A garage door is a mechanical object with many moving parts. This fact makes it prone to mechanical issues that result to faults. The mechanical problems develop gradually and later the door fails to close. Unfortunately, this may happen when you are pressed by time to leave the house or at stupid o’clock of late night. A door failing to close is a frustrating experience that brings about inconveniences, exposure to risks and untold misery. This makes it paramount for you to know what may lead to your door not closing and what to do about it.
Reasons why the garage door won’t close
When your garage door won’t just close, check for the following issues:
Faulty photo eye sensor
- ·Photo eye is a safety device installed on the door that gives a green light for the door to close when the pathway is clear and vice versa. Photo eye has two sensors whereby one sends a laser beam to the other and if this communication is blocked, the door will not close even if you press the remote button. You can solve this problem by simply cleaning the photo eye sensor.
- ·A photo eye which is not accurately aligned will not allow the door to close. It is advisable to regularly check the alignment of the photo eye as a preventive measure. You can contact a technician to guide on how to check for the alignment and how to fix it.
- ·The door may fail to close if there is a disconnected wire in the photo eye.
Broken garage door springs
A garage door has springs that require a lot of tension to function properly. This makes them prone to snapping and breaking which is a common problem. Once the spring is broken the door fails to close. Torsion springs are dangerous for DIY fixing process hence inviting a professional for the spring replacement is highly recommended.
Remote problems
A remote is essential in sending a signal to the opener for the door to close. The remote may fail if it is out of range, the batteries are dead or the receiving sensor is blocked. Ensure that you have spare batteries always for replacement if need be. If the batteries are okay, call for technical assistance.
Broken cables
Cables run along the wall near the springs. When the springs are broken, the cables are likely to snap and break too. If the springs are to be replaced, plan for cables replacement too.
Faulty opener
Your garage door will definitely fail to close if the opener is faulty. The opener may fail due to disconnected wires, blocked operator power source or other issues. It is tricky to identify the exact opener problem thus important to contact a professional for help.
Poorly aligned door track
A garage door runs along the track to close or open. Misalignment causes the door to run out of track hence failure to close. It is advisable to involve a technician for proper track alignment.