Garage Door Not Opening Properly
It’s essential to have a nice-looking garage door. Some garage owners even put extra effort into enhancing their garage doors to beautify their property.
But beyond the appearance of your door, it must also serve its purpose and function seamlessly. Nothing beats an appealing garage door that is also reliable and operational.
Hence, you must select and install a durable and high-quality garage door. Additionally, you must also preserve the quality of your door through regular maintenance. That includes troubleshooting your garage door at the onset of issues.
If you notice that your door operates irregularly, you should first determine the source of the issue. Here are some possible reasons why your garage door is not opening properly.
No Garage Door Opener Power
If your garage door is not opening properly, the issue may be due to the lack of power supply to the opener. This is true when there is a power interruption or your garage door operator has been unplugged.
Likewise, your automatic opener won’t function if you have a damaged power outlet. To check, try plugging in another electrical appliance to see if it will work.
If it doesn’t, then the electrical outlet is the culprit. Otherwise, you may have a broken garage door opener that requires urgent repair.
Blocked, Damaged, or Misaligned Sensors
Any irregularity on your garage door safety sensors will impact the performance of your door. Blocked or damaged sensors resulting from years of neglect may not accurately detect obstructions in the doorway.
It may stop halfway and go back up, even though nothing is on the door’s path. In a different scenario, your door may continue closing while your pet or child is in the doorway. Thus, it poses a safety risk as well.
To remedy dusty and soiled sensors, you should get a basin of soapy water and a sponge and start cleaning. If it’s misaligned, you’ll need to adjust the positioning of your sensors so that both of them are even.
But, if you have damaged sensors, you’ll need to install new ones to restore the optimum performance of your garage door.
Damaged Springs and Cables
Your garage door springs and cables play a major role in the movement of your garage door. In fact, these components are the main mechanism that allows your door to open and close smoothly.
It follows therefore that if you have snapped springs or worn out cables, your door will not open properly. Aside from causing operation issues, having damaged springs is also unsafe and dangerous.
If you continue to use your garage door, it will eventually crash down with its entire weight. This event may cause accidents and more damage to your door.
Hence, you shouldn’t delay and replace your garage door springs and cables immediately. Do not attempt to do this on your own, and call an expert technician instead to perform cable and spring replacement.
Garage Door Off Track
Strong impacts may force your garage door off of its tracks. Since it’s out of the roller tracks that guide its movement, your door may move shakily or noisily.
If you leave your off-track garage door unattended, it may lead to accidents and extensive garage door damage.
Ask the assistance of a professional technician to put your door back on track so it can operate seamlessly again.
Malfunctioning Garage Door Opener and Remote
Automatic garage doors operate because of the communication between the opener and remote control. If any of these two components malfunction, your garage door will not operate properly.
It may be difficult for you to determine the problem with your automatic operator. Perhaps you have broken gear, a damaged motor, or weak antenna reception. In any case, you should call a garage door specialist to help you troubleshoot the problem.
For the remote, it’s quite simple. If you haven’t changed the remote battery in years, then the existing battery may be out of juice and needs replacement. You might also need to upgrade your remote if its buttons and wires are already old and dilapidated.
Locked Garage Door
If your garage door does not open with your door opener remote, your door may be locked from the inside. In that case, you won’t be able to operate your garage door unless you unlock it first.
Simply ask a family member who’s inside to open your door for you, or use your key to gain entry to your garage. You can also use your emergency key release to open your garage door manually.
In case you cannot determine and troubleshoot your garage door, it’s best to call a garage door technician. Professional garage door repairmen will examine and correctly diagnose your garage door problem. They will also provide you with a definitive solution so you can go back to operating your door without any hassle.