model WHS laws; Victoria has its own Occupational Health and Safety Act with similar duties of reasonable care. It is general guidance, not legal advice for a particular job.

Start, stop and finish later. Progress is saved and the course stays in your dashboard.

Yes, on passing the final quiz. It is stored in your dashboard alongside your other CPD records.

No. You do not learn spring winding from a screen. It teaches you to recognise what you are looking at, judge whether it is safe to proceed, and know when to stop and put it in writing. For safety beams, force settings and reversal testing on automated doors, see Garage Door Safety, Compliance & Installer Liability.

Yes. Team packs start at $579 for six courses shared across your business.

No. Every course is product neutral. No spring, opener or door brands, no sponsor, no sales pitch at the end.

Know which doors to walk away from, and prove you said so, in one self-paced hour.

$99, 60 minutes, certificate on completion.

$99 1 hour, certificate