Garage door not opening? Start with what you hear
Press the wall button once, then stand back. What the opener does in the next few seconds tells you more than anything else, and it decides whether this is something for you or for a door specialist.
Silence, with no light on the opener, points to the power. A click or a short hum with no movement points to a lock, the release or a spring. A motor that runs while the door sits still points to the link between the opener and the door.
B&D says the most common cause of all is simpler: a flat battery in the remote or in a wireless wall button. If the wall button runs the door and the remote doesn't, the door and the opener are fine, and the remotes guide takes it from there.
A hum and a door that won't lift: stop there
Merlin's manual for the MR855EVO links a motor that hums briefly and then gives up to three things: the door is in manual release mode, a spring has broken, or the door is locked. B&D counts an opener that hums or strains without lifting the door among its broken spring signs. Springs are never yours to deal with, and Steel-Line's sectional door manual puts it in capitals: 'If a spring breaks, DO NOT ATTEMPT REPAIR'. Stop pressing the button, keep everyone away from the door and read the broken spring guide.
Safe checks, in this order
Try a second control
Steel-Line's opener FAQ says that when one remote does nothing, try another remote or the wall button. If just one handset fails, it says to change that handset's batteries; if neither handset works, it suggests coding them again, which the programming guide covers.
Test the power point
Merlin's MR855EVO manual has you plug a lamp into the opener's outlet, and B&D's Smart Pro manual suggests any device of a similar voltage, such as a hairdryer. If nothing runs, look at the fuse box. Steel-Line says an opener that trips the circuit breaker again once it is reset is faulty and needs repair or replacement.
Check the release
If the chain or belt moves and the door doesn't, B&D's Smart Pro manual says the opener is disengaged and has to be engaged again. Steel-Line also asks whether the door was left in manual mode after a power failure. For Merlin openers, its guide says one more firm pull down on the red cord reconnects them; other makers do it differently, so go by your own manual.
Check for a lock
B&D says that on a door fitted with its AUTO LOCK, the lock can stick in the engaged position. Gliderol's troubleshooting page asks whether a sectional door has been locked by hand. A locked door won't lift, and the motor shouldn't be left pulling against it.
Switch it off and on
Steel-Line's article on a door that won't open suggests turning the opener off at the power, waiting 10 seconds and turning it back on. The wait varies between makers and models, so the reset guide gives each manual's version.
Then leave it
If none of that gets the door moving, stop trying. B&D warns that running a door with a broken spring puts strain on the motor, the cables and the tracks, so every extra press can add to the repair.
Garage door not opening but the motor is running
This sounds like the worst case, but often the motor is fine. Steel-Line's opener FAQ gives two things to look at: whether the safety beams are lined up with their wires undamaged, and whether the door was left in manual mode after a power cut.
If neither explains it, Gliderol says a motor that runs without shifting the door usually means the drive has come apart from the door or its parts are badly worn. Its advice is to stop using the motor at once and get it looked at, and the opener repairs page explains what that job involves.
Garage door won't open after a power outage
Most openers stop when the power does. Steel-Line says most have no battery backup, so a blackout or a tripped circuit breaker leaves them dead until power is restored. To get the car out before then, see opening a garage door without power, and read its warning about the cord first.
When the power is back and the door still won't respond, there is usually one more step. Gliderol says most of its motors hold their settings through an outage, though the remote codes may need setting again. Steel-Line says a door with electronic limits should reset by itself, so if it still won't open fully afterwards, something else is wrong and it is one for a door specialist.
Battery backup buys time rather than forever. Merlin's E475M unit runs an opener for one to two days of normal use and takes 24 to 48 hours to charge fully. ATA's battery backup kit gives approximately 10 cycles and needs 24 hours to recharge, and ATA says to test it monthly. Once the backup is flat, the door stops like any other.
Lights some openers show when the door won't open
| What you see | What the maker's manual says | |
|---|---|---|
| B&D Smart Pro | 3 flashes as a run starts and 10 as it ends | It is running on battery backup because the mains power is off |
| B&D Smart Pro | 5 flashes after a run | The wireless lock has stayed locked |
| B&D Smart Pro | 9 flashes | The motor has overloaded or stalled |
| Merlin MT3850EVO | 1 flash then 5 on the arrows | It clicks without moving, or runs about 150 to 200 mm and stops: contact the service centre |
| Merlin MT3850EVO | Flashing orange battery light with a beep | The backup battery is low |
| ATA GDO-6 V4 | Flashing red light after the power comes back | The travel limits are not set |
Garage door not opening all the way
A door that lifts part way and stops has a different problem from one that won't move at all. Openers stop where their travel limits say, and Steel-Line's FAQ notes that older openers with manual limits need their instruction manual or a professional to set them again.
Weight is the other usual reason. A roller door that has lost its balance can be hard to open and can strain the motor, and Steel-Line leaves the fix, a tension adjustment, to a professional. If the door has jammed, sits crooked or has dropped back down, read stuck or off its track before you touch it.
Garage door won't open manually either
Once it is released from the opener, a healthy door should be easy to move. B&D's Smart Pro manual says it should run smoothly and take no more than 20kg of force at the bottom rail, and that a door needing repair or adjustment should not be used.
Far heavier than that is a warning sign: B&D's broken spring signs include a door that suddenly feels much heavier or can't be lifted at all. Don't keep straining at it. Let it rest closed, keep clear and tell us the job.
Locked out with the power off? Some openers have an outside key release, and Steel-Line fits one to its roller door openers for when there is no other way into the garage. If yours has none, the inside cord is the only release.
What to tell the door specialist
- What the opener did when you pressed the button: nothing, a click, a hum, or a motor that ran
- Whether the door is closed, open or stuck part way, and whether a car is shut in
- Any flashing lights or beeps, and how many (the beeping and flashing guide has more)
- Whether the power went off recently or someone pulled the release cord
- The opener's brand and model, if the label is readable from the floor
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Try the wall button and a second remote
- Test the power point with a lamp and check the fuse box
- Re-engage the opener after a blackout, following its manual
- Switch the opener off and on at the power
Leave to a door specialist
- A motor that hums, strains or runs without moving the door
- Springs, lift cables and anything else under tension
- Setting travel limits and force
- A dead power point or any new wiring, by a licensed electrician
What we would do
Before the door specialist rings, film a few seconds on your phone while you press the wall button, with the opener in the shot. The sound it makes, any flashing light and whether the chain or belt moves tell them most of what they need, and it is far easier to show than to describe.