Common Opener Issues

• Photo Eyes/Sensors is Out of Alignment: When sensors LED lights blink they are letting you know something is wrong. On either side of your garage door are photo eyes. Between the two eyes is an invisible beam that when broken, prevents the door from closing.
• Photo Eyes/Sensors are Worn Out or Defective: Door will not close at all regardless of adjustments.
  Garage Door Closes Part Way, Then Opens Again: Garage doors are designed with a reversing mechanism that prevent them from crushing objects in their path. This can be triggered by objects on the ground blocking their path such as garbage cans, toys or bicycles.
• Garage Door Reverses Immediately after Hitting Floor: The close limit switch probably needs adjusting.
• Main Inner Drive Gear Worn Out: If the garage door opener makes a grinding noise or just hums, but the door doesn’t move, your main drive gear is probably worn out. The main drive gear is the plastic gear that comes in direct contact with the gear inside the motor. The main drive gear is the most common component to fail on most openers.
• Sprocket on Top of Unit has Broken Off: If your sprocket has broken off the top of the unit and the chain/belt is hanging you will need a complete gear and sprocket assembly replacement inside the unit.
• Chain/Belt is Slightly Loose: Chain/belt tension probably needs adjustment. Over-tightening the chain will put excess wear and tear on the shaft and gears. Too little tension could cause the chain to skip off the sprocket and fall down on your car.
• Chain/Belt is Hanging Down: If a chain/belt is hanging down from the opener, then something has broken. The sprocket that turns the chain/belt commonly breaks off and will make the chain hang down. A plastic wheel or sprocket at the front of opener where it attaches above the garage door will break and fall apart, causing the same effect.
• Bow in the Rail: If you notice an upward bow in the rail caused by the door traveling too far down, it probably needs adjustment as this can causes excess wear and tear on the opener.
• Motor Will Not Stop Running: If you are opening your garage door but find that the motor just keeps running, your limit switch may need to be adjusted or replaced.
• Trolley Carriage Worn Out: If you activate the garage door and only the inner trolley carriage moves without lifting the door, you’ll likely need to replace your carriage assembly.
• Sensitivity/Force is Out of Adjustment: This usually happens to an older opener. If the sensitivity is set too low or too high, the opener will not open due to the fact that it will not sense that the door has sufficient weight