Usually when a garage door doesn’t open, the problem lies with either the wall switch or your remote. This means while one option might not work, you can still use the other to open and close the garage door while you sort it out. However, there is always the possibility that neither the remote control nor wall switch will open the garage door. This means your garage door won’t budge in any way, shape, or form and you vehicle may very well be trapped inside when you need it.
However, while not being able to open your garage by any means can be a day-ruining issue, it is not the end of the world. When neither the remote nor the wall switch will open a garage door, in most cases you should look to the motor unit. The most common cause of this issue is that your garage door is no longer getting the electricity that it needs to work. In this situation, you should investigate the following:
- The motor unit is unplugged – How it can come unplugged, no one knows, but check to make sure the motor unit is fully plugged in.
- Circuit breaker or fuse – It is distinctly possible that the circuit breaker that controls the motor unit flipped or a fuse blew.
- GFCI was tripped – It is possible that the ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) that is required to be installed in all modern garages was tripped. If true, this can also be a sign that there was a short circuit somewhere, as the GFCI protects from harmful shocks. If you were able to fix the issue by resetting it, you will want to investigate this more thoroughly.
If none of the above was true, then it is most likely that the actual motor unit has burned out. For this issue, you will need to call a garage door service professional to come out and assess if it can be fixed or if you need to replace it.
Are you having garage door issues? Whether your garage door is not opening at all or opening different than normal, contact us today to let us help solve the problem.
