My garage door opener is not working. What should I check?
If the garage door opener does nothing at all, check whether the wall button works as well as the remote. If the wall button works and the remote does not, the problem is almost always the remote battery or its programming. If neither works, check power at the outlet and the breaker before anything else.
Narrow it down in thirty seconds
The single most useful test is the wall button. It is wired directly to the opener, so it bypasses the remote entirely.
Wall button works, remote does not: the opener is fine and the remote is the problem. Start with the battery, which is the cause far more often than anything else. If a fresh battery does not fix it, the remote has usually lost its programming and needs re-pairing to the opener.
Neither works: the opener is not getting power or has failed. Check the outlet with something else, check the breaker, and check that the opener has not been unplugged by someone reaching for a socket.
Opener runs but the door does not move: the trolley has likely been disconnected from the door by the emergency release cord. Reconnecting it is usually a matter of running the opener until the trolley re-latches, though not every model works that way.
Noises that mean stop
A grinding noise with no movement often means a stripped drive gear inside the opener, which is a repair rather than a replacement on most units.
A loud bang followed by the opener straining is usually a spring, not the opener. The opener is the thing that announces the fault; the spring is the thing that broke.
Any new metallic scraping or a door that has started travelling unevenly should stop you using it until it is looked at.
How old is the opener?
Openers installed before the mid-1990s may lack photo-eye safety sensors entirely, which is reason enough to replace rather than repair. Units from the 1990s and early 2000s are increasingly hard to source parts for, and at some point a repair is money spent on a machine that will need replacing anyway.
A technician will tell you which side of that line a particular unit falls on, and why.
Common questions
How do I reprogram a garage door remote?
Most openers have a learn button on the motor unit: press it, then press the remote button within about thirty seconds. The exact sequence varies by manufacturer and by model year. If the opener does not respond, or the learn button is not accessible, it is a short service call.
Why does my garage door remote only work up close?
Shrinking range is usually a weakening battery, a damaged antenna wire hanging from the opener, or radio interference from a nearby LED fixture or electronic device. Replace the battery first, then check the antenna wire is hanging freely rather than coiled up or tucked away.
Is it worth repairing an old garage door opener?
It depends on the fault and the age. A stripped gear on an otherwise sound unit is usually worth repairing. A unit old enough to lack safety sensors should be replaced regardless of what has failed. Opener replacement is booked as an assessment visit, because the right unit depends on the door.
Related services
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