How Can I Open My Electric Garage Door in a Power Outage?
Not being able to open an electric garage door in a power outage is every homeowner’s nightmare. Have you ever realised you couldn’t park your car in your garage because you have an electronic garage door and there is no power? Or maybe the opposite happened and your car was stuck in the garage during an outage. If this has happened to you and you’re wondering how to get your automatic garage door to open without power, we’ve got the answers you’re looking for.
How to Open a Garage Door Manually
Opening a garage door without power is an easy thing to do. Garage door openers come equipped with a bypass switch that can be used to open the garage door when the power is out or when the remote door opener malfunctions for some reason. To trip the trigger, find the rope located near the garage door opener. The rope should have a handle attached to it. By tugging on the rope, you will switch the garage door to manual mode. Exercise caution here because if the garage door is up, it may close suddenly with great force. As a precaution, make it a habit to activate the handle only when the door is closed.
Restoring Your Garage Door to Automatic Mode
Once power has been restored to your home, you can reset your garage door to automatic mode easily. Because you detached the garage door from the trolley when you switched to manual mode, you must now reattach it. To do so, pull down on the cord in the direction of the garage opening. A simpler way to do this is to just click the remote opener and it will cause the trolley to automatically reattach to the garage door.
How to Unlock a Garage Door from the Outside
If you find yourself locked out of the garage when the power goes out, there is a way you can unlock the garage from the outside. You will need to release the lever from outside the garage. Place a garage door shim through the stripping close to the top of the garage door and use a wire hanger to flip the lever. This helps when your garage door does not open and you need to get in from the outside.
If you are still unable to open your electric garage door or notice any damage to it, contact a garage door expert to help you access it during an outage.
