Your garage door is closed and stuck and your car is trapped inside? Rockstar Garage Door Services will tell you ways in which you can troubleshoot the darn thing that won’t budge. If it turns out it’s something more than a blip, you can count on us for any San Diego garage door repair services you need.
If you’re in a real hurry and need to get out ASAP, you can open the door manually – just make sure someone stays home for safety reasons. There is a red cord hanging from the ceiling. When you tug at it, the door will get off the tracks and you will be able to open it manually. Never do that if the situation is reversed – if the door is stuck open – because it will crash down.
Here we go…
Check the remote mode
Are you sure the remote isn’t in vacation or lock mode? If it is, the door won’t respond to the remote from the outside. The door has to be unlocked from wall switch inside.
Check the remote batteries
Your remote batteries could be low. Hold the remote in your hand and walk slowly into the garage. If the door lifts when you are really close to the box with the chain, but it gets stuck when you hold back, some new batteries will do the trick. If you don’t see any red light that should blink on the box as you approach it, then the battery is completely dead.
If you know you haven’t changed the batteries in quite some time (sometimes even a year), replace the batteries for sure. In any case, it can’t hurt.
Check the wires
Some kinks or damage in the wiring could be the cause. Have a close look at it. There should be two wires leaving the ceiling control box and going to the wall switch. There are typically four that go from the back of the box to the electric eye sensors on the sides of the door.
The wires could also be loose which makes for a loss of contact. With the remote in one hand, gently take the wires one by one a little above the connections. Wiggle them carefully, making sure you’re well away from the connection point. If the door lifts, the wire you’re holding should be tightened. To do that, you must shut off the electricity in the garage and tighten the wire with a screwdriver.
Check the electric eye sensors
Electric eye sensors are located a few inches off the ground and they are a safety feature. They shoot a beam that runs parallel with the floor and ensure that the door won’t close if there’s anything in their way. Typically, you have a problem with these if the door won’t close, but some models will prevent the door from opening as well if there’s anything wrong with them.
Look for spiders. If they decided to nest in the electric eye, they could be disrupting the beam.
Check if the eyes are aligned. When they are working properly, they are looking straight at each other. When they are misaligned, it could very well be because the mounting piece is bent. If the piece looks fine, hold the remote and gently bend one of the boxes to see if you can align them.
