How to Check Garage Door Opening Problems
Clean the eyes of the photo.
The eye in the photo, a small sensor, hovers four to eight inches above the floor inside the garage door track to detect objects in the path of the garage door. If it detects something, it signals the door to stop closing, a wonderful safety feature that prevents the door from closing for pets or small children. The warning: a dirty photocell can prevent the door from moving in any direction. Clean the eye in the photo (what looks like a small lens about ¼ inch in diameter) with a soft cloth and then try opening the door again.
Adjusts the pull force of the door opener.
If your garage door opener is more than five years old, it has most likely been programmed with a specific amount of force required to lift the garage door. Over time, that amount of force must be increased to compensate for damage to the door rollers or guides, both of which make it difficult for the door opener to lift the door. A nut located on the opener (check your owner’s manual for the location, which varies by brand) can be turned with a wrench to increase the pulling power of the opener. By increasing the pulling force, the door opener may be able to open the door again. Newer models, on the other hand, have removed the adjusting nut to automatically adjust the pulling force.
The gate may be off the track.
When a garage door roller detaches from one of the side guides, the door opener will not be able to lift the door. This can happen if a rail accidentally hits a heavy object and bends outward, allowing the door rollers to come off. However, you may be able to disconnect the door opener (using the disconnect switch mentioned above) and lift the gate by hand while maneuvering the rollers on the rails. It is helpful to have at least two people to do this. When the door is fully open, use a mallet to lightly tap the folded side of the rail to align it. The gate should slide down easily and you can reattach the door opener.
Torsion spring broke.
Many garage doors have a powerful torsion spring located horizontally above the door. When the door is lowered, the spring coils tightly, creating a pulling force that helps lift the door the next time you open it. Over time, the torsion springs wear out and break, making the door too heavy to be lifted by the door opener. However, installing a new torsion spring is the job of a qualified garage door technician; If the spring breaks during installation, it can seriously injure anyone near the door.
If the above remedies haven’t fixed the door, it’s time to call a garage door repairer.
Problems inside the door opener itself should also be inspected and repaired by a professional. A circuit board or logic board may have failed and now needs to be replaced, or the gears inside the unit may have worn out. However, before doing this, consider the age of your opener. These units have an average lifespan of 10–15 years, so if yours is entering the latter part of its life, you’d better install a new one than pay to repair an older model.
For more Information Contact us Go Garage Door Repair LLC
