Why Is My Garage Door Opener Not Working?

It can really be an inconvenience when you pull up to your garage door at your home and it refuses to open. Why pay a handyman when you can save some money and do it yourself? First you want to identify the type of garage door opener you have. Garage door openers come in 3 types - Belt drive, Chain Drive or Screw Drive. Troubleshooting for all 3 types is basically the same. There is a transmitter or handheld remote in your car and a receiver that accepts the signal from the remote and tells the drive system what to do. There is a warning device that determines if anything is present within the path of the garage door that would prevent the garage door from closing properly. Then there is a wired-in control button that allows you to operate the garage door from inside the garage.

To troubleshoot, here are some examples of how you can identify the source of the problem.

1) If the remote in your car won't activate the opener but the hard-wired button on the garage wall operates the garage door opener properly then the problem is contained within the radio transmitting portion of the garage door opener.

2) If the remote in your other car (if you have two vehicles) works the garage door opener then the problem is within the remote that doesn't work.

3) If neither garage door opener remotes will open the garage door, then the problem is most likely in the receiver that is mounted on the garage door opener motor.

First and foremost, you'll want to check the batteries in your garage door opener remotes. Nine times out of ten that is the reason that a garage door opener won't open which is the really easy fix. It's important to always have extra batteries on hand for this reason. You may even want to keep some handy in your vehicle glovebox. There's usually a 9-volt battery in the keypad itself as well as a watch-type battery (or maybe a standard AA or AAA battery) in each of the handheld remotes for your garage door opener.

Beyond testing and replacing batteries in your garage door opener remotes, there is little that you as a homeowner can do with the electronic transmit and receive portion of the garage door opener. This doesn't mean you must tear out the whole garage door opener and buy a new one. Here are some things you can you can do:

* If the problem is a bad remote control, you can purchase replacement garage door opener remotes online.

* If the receiver itself is bad, you can order a replacement garage door opener receiver or a complete radio control that includes a universal receiver and new remote control transmitters.

* Replacement obstruction warning shut off systems or safety beams are also available online. These have a universal fit in most cases.

Repairing a garage door opener receiver is usually just a matter of removing a couple of wires for the old one and attaching the wires for the new one. Programming a remote is simple. Older units have a series of dip switches in both the remote and the receiver. All you have to do is make sure both units have all the switches in the same position. Modern garage door opener systems have a "learn" button which is used to match the two components together. For many garage door opener repairs, the level of technical expertise required is relatively easy and straightfoward.

Fortunately, parts for these most common brands of garage door openers are readily available online but are always great to have on hand. Sticking with a reliable name brand will assure that you will be able to get parts many years down the road.