Having a garage door stuck closed might be the most frustrating garage door problem – especially if your car is stuck inside and you need to get to work. But if your garage door is stuck open, that’s also not a great situation. Yes, it’s inconvenient, but it’s also unsafe. Bugs, mice, weather, and people with bad intentions now have open access to your garage and your home. Not to mention that, depending on why the garage door is stuck open, you might be at risk for it to come crashing down at any moment. So how do you diagnose your broken garage door and get it going again?
Why is my Garage Door Stuck Open?
Many times, getting your door back in working order is an easy DIY garage door repair. But first you have to figure out why your garage door is stuck open. So let’s discuss the usual suspects. First thing’s first though – place an open ladder under the center of the garage door, or prop a 2×4 up against each side. This way, if the door accidentally gets released, it won’t come crashing to the ground, resulting in a broken garage door or a trip to the ER.
- Is there something stuck in the tracks? Or is a track bent and not allowing the rollers to pass by a certain point? Or is the door off track?
- Is there an issue with the garage door opener’s motor? Try the remote and see whether the motor is engaging or not. If not, make sure the power source is connected before you give up and call for a garage door opener repair.
- Do you have a broken garage door spring? Get away from that thing and call a technician ASAP.
- Is there something obstructing one of the sensors? Or maybe they’re just dirty.
- Did you accidentally lock your garage door? Some garage doors have little handles on the outside so you can lock it. It’s a simple and effective safety feature… until it’s not. Check to make sure it’s in the unlocked position.
- Is the cable pulley jammed or the cable came off it?
- Are the batteries in your garage door opener remote dead? You’ll feel a little silly if you forget to check that and it ends up being the cause of all your problems.
How do I Unstick my Garage Door?
Depending on the cause of the issue, you may be able to DIY this garage door repair. Repairs that are okay to do yourself are unbending a bent track, lubricating rollers, cleaning the sensors and re-engaging a pulley. Check out a YouTube tutorial or give us a call for some friendly and professional advice. But there are some garage door repairs you should never try to do yourself. Namely, repairing or replacing a broken garage door spring, or rebalancing a garage door off track. There’s a reason there are professional exterior door installers that offer garage door maintenance and repair services. Give us a call. We offer appointments as well as 24/7 emergency garage door repair to the Seattle, Sacramento and LA areas.