How to Align Garage Door Sensors Using a Laser Pointer

Garage doors have built-in sensors to protect children.

A garage door sensor sends a beam from a diode attached to the railing for your garage door to a diode connected to the railing on the other side of your garage door. At any time, if the beam is broken while the door is closing, it triggers the door to go back up. This protects children or animals from becoming trapped under the door. It is important for the sensors to line up. To do this, you can use a laser pointer with a built-in level and will need the help of another person.

Things You'll Need

• Laser level
• Wrench set

Instructions

1. Locate the sensor on the left side of the garage door track. The sensor will have several wires coming out of it and it will have a nut, which you can use to raise or lower the sensor.

2. Position the laser level against the sensor so the laser faces the direction of the other sensor attached to the track on the other side of the garage door.

3. Raise or lower the laser until the level indicates the laser is flat.

4. Loosen the nut on the sensor located on the other side of the garage door and raise or lower the sensor until the laser beam touches the eye of the sensor.

5. Tighten the nut that secures the sensor to the track.

Tips & Warnings

• observe safety measures with laser pointers -- don't point in your eye or anyone else's eye

• always use caution in dealing with automatic garage door openers -- it's not the opening that's a worry, it is the closing. Make sure that once adjustments are made the door still reverses open when it encounters an obstacle