Find the most common reasons and their solution on why your garage door wont close.
A garage door that won’t close is a fairly common problem. Here at Easy Garage Door Repair in Houston, Texas, we see this problem quite a bit. This is because people in this part of the country are frequent drivers, take automotive care seriously, and, therefore, make regular use of their garages. In our many years of garage door repair experience, we’ve found that the vast majority of garage door malfunctions fit into one of seven categories. There are others, for sure, but we’re confident you’ll find most of them are fairly straightforward to repair.
Here, we’ll briefly describe these seven common garage door problems and how to fix them. Should the solution happen to be more than you can handle on your own, our garage door repair professionals are always available to help.
A garage door that won’t close can be a serious problem, especially during the winter or rainy seasons. But the chances are high that one of these solutions will work for you.
1. Sensor Malfunction – check your sensors first!
The most common reason a garage door won’t close fully is an issue with the sensor. Most garage door sensors employ lasers which, when interrupted, trigger the door to stop closing. This is so that it does not continue to push into the floor when closing or strain the track and fittings when opening. It’s also a safety feature that causes the door to stop closing if a person or animal interrupts the laser. For this reason, your garage door sensor is very important.
There are a few things that can go wrong with these components. For a start, the lenses can become dirty. This can trigger a false signal, causing the door to stop closing prematurely. Another problem is a mounting issue. If the laser is not attached securely or if it gets bumped into, it could be aiming in the wrong direction. This will either cause it to not work at all or to not close all of the way.
In most cases, this is a pretty easy thing to fix. Simply clean the lens and make sure the laser is mounted properly and securely. The beam needs to make contact with its pair, so you will need to adjust it carefully.
2.Roller & Track Problems
Garages that see a lot of use, and especially ones where a lot of work is done, things are stored, etc, can be especially prone to track problems. Obstructions bends, warping, and other damage can stop door rollers solid. This can be one of the easiest problems to diagnose, but it can be challenging as well.
A bent, warped, or damaged track can be pretty tough to fix. You may not be able to repair the bend and replacing the track altogether may be necessary. Most of the time, if there’s only some kind of obstruction, it will be easy to remedy by simply removing the obstruction.
Sometimes the track might only be full of dirt, and this is usually rather easy to clean out and fix. If the tracks are not fully parallel, getting them into alignment can range from easy to very difficult depending on a number of factors.
While you’re at it, this would be a good time to lubricate the rollers and track using silicone or lithium based grease.
3. Trolley Trouble
The component that connects the garage door opener to the door is referred to as the trolley. Most of the time there will be a rope hanging from the trolley, making it easy to identify. The rope is used to engage and disengage the chain by the opener to the door itself.
If the trolley is in bypass mode, you may be able to move it by hand freely. You should be able to get the trolley latch out of bypass mode by pulling the rope toward the door. After the garage door opener has been activated, it will re-latch onto the chain and work the way it should once more.
If you are unable to get the rope to engage and disengage the mechanism as designed, you may be able to get it working again by reassembling the connections. If anything is broken or missing from these parts of the garage door system, you should probably consult a garage door repair specialist.
4. Malfunctioning Remote Control – Sometimes in just a simple battery
One of the most common and easiest garage door problems to fix is dead batteries in the remote control. Another problem that looks very similar is the memory of the garage door opener having been wiped clean by a power surge. In either case, you will be unable to open or close the door using the remote. First, replace the batteries, and if that doesn’t do the trick, move on to the next step.
Using a ladder, open the flap on the back of the light cover of the garage door opener. You should see a button marked “learn.” Press it until you see a flashing light. Then push the button on your remote, (after having changed the batteries). The remote control should work after that.
If none of that does the trick, it could still be the remote control if it has been dropped often, dropped hard, or is visibly damaged. If that is the case, you may need to order a new one.
5. Maladjusted Limit Screws
Limit screws have contacts that make your garage door opener stop at the upper and lower end of its movement at a given point. If these are not adjusted properly, you will need to adjust them. Fortunately, this is an easy fix.
Using a ladder, open the back flap or light cover on the door opener. You should be able to find two plastic adjustment screws, one labeled “up,” and another marked “down.” Adjusting the down screw will cause the door to stop at a different place in its course. The “up” screw will change its upper limit. With a flathead screwdriver, adjust these until the door reaches the upper limit and lower limit you want.
You want the door to stop just after the rubber seal on the bottom of the door is slightly compressed in the closed position. If it closes and then reopens, then the close limit is too low and you want to adjust it slightly higher. You may need to play around with these adjustments to get them exactly how you want them.
6. A Model-Specific Issue
You might need a garage door opener technician if you run into any of these issues and can’t fix them yourself. Be sure to look at the manual closely. Make sure to perform any of these tasks we have described using their advice if it differs from ours.
7. Opening & Closing Your Door Manually
Again, if none of these solve your problem, you will probably need to work with a professional repair service. In this case, use the bypass rope to detach the opener and put it into bypass mode. Open and close it manually until a repair expert fixes the problem. Operating your garage door manually is the surest way to avoid further damage during this time.
If you didn’t see the reason your garage door won’t close here, don’t worry. Our garage door experts here at Easy Garage Door Repair in Houston Texas have the experience and know-how to get the job done right. Give us a call today, and get your garage door back on track!
