If you’re experiencing LiftMaster garage door opener problems in which your garage door won’t close, or it travels part-way down and then reverses course, the first thing you should check is your safety sensor. The safety sensors are on either side of each garage door, and they are light-transmission divides designed to ensure that nothing is under the garage door at the time of closing. Although an incredibly helpful safety feature, objects can often obstruct the light transmission and prevent the doors from closing correctly.

If you happen to see that a light is flashing on one of the sensors, that’s an indication that the light sensors are not aligned. You can fix this by loosening one sensor and adjusting it until the light stops flashing. If this doesn’t help, you can also try tightening the garage door track to ensure they are aligned as well.

Most of the motor functions your garage door opener offers can be accessed using either the remote control or the limit dials in the motor housing. If you’re experiencing an issue in which the garage door won’t open or close all the way, you’ll want to either adjust the open and close limits using the remote, or manually turn the limit dials. When taking the manual route, turn the close limit dial counter-clockwise to lengthen the close limit, and turn the open limit dial clockwise to lengthen it.

Until you’ve programmed a new door opener to function with the remote, don’t expect much to happen. You can program it following opener installation by following the instruction manual provided. If you’re still experiencing issues following successful remote programming, the first thing you should do is check whether or not the batteries are still in working order – as most times, changing them will be the fix required.

If you have a wall-mounted garage door opener model, be sure to check the lock switch. If it happens to be on, the remote won’t work correctly, and so you’ll need to turn that off.

Safety tip: Garage doors are massive structures that can often cause serious injuries if repairs are attempted unprofessionally or with a lack of know how. Keep the garage door instruction manual handy before attempting any diagnosis or repair and follow the instructions properly. It is also advised that only a professional should attempt to repair your garage door.

If you are wondering “why won’t my garage door open all the way?”, don’t worry, in this article, we will cover the reasons behind this problem and the possible solution (note that the repair should be done by a professional technician only)

This problem is common with old garage doors or with garage doors that have not been installed properly. By ensuring regular cleaning and greasing of garage doors, springs and hinges, this problem can be avoided. 

The overall garage door balance is one of the most common reasons why your garage door is facing opening problems. If the lack of balance is not tackled immediately, it can jam the garage door which will require you to replace the whole door and the mechanism. This can be fixed by disconnecting the garage door from the automatic opener and then checking the door balance. The door should be able to be pulled up or down easily by hand. Pull the garage door down half way and check and check if it is hanging in balance with the springs. If the garage door falls down, it means that the problem is with the balance which is why the garage door won’t go up. This requires rebalancing or replacement of the springs. Call a professional to tackle this problem effectively.

Once you’ve checked the balance and that looks okay, if the garage door won’t open fully again, the problem may be with the travel and force limits. This is one of the safety features of automatic garage doors and if this malfunctions, the garage door may have problems in opening or closing. The travel and force limits are safety features indicate your garage door to travel the expected distance then force it to open and close. These limits are usually set at the time of installation and if they fall out or get unaligned over time, they can cause opening and closing problems with your garage door. The garage door instruction manual has all that you should know about this feature. You must call a technician to safely realign these settings.

It is easy for dirt and debris to get on the tracks and block the overhead door from moving up or down. Perhaps a twig, leaves, or other external debris is clogging the tracks. A shovel, broom, or other tool could have fallen on the tracks causing a blockage so the garage door gets stuck when you try to move it. Cleaning the tracks and removing all obstacles could solve your problem.

With the amount of weight that runs up and down the frame daily, it is not uncommon for the tracks to warp or get uneven. Once the tracks warp or become uneven, the garage door won’t go up or down fully. If the tracks are the issue, contact a professional overhead door installer to straighten the tracks.

Rollers run along the tracks as the door moves up and down. To keep them moving smoothly so the garage door won’t get stuck, they need ample lubrication. Dust, dirt, and regular wear can clog the oil so the rollers cannot move smoothly along the tracks. To stop the garage door from getting jammed, lubricate the rollers so they will glide evenly without sticking.

If the cables supporting your overhead door while it moves up and down the tracks become loose or break completely, your garage door will get stuck going up. Contact a service professional to tighten or replace the faulty cables.

The torsion spring supports the weight of the door. It is a thick, metal coil that uses a lot of tension when the overhead door goes up and down. If the spring breaks, your garage door won’t go up or down. It is not advisable to fix the spring yourself because the highly tense, metal coil can cause serious injury. If your torsion spring breaks, contact First Responders to replace the spring.

A garage door getting jammed can be a real inconvenience but it does not have to completely disrupt your day. At First Responders, we can fix your door issues quickly so you can be on your way. We have years of experience in overhead door installation and repair. We offer same day service at competitive prices. Contact us today for all your garage door maintenance are repair needs.