garage door makeover or replacement

The garage door is the largest moving part in your home and is very heavy. Without safety sensors, it could potentially become very dangerous if it closes on people or pets. The good news is that garage doors come with safety sensors that detect when something is in the path of the door and will cause the door to reverse itself. But like everything, safety sensors can become damaged and will need to be repaired as well.

Locating The Sensor

The sensor can be found on the floor on each side of the door. The sensor creates a very low-voltage beam that allows an electrical circuit to be completed. Therefore, if something disrupts the beam, the garage door will reverse itself and open. It is not difficult to troubleshoot the sensor to determine why it isn't tripping or why it is tripping when it shouldn't. In the meantime, you can press and hold the garage door opener button to force the door to close.

Early Troubleshooting Steps

First, make sure that the opener is plugged in and that the circuit is still working. Then, the sensor should be cleaned off. There might be dirt and debris that is interfering with the sensor receiving the beam. 

Adjusting Or Replacing The Safety Sensor

A common problem is that the sensors are simply not aligned and will need to be readjusted or replaced. If the sensors simply need to be adjusted, skip to that part. Before trying to repair the safety sensor, make sure that the garage door is unplugged. The sensor needs to be pulled from the bracket. The wires should be cut about an inch from the sensor in order to leave enough space for the new sensor to be connected.

Connecting The New Sensors

Use a crimp wire nut to connect the new sensor wire to the old sensor wire. Connect black wires to black wires and connect white wires to white wires. Then, slide the sensor into the bracket and hold it in place with a wire nut.

Adjusting The Sensors

Plug the garage door back in. Then, the sensors need to be adjusted. When the sensors are properly aligned, a green indicator light will come on.

If you still are having a difficult time troubleshooting your garage door sensor, you may need to hire a garage door repair technician. The sensor may need to be replaced or the problem might be with another component of the door.

Contact a company that specializes in broken garage door repairs for more information and assistance.