Why Won’t My Garage Door Open? Four Common Reasons

It can be very frustrating when your garage door won’t open. Whether it’s operating very slowly, won’t open the whole way or simply will not budge, there are a number of things that could be wrong with it.

Your best bet is to call out experienced garage door engineers for repairs. However, if you’ve been having problems for a long time you could also consider the possibility of having new garage doors fitted – not only will it solve any problems, it will also give your home a fresh new look.

For now, here are four of the most common problems with garage doors and what you should do to fix them.

Damage to the door itself

If your garage gets stuck when it tries to open, it might be the case that there is damage to the material. Even something like a small dent can make it impossible for the door to open correctly. If you do find this is the case, it might be possible to complete a DIY fix but it is a much better idea to call out a specialist for repairs. Trying to mend the door yourself could lead to you creating a more serious problem.

Broken extension springs

Extension springs can cause a range of problems with your garage doors. If they are too strong they can sometimes pull open the door by themselves. Alternatively if they have become worn and weakened they may lead to the garage door falling down hard instead of closing gently. In either case it’s worth getting the springs changed as soon as possible to avoid any further damage.

Broken photoelectric sensor

Some automatic garage doors are fitted with photoelectric sensors. These are security devices that detect whether something or someone is blocking the path of the garage door – if it sees something in the way it will stop the door from opening completely.

It does this by shooting a laser across the length of the door; when the beam of the laser is broken, it assumes there must be something in the way. However, if the sensor isn’t cleaned regularly, dirt can build up to the point where the sensors thinks it is something in the way. Alternatively if the sensor gets knocked it can take it out of alignment. If either of these things happen it will stop the garage door closing properly.

The battery is flat!

Once again this will only apply to automatic garage doors. Often it’s the most obvious things that we overlook. If you use a remote to open the door, it may well be the case that the battery has run out. If you can’t get your garage door to work always be sure to check the batteries as your first action – it’s amazing how often this sorts out the problem.