Can a garage door work with a broken spring?

A garage door cannot work properly or safely with a broken spring, as springs counterbalance door weight and without them door is extremely heavy and opener cannot lift it without damage, though manual operation possible with great effort. Torsion and extension springs store tension to counterbalance door weighing 150 to 300 pounds, making door feel light and allowing opener to lift with small motor; when spring breaks, door weight is fully on opener, causing opener to hum, strain, and possibly strip gear or burn out motor if you try to operate automatically, so you should not use opener with broken spring and should disconnect opener via emergency release cord to avoid damage. Manually, you can still open and close door with broken spring, but it will be very heavy, requiring two people and caution, as door can slam down causing injury, and you should not leave door open as it can fall. Door with broken spring will not stay open on its own and will fall. Operating door with broken spring can also cause door to go off track, cables to tangle, and panels to bend due to uneven lifting. For safety, do not use door until spring replaced by professional costing 200 to 400 dollars for single spring and 300 to 600 dollars for pair, as springs are under high tension and dangerous DIY. If you must close door with broken spring, have helpers lower it slowly and engage manual lock. In short, door technically can move manually with broken spring but should not be considered working.