Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Help! My Garage Door Opener Won't Work

Pulling into the driveway, you grab the garage door remote, push the button and nothing happens. You try again with the same results. Several more attempts, you finally give up and begin searching for what could be the problem.

When any electrical device is not working the first thing to consider is the power source. Is the unit plugged in? Take a look at the circuit breaker and reset if necessary. Did this take care of your problem? If not, try plugging another electrical device into the same outlet as the garage door opener. If that device works, the power supply is not the problem and we need to try a few other tests.

Next, try pushing the opener control button on the wall unit and note whether either the small green light or the overhead light blink or come on at all. If the light is blinking check to see if there is anything blocking the sensors from communicating with each other. These are the two sensors located on the track on both sides of the door, about a foot off the ground. It could be a tool, a trash can, spider webs, dirt or anything. Either something is blocking the two sensors or the tracks are misaligned. The sensors are installed for reasons of safety. They prevent hazards by keeping the doors from closing when something is blocking them.

If the garage door labors to open, then stops, suspect a broken torsion spring. If they appear broken in any way at all call a professional garage door repair service. Do Not Attempt To Repair a malfunctioning torsion spring. It is a difficult and risky repair and could cause serious injury. Leave it to the professional garage door contractor.

If the garage door opens and closes with the main control button on the wall but does not open or close when using the remote or keypad, change the batteries in the remote and keypad and try again.

If that didn't resolve your opener problem, the unit may be in lock mode. If it is in lock mode the light on the main control would be blinking. Your wall unit comes equipped with a button that you press for a few seconds and release. If the light is not blinking any longer than you have solved the problem.

If the door still does not respond, the garage door opener itself may have a bad component. If the door sounds like it wants to open but does not and the torsion springs are intact, it's probably a bad capacitor which can disable the motor entirely. It could also be a bad power board or control board. Once again, we recommend you leave these types of repairs for the experts.

If you're experiencing issues with your garage door opener, contact the experts at Overhead Doors of Lansing!