How to Maintain Your Electric Garage Door

For your convenience and safety, frequently test and maintain your door and opener. Make any needed repairs immediately or deactivate the opener until you can.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Screwdriver
• Soft Brush
• Switch Wire
• Oiling Can And Light Oil
• 2-by-4
• Rags
• Socket And/or Open-end Wrenches
• Automotive Degreaser
• Wire Or Metal Tool

Check the door's operation

1. Disengage the opener for manual door operation.

2. Check the door's balance (see How to Fix Garage-Door Tension) and test it for smooth operation.

3. Straighten misaligned tracks: Loosen the screws that secure track brackets to the opening, or the bolts that secure tracks to brackets. Adjust the bracket or track. Then tighten the fasteners to lock the track into place.

4. Clean the tracks with a soft brush or rag. They shouldn't be greasy. Spray on an automotive degreaser and wipe them clean with a rag.

5. Clean and then lubricate roller-wheel bearings and axles or hinge pins with garage door lubricant (available at home stores).

Test and adjust the safety reverse

6. Open the door.

7. Place a 2-by-4 on the floor in the center of the door opening, then activate the door.

8. If the door does not reverse when it hits the board, adjust the close limit per your owner's manual.

Troubleshoot a photocell system

9. Attempt to reset the system. Shut off and then restore power to the opener, either at the house's circuit-breaker panel or at the opener's plug.

10. Visually inspect the wiring between the opener and the photocell modules for damage or loose connections.

11. Use a voltmeter to check the wiring for continuity (see How to Troubleshoot Electrical Problems )if you can't see any loose or damaged connections

12. If the wiring is good, either the modules or the main sequencer board in the opener are defective and need to be replaced. Check your Yellow pages under "Garage Door Openers" to find the needed parts.

Tips & Warnings

• Tracks should be lubricated only with a lubricant designed specially for garage doors. Other lubricants will hold dirt.
• Install the receiving sensor for a photocell system on the side least likely to have direct sun.

[newbiehomeowner]

on 2/11/2009 I have a 3 car garage with a smaller door on the left and a 2-car wide door on the right. While the 1 car door works fine with the remote as well as the wall switch, the two car door opens only with the wall switch and the remote does not work on normal days. We put new batteries but still the same. But on rainy days, the remote also works fine. Any idea what could be the problem? Also, any suggestions as to how I can fix this?

thanx

[gphandy]

on 12/10/2008 your motor start capacitor blew. what happens is that by opening and closing the door too many times in a row, and the capacitor heats up internally and will actually explode from the trauma of being activated repeatedly in quick succession. Look for a cylindrical usually black device perhaps 3 or 4 inches long. Disconnect power to the operator, and replace the capacitor. good luck

[gphandy]

on 12/10/2008 your motor start capacitor blew. what happens is that by opening and closing the door too many times in a row, and the capacitor heats up internally and will actually explode from the trauma of being activated repeatedly in quick succession. Look for a cylindrical usually black device perhaps 3 or 4 inches long. Disconnect power to the operator, and replace the capacitor. good luck

[Cassandra658]

on 4/4/2008 Last night (about 2am) my garage door opened and closed about 20 times....all by itself. It woke me up and scared the "beejeebees" out of me. Anyone have any clue why it did that or how I can keep it from happening again?

[Cassandra658]

on 4/4/2008 Last night (about 2am) my garage door opened and closed about 20 times....all by itself. It woke me up and scared the "beejeebees" out of me. Anyone have any clue why it did that or how I can keep it from happening again?