Mobile Garage Door Repair Service
Technology was created to help us and mostly, it does. We might be using a power drill on a woodworking project or cooking up a masterpiece with our kitchen appliances. We pay good money for our household tools, appliances, and gadgets and we expect them to work on-demand. When they don’t, they get donated, returned or thrown out. Another household tool that we use a lot and expect to function is our garage door opener remote. We often get calls concerning a non-functioning unit. Should the customer get it repaired? Or, should they buy a new one? There are so many questions as to what should be done! In actuality, you may not need to repair or replace your garage door opener! Follow these simple steps and you might just save yourself some time and money!
It never fails to happen when you least expect it; garage door opener remote failure, that is! Maybe you are leaving for a much anticipated dinner date. Or, you might be on your way to your first day on the job. Your mind is pre-occupied with the events soon to befall you, when all of a sudden you notice that your remote doesn’t work. Here’s where the first problem lies; is it your opener that has stopped working, or is it your remote that is the problem? How can you tell and what should you do about it?
Check your remote’s battery before you do anything else. It may be drained or leaking, and it costs nothing to check on your battery status. If you have a home tester, check the battery for power and if you don’t, you should consider getting one. They are inexpensive and sold by East Cobb, GA stores in the local area. Speaking of local stores, you can take your batteries for free testing at any area Wal-Mart, Lowe’s, Target, Home Depot, or Best Buy locations and they will be happy to do it for you with no obligation to buy a new one.
Be sure to check your remote terminals. They may look just fine but be slightly loose and this is often enough to stop your batter from transmitting signals to the main opener unit. Squeeze your terminals together gently so that they hold your remote battery snugly and then see if this helps. If you notice any battery fluid that has leaked onto your terminals be sure and clean that up with a dry cloth as leakage like this can also greatly interfere with your remote’s performance.
Your remote’s buttons may be worn out. Signs of this are having to hit the button several times in order to make the opener work along with the buttons sticking in the process. Unfortunately, if this is the case you will need to buy a replacement from your manufacturer or if you have a spare unit, use that one.
If your remote is older and worn, it may have lost its programming. This causes it to lose its memory and stop working. While this won’t apply to newer remote models, the older ones may need to be reprogrammed. You can refer to your owner’s manual for directions on how to do this or if you don’t have one you can watch any number of online videos that can walk you through the steps.
What? Why are we talking about your safety sensors? Some local East Cobb, GA customers have assumed that their remote has stopped working, when in reality it was the safety sensors that were off, and not the remote control at all! Be sure to check your safety eyes and see if the sensor LED beam is lit. If not, or if they are blinking, you may need to call a repairman. Always keep the area surrounding your sensors clutter free as items can fall against the safety eyes and move them out of alignment or cut the wires. Pets should also be kept away from the sensors as wires can be chewed or disconnected from the unit. Spiders love safety eyes to build their webs around. These webs can block signals but also, since they are so sticky, they attract dead bugs, leaves, twigs and other debris that can sensor signals and even scratch the senor lenses. Keep these clean and free from dust, mud and other debris by wiping with a clean, dry cloth. Most safety sensors are made so that you the consumer can align them on your own. Simply adjust them manually until the beam matches up and the garage door works again. Test by using your remote and also by lowering your garage door and intentionally blocking the signal to see if the door reverses.
Your opener unit may have a lock button that can stop your remote from working. This lock button is located on the wall switch inside the garage. This is a safety feature designed to prevent anyone from using your remote while you are away on vacation or away from home while the remote is still in the car (or at least, not with you!). This lock button is sometimes activated and then forgotten about. Or, it may be activated by accident and no one realized it until your remote seemingly stopped working. Check your opener system and if it does include this wall lock button, unlock it and see if your garage door works as it should now.