Check If The Garage Door Sensors Are Aligned
One way to tell if your garage door sensors are correctly working is to check the sensors lights. One light should be green, which means its sending a beam of light, and the other should be red, which means it receives the light.
If you see the red light blinking, it means your sensors are misaligned. Its surprisingly easy to knock the sensors out of alignment, especially if there is a lot of activity in your garage. If your space doubles as a work or storage area, the chances of misalignment are even higher!
Move each light slightly to realign them. Once the red light stops blinking, it means your sensors are where they are supposed to be.
If this problem only seems to occur at a specific time of the day, it may be the sun interfering with the light beam emitted from your sensor and making it malfunction.
If this is the case, shield the sensors from the suns rays with a piece of cardboard. Make sure, however, the cardboard doesnt block the light beam from the other sensor.
Troubleshooting Garage Door Sensors
If youve ever pulled out of your garage and discovered your door wont close, youve likely encountered problems with your garage door sensors. Although this isnt the only reason your garage door may not be operating correctly, its one of the most common.
Luckily, there are some easy ways to troubleshoot your garage door sensors without immediately having to call a service.
How To Bypass Garage Door Sensors
While you are waiting for someone to fix your garage door, you should bypass your sensors so you can still use your garage door.
Ideally, you should bypass your garage door sensors when the door is closed. If it is open and the door spring is malfunctioning, the door might fall closed on you when you switch to manual mode.
However, it is possible that your door is open and fails to close when your sensors malfunction. When this happens, prop the door open with a piece of wood or other strong objects, so it doesnt come crashing down when you disable the sensors.
Place the wood or object on either side of the garage door. Ensure theyre tightly squeezed into the gap between the door and floor, so they dont move when you disengage the sensors.
Find the manual release cord, which is usually red and near the garage door opener motor. Once you pull on the cord, you can now manually open and close your garage door.
Have a helper hold the garage door in position while you take out the wood that is propping up the door, then lower the door slowly. To open the door, pull down on the manual release cord.
Remember: Disabling the sensors means your garage door can close even when something or someone is under it, causing damage, injury, and even death. Call a professional and have them fix your garage door sensors as soon as possible.
Read Also: Ford’s Garage Menu St Augustine
Unscrew The Screws Holding The Sensors
Loosen the mounting brackets of your garage door sensors by opening their screws. You can do that by inserting the screwdriver into the screws and turning it in the anticlockwise direction.
Remember, you only have to loosen the screws. There is no need for you to take them all the way out. Thats because you are going to slide the mounting brackets up and down in the upcoming steps which wont be possible if the screws go missing.
Garage Door Photo Eye Service
If you have tried these steps and havenât been able to get your garage door working, give the experts a call. On Track Garage Door knows all brands and technology to get your garage door back on track. We can help you adjust, repair, or replace damaged photo eye safety sensors on your garage door anywhere in the Phoenix valley. Call today at .
Tags:
Don’t Miss: Craftsman Garage Door Opener Remotes
What Is A Garage Door Safety Sensor And How Is It Maintained
A garage door sensor is a photoelectric eye that serves as the lookout of your garage door openers. It emits an infrared signal that activates your garage door opener when it is accessed through your garage door remote control or any buttons wired to it. Whenever something in its path was detected by the sensors, it automatically sends a command that stops your garage door from closing. Since your safety is largely dependent on the mechanism, it is important to know how to properly care for these sensors.
Contact The Garage Door Professionals
While there are plenty of steps to aligning your garage door sensors, you may find that having a professional reset the sensors can be the right move to ensure that everything goes smoothly. If your garage door sensors are misaligned, and youre in need of assistance, you can always contact us at Precision Door Delaware.
At Precision Door Delaware, were proud to lend a helping hand to homeowners across Delaware and North Maryland. Contact us today for garage door service or maintenance.
Don’t Miss: Pull Down Garage Door Screen
Garage Door Signal Light Blinks And Flashes
Another sign that your garage door sensors are out of alignment is a lot of blinking, flashing, and clicking when you try to shut the door.
If you hit the close button and the signal light inside your garage flashes and blinks ten times, the problem very well may be misalignment of the sensors.
You may also hear clicking when this happens. First, check to ensure theres nothing actually in the way of the door.
If nothing appears to be near the sensors, the next step is checking the alignment of the sensors. Well show you how to check the sensors and align them properly next.
How Garage Door Sensors Work
Now that you know what these sensors do, its a good idea to learn how they work. This will help explain the alignment issue you may be having as well.
Garage door sensors work by emitting a beam of light from one sensor to another installed on the opposite side of the garage door . These two sensors constantly communicate with this beam of light.
As long as the receiver can sense or detect the beam of light being sent from its counterpart, the garage door will be allowed to open and close as normal.
But the second that beam of light is interrupted or blocked, even by something small, the sensors will start reversing the direction of the door from downward to upward.
The watchful eye of the receiving sensor is always on and always working as long as the two sensors are properly aligned.
Don’t Miss: Garage Door With Side Windows
Blinking Led Lights On Door Sensors
The sensors use invisible light to communicate with each other, but they use LED lights to indicate theyre working. If you notice that the LED light indicator on one or both of your sensors is flickering or blinking, its a sign they may be out of alignment.
Both LED indicator lights should be on with a steady glow. They wont blink unless:
- Theres a problem with alignment
- Something is blocking the beam of light used to detect objects near the door
If you take a look and nothing appears to be near the door to block the beam, it may be a misalignment causing the lights to blink.
Garage Door Wont Close
If your garage door wont close or repeatedly opens when you try to shut it, it could be a sign that your sensors are not properly aligned.
Misaligned garage safety sensors cannot properly communicate. In perfect alignment, one shoots out the beam of light in a straight line, and the other receives or detects it on the opposite side of the door.
If one of the sensors is even slightly misaligned , the beam of light used as a signal wont reach the receiving sensor.
When this happens, it can cause the sensors to falsely believe something is in the way of the door. This will prevent the door from closing at all or continually force the door to start opening each time you try to close it.
Recommended Reading: Garage Door Repair St Charles Mo
Loosen Screws Holding Sensor Brackets
Grab your screwdriver to loosen the mounting brackets holding your garage door sensors in place. More than likely, you just need to turn the screwdriver in a counterclockwise direction to loosen the screws.
You do not have to remove the screws all the way. Instead, you just need to loosen them so that you can readjust the sensor and make sure it is in alignment again. Only loosening the screws a bit will allow you to do this without the risk of losing them in the process.
How To Align Eye Sensors
Lets dive into what it takes to get your door closed today. First, get down on the level of your eye sensors and look for a green light on the receiving unit, and a yellow light on the sending unit. So long as you have power and the doors are open, the yellow light should always be on. If it isnt, you have an electrical problem, not necessarily an eye sensor problem. This could be anything from a stapled wire to a power outage. Youll want to check around for something obvious, like a breaker switch, before calling a professional.
Once youve confirmed the yellow light is on, the next thing to look for is the green receiving light. If the green light is off, youll need to align your eye sensors. Rather than wiggling the brackets themselves, the easiest way to go about this will be loosening the wing nut that screws into the sensor. Once the wing nut is loosened, realigning the sensors should be a breeze!
Make sure to adjust the eye sensors on all axes. Move them forwards, backwards, inside, and out.
Read Also: Changing Code On Garage Door Opener
How Can I Test My Garage Door Sensors To See If They Work Properly
Its a good idea to test your garage door safety sensors regularly to ensure theyre working. To test them, just open the garage door and then place an object in the path between the two sensors .
Use the remote to try and close the garage door with the object in the way. If the door stops closing, reverses, and begins opening again, youll know the sensors are working properly.
How To Replace Garage Door Sensors
Replacing isnt too difficult and should only take about 15 to 20 minutes to do. To replace your garage door sensors, you will need the following tools:
Using your step ladder, find the garage door openers power cord and unplug it. Then, unscrew the wing nuts from your sensors and remove the sensors from the brackets.
Next, cut the wire attached to the sensor about an inch in length. You will use this wire to connect the new sensor, so make sure you leave enough slack. Do the same with the other sensor.
Then you will connect the black and white control wire from the new sensor to the old black and white wire using the blue wire nut. Repeat with the other sensor.
Once those are connected, move on to the white control wire. Connect the new sensor to the old white wire using another blue wire nut. Do the same on the other side.
After all is connected, you can plug the garage door opener back in and line up the new sensors. They are good when both red and green lights glow steadily.
Test the sensors by placing an object in between the two to block the beam. Try to close the garage door with the remote. The door should not close, and the lights on the motor should blink.
Don’t Miss: Chamberlain Garage Door Opener Remote Manual
How To Fix Garage Door Sensor Alignment
Garage door sensors are an important safety feature of your garage door. If your garage door sensor alignment is off, it can cause the door to not close properly or even stop working altogether. Garage door sensors help to ensure that the door opens and closes properly with the remote control, and they also help to keep you safe by preventing the door from closing on someone, or something, if there are any obstructions in the garage doorway.
In this blog post, we explain how garage door sensors work and we review how to align garage door sensors using a few simple steps.
Introduction To Eye Sensors
Eye sensors are two little light sensors at the bottom of your door. They are typically six inches up from the floor and attached right to the track. When the eye sensors are aligned, meaning the sending sensors laser is being read by the receiving sensor, your door will open and close properly. If one or both eye sensors are out of alignment, your door will try to come down but instead come right back up.
Don’t Miss: Garage Door Repair League City
Attach The String And Tie The Knots
After sliding them as low as possible, attach one end of a string to one sensor and its mounting bracket. Tie the knot as tightly as possible as this step has a huge impact on the success of the overall operation.
Afterward, run the untied string end across the opening of your garage and roll it around the center of the opposing sensor before tying the knot in such a manner that the string runs as straight as possible.
Clean Out Your Garage
Yes, its a large undertaking, but its vital to your safety that you do so. The garage is a common dumping ground for all kinds of things that need to be cleared up. Sharp garden tools, flammable items and more all pose a risk. Take a day to clear out your garage, and remove anything that you dont need. If you need to store flammable items in there, ensure that youre only doing so in small quantities. Put anything sharp or dangerous on high shelves, where children cant reach them.
With this guide youll be able to align your garage door sensors correctly, making your garage door safe for everyone to use.
You May Like: Home Depot Garage Lights Led
How Do I Know If My Garage Door Sensor Is Out Of Alignment
Home | Blog Posts | How Do I Know if My Garage Door Sensor Is Out of Alignment?
Garage doors keep our lives on track as we open and close the entrance to our garage. With the click of a button or a quick combination on a keypad, the door raises or lowers, helping protect our possessions. When the garage door breaks down or will not open or close properly, it affects our daily lives.
A common problem with a garage door is when the sensor moves out of alignment. How can you be sure your garage door sensor is the culprit of a broken door? RCS Garage Doors is here to help you understand garage door sensors and how to test their functionality. From there, you can potentially fix the problem yourself or call the professionals to handle the repair.
Loosen The Mounting Bracket
So, youve made sure that the sensors are unplugged and youre not in danger of electrocution. Now you need a screwdriver to loosen the mounting bracket that holds the garage door sensors. Insert the screwdriver into the screws and rotate it counterclockwise
Note: when doing this, you only need to loosen the bracket mount, not remove it completely. Also, take care that the screws do not fall out or get lost.
Recommended Reading: Garage Door Repair Elk Grove
Replacing Your Old Sensors
If the wiring is fine, and your garage door opener is still not working, then the problem may be that one of the sensors has simply failed. This can happen from old age, your basic wear and tear, or even constant exposure to sunlight.
Replacing the safety sensors is not a complicated job and is somewhat easy. The first thing youll need to do is purchase new safety sensors. You can buy these sensors at a home improvement store. However, make sure you read the manual and purchase sensors thatll work with your garage door opener. To change your sensors:
After you have successfully replaced both the sensors, give your garage door opener a try.
Time To Get Started On Your Repair
While garage door sensors are a great invention, they are typically installed in an area where they can become easily misaligned. If your garage door sensor is not working properly, it is important to take the time to fix the problem. With a little patience and the simple tips above, you should be able to get your garage door sensor back in working order in no time! If you have any trouble, feel free to contact one of our garage door specialists.
Don’t Miss: Roll Up Garage Screen Doors
How Do I Adjust My Garage Door Sensors
Before you attempt to realign the sensors, you should try adjusting the photo eye lens manually and see if it lights up. If not, follow these steps:
- Cut the power off: while you wont be working on any electrical wiring, its definitely safer to align the sensors with the power off to prevent accidental activation of the garage door opener system.
- Locate the sensors: on most modern garage doors, the safety sensors are located near the tracks on both sides of the garage door, usually not higher than 6 inches above the floor.
- Loosen the screws: once youve located the sensors, use a screwdriver to loosen both wing nuts slightly in order to be able to reposition the sensors. Make sure not to loosen the screws too far or remove them completely.
- Level the sensors: carefully align the safety sensors so that their lenses point towards each other and start glowing steadily. You can also try tying a string between two sensor brackets tightly and use a level to check if the alignment is correct.
- Tighten the nuts and test: once youve aligned the sensors and achieved a steady glow of the LED lights, use your screwdriver to tighten the nuts in place. Turn the power on and use your remote control to check if the door closes properly, and youre done.