Serving Metro Atlanta Since 1986
Troubleshooting Garage Doors
Troubleshooting Common Problems:
My garage door opener has short range.
- Look at the LED next to the learn/smart button on the motor head to see if it is flashing. A stuck button on a neighbor's remote will not open your door, but it will be indicated as RF activity on this LED. It will also interfere with your reception
- Check your battery and contacts. Remove oxidation from contacts with an eraser or sandpaper. Replace your battery.
- For built-in car remotes, shorter distance is to be expected as your car is more susceptible to RF shielding by the metal in the car.
- If someone has worked on the unit recently, make sure the antenna wire was not pushed up inside the case. The antenna should hang down from the unit.
- If you live within 10 miles of a military base, your RF is 390 MHz, and you suddenly lost range, you are probably getting interference from the base. All brands of openers have switched to a lower frequency lower than 390 MHz as of December 2004 (except Genie and Overhead Door). Replacing your receiver/remote set with a set with a lower frequency will fix this problem.
I've replaced the battery in my remote and it still doesn't work.
- Try recoding the remote - see instructions under FAQ on this website.
When I try to code more than one remote, the first one I coded stops working.
- You probably held in the smart button when coding the 2nd remote. This clears out all previously set codes. Remember, unless you want to clear out everything, don't hold the learn/smart button in.
My garage door opens by itself, and the wall button doesn't work.
- Most of the time, the cause is a stuck button on a remote. If you have any old remotes, remove the battery and see if the problem goes away. This is common to older Genie remotes.
- One at a time, remove the battery from each of your remotes and check to see if the problem goes away. Once you've identified the offending remote, replace it. Do not put the battery back in it.
- Check the wires leading to your wall button. Staples that break the insulation on the wire can cause a short which will cause random operations. Sometimes you can find this by pounding on the wall or ceiling, which will "shake" the wires into shorting if broken.
My door won't close or only goes a few inches and stops or reverses.
- If your unit has safety beam sensors mounted on either side of the door, about 6 inches from the floor, make sure nothing is sitting in front of them or too close. One is a transmitter, the other is a receiver. The infrared (invisible to the eye) beam must get from the transmitter to the receiver or the opener will not allow the door to close. To bypass the system, push and hold the wall button. If there is no problem with the door, the door should close. Once the door is closed and the garage is dark, it will be easier to see the indicator light(s) on the sensors. (Some brands have a light on each sensor. Some only have one light on one sensor.) The color does not matter. The indicator light must be a bright steady glow. If it is blinking or not lit at all, there is a problem with the sensors.
- Make sure there are no obstructions, the sensors are aligned, and they are clean. Dust or cobwebs on the lenses will cause the safety system to activate and stop the door from closing.
- Check the wires and connections to the sensors. Small animals love to chew on the wires.
My door reverses when it gets about 6 inches from the floor.
- Sweep the bottom of your garage door. There may be leaves or pine needles hanging from the bottom of the door and when it passes through the safety beam sensor, it causes the system to reverse the door
- Check to be sure all rollers are in the door track and that cables are on their pulleys. If the door is closing crooked, call a professional for garage door repair.
My door hits the floor and reverses.
- Your limit setting needs to be adjusted. Refer to your owner's manual for adjustment directions. Force or sensitivity adjustments and limit adjustments are two different sets of knobs or screws. Make sure you are adjusting the correct ones.
My opener just hums, the motor doesn't run.
- Your capacitor might be leaking. If the capacitor (also known as a motor starter) leaks, they will sometimes smoke. This is not cause for alarm. It will not catch on fire. This usually happens when you use the unit too much in a short period of time. Call a garage door repair company like Action Door at 770-740-9788 to repair your garage door and get it back in top working order.
My opener is dead. No noise, no lights.
- Check to make sure the plug is firmly in the outlet.
- If it is plugged into a GFI outlet, push the reset button on the outlet.
- Plug something else, like a clock or hairdryer, into the outlet to make sure the outlet is good.
My opener won't activate. The lights come on, but the motor doesn't run.
- If you have a wall console with a Vacation Lock Switch, make sure the lock switch is not on.
- If you've had a power surge recently, you may need a new circuit/logic board. Call Action Door at 770-740-9788 to have your garage door repaired and the circuit board replaced.