Garage Door Won’t Move: Motor and Travel Troubleshooting

Motor travel problems can prevent your garage door opener from moving the garage door. As in an elevator, the electric motor does not provide most of the power to move a heavy garage door. Instead, most of door’s weight is offset by the counterbalance springs attached to the door. (Even manually operated garage doors have counterbalances; otherwise they would be too heavy for a person to open or close them.) In a typical design, torsion springs apply torque to a shaft, and that shaft applies a force to the garage door via steel counterbalance cables. The electric opener provides only a small amount of force to control how far the door opens and closes. In most cases, the garage door opener also holds the door closed in place of a lock. If your type of motor unit has a single Led light. The light will flash 5 times to indicate one of these problems: garage door travel is obstructed; garage door opener trolley is obstructed, motor is over heated, motor RPM sensor is defective.

If you have just used your garage door opener several times, allow the motor to cool for 30 minutes. If the garage door opener, works after a half hour, it’s a good sign. Te motor had been over heated from repeated use and that was the only issue. If you haven’t used the door recently or you still won’t open it after 30 minutes, then unplug the garage door opener for 1 minute to reset the logic board. Then restore power and try opening the door again. Resetting the logic board may fix your problem. If the door still won’t open and the motor unit still displays the code, then a bent garage door track or a door latch that’s stuck or locked may be preventing the door from moving.

Pull the emergency release rope to disconnect the garage door from the trolley. Open and close the garage door manually to see how easily it moves on the tracks. If the door doesn’t move at all or sticks in some areas, check for a bent door track. Also make sure the door latch retracts fully. If the latch gets locked accidentally or it isn’t fully retracted, then the door won’t move. Fix any issues you find or have a garage door specialist repair the garage door. If the garage door travels easily on the tracks, then a bent or a damaged garage door opener rail could be blocking trolley travel. Check the rail for damage and replace the damaged parts of the rail. If you see no apparent rail damage, check the inner trolley travel along the rail. Activate the garage door opener to move the inner trolley along the rail in one direction and then activate it again to check the opposite direction. If the inner trolley stops along the rail and you find damage. Repair it, or replace the rail. Also, take a look at the inner trolley and replace it if you find any damage. If the inner trolley only moves 6 to 8 inches during this test and you didn’t find any rail damage, you will likely need to replace the moor RPM sensor because it isn’t detecting the motor speed.

If the indicator light flashes 6 times,   the motor unit detects an internal motor circuit failure. This means you will probably need to replace the logic board because the motor rarely fails.

NB: Undertaking repairs or maintenance to appliances or power equipments can be hazardous. Should you choose to undertake repairs or maintenance, you are assuming the risk of injury to you as a person and to our property. In an effort to reduce the risk, use proper tools and safety equipment noted in the applicable guide and follow all the instructions. Don not proceeds until you are confident that you understand all of the steps and that you are capable of completing the repair. Some repairs and maintenance however should only be performed by qualified technician

Safety Is Everyone’s Business

Automatic garage door openers are installed in millions of household. Proper installation, operation, maintenance and testing of the garage door and automatic opener are necessary for safety. An improperly adjusted garage door opener can exert deadly force when the door is closes. This could lead to serious injury or death from being hit by a closing garage door or from becoming trapped under the door. Careless operation and allowing children to play or use garage door opener control are dangerous situations that can lead to tragic result. Precautions can protect your family and friends from potential harm.