Oh no! Your garage door remote stopped working? No worries. There could be a perfectly logical – and easy to solve – reason for your troubles.
1. Dead Batteries
First, check the batteries. It’s easy to forget that needs to be done periodically! Before the batteries go dead, you may find that the transmitter needs the button to be pushed more times or to be pushed while you’re closer to the garage door. These are the classic signs of a dying battery. Changing the batteries before they die entirely can save you some inconvenience.
Alternatively, if you have a smart garage door opener, you can also control the opening and closing of your garage door with your smartphone. If you’re due to replace your garage door opener sometime in the near future, keep this in mind as you decide which automatic garage door opener is right for you.
2. The Lock Is On
The problem could be your garage door, not the opener. Garage doors have a lock that can prevent the door from opening. The locking mechanism is found on the door itself and may look like a knob with two horizontal bars spreading outward. If the lock is engaged, disengage it.
3. Garage Door Trolley Disengaged
All garage doors come with a pull chain or handle that allows the trolley to disengage from the door. When the door is disengaged, it can be opened manually but not automatically. You’ll be able to tell if the trolley was disengaged because the door will open easily when you try to lift it. Follow the instructions in your garage door opener owner’s manual to re-engage the trolley: it’s a little different on every door.
4. Garage Door Opener Unplugged
Your automatic garage door opener plugs into an outlet just like any other electronic device. If the garage door opener becomes unplugged, your garage door remote won’t work, and neither will any of the other parts of your opener. It could be that the unit was unplugged intentionally to free up an outlet, or it may have become jostled and unplugged.
5. Your Photoelectric Eye Needs Cleaning
Automatic garage doors come with a pair of photoelectric eyes, which you can find on either side of the opening, near the bottom. An invisible laser passes between the two eyes. When something obstructs the laser, the door will not shut. If your garage door is stuck open and the remote will not work, clean the eyes with a soft, microfiber cloth, move anything out of the way of the garage door opening, then try again.
Know When to Repair or Replace Your Garage Door Remote
Is your garage door remote having trouble? The problem could be the garage door remote – or the garage door itself. If you’ve done your best to troubleshoot the problem and your remote still isn’t working, get started with repairs. Contact Overhead Door Company of Oklahoma City.
