We have all been there. It is a busy morning. The kids are grumpy, and you are late for work AGAIN. The last thing you needed was to push that button on the wall and have your garage door do absolutely nothing.
Take a deep breath, calm down, and give a few things your attention.
- Make sure the opener is plugged in. Believe it or not, a power cord that has become disconnected is one of the most common causes of garage door opener failure. Most often the cord shakes loose from the vibration of the opener.
- Check the circuit breaker that powers the opener. An electrical surge, even a small one, can cause a breaker to trip. This often happens during a storm. Check your home’s breaker panel to see if the breaker is no longer in the “On” position. If it is not in the “on” position, toggle the breaker switch to the “Off” and “On” position to reset the breaker.
- Did someone lock the door? If the garage door is locked from the inside, it won’t open. We sometimes overlook the simplest things (especially when we are rushing to leave the house). It sounds silly but, it is worth mentioning and inspecting before you move on.
- Check to see if the trolley has been disconnected. The trolley is the part of the opener that moves along the chain drive when the garage door is opening or closing. Of course, all garage door openers come with a pull-cord or switch that disengages the trolley whenever you’d like to open the door by hand. With that in mind, check to make sure the cord was not inadvertently pulled, and the trolley disconnected. Reconnect the trolley according to your owner’s manual for instructions, and you’ll be back in business.
- Do you suspect the problem might be the remote? Does your door open when you press the button on the wall-mounted control keypad but NOT when you use the remote? Well, this might have just pinpointed the source of the problem. Did you know you can reset the remote? You’ll need your owner’s manual, as the procedure to reset the remote varies by manufacturer. However, it is a relatively quick fix. The remedy involves pushing the buttons on the remote and on the keypad in a specific sequence depending on your remote. You might just find it on YouTube as well!
Stay tuned to our informative blog for more information when your door goes kaput, and you really need to get on the road in our “part two” of “Help! My garage door won’t open”.
