Garage Door Problems and Faults
Most garage doors will continue to run smoothly for many years. Occasionally, however, you may find that your trusty garage door fails to open or close properly. Here at ABi Garage Doors Leeds we obviously help people with their garage door problems quite a lot, and although there are times, unfortunately, when a professional repair is necessary, a lot of common problems can be easily solved.
Automatic Garage Doors
Some automation systems use a ‘bottom safety edge’ either instead of or along with photocells. This is a pressure sensitive device that runs along the bottom edge of the garage door. These can sometimes be wireless and have a small battery in the sensor on the door. A failed safety edge will usually cause the same issues as problems with photocells and replacing the battery can usually fix this.
An electrically operated door needs electricity! It sounds obvious but is often worth checking that there has not been a mains power cut or that one of the fuses in the property has not blown or been tripped. A word of caution however; fuses, breakers and RCD’s are protection devices, if something has tripped or blown then there is a reason for it. One of the most common power problems we come across in garages is ‘nuisance tripping’ as a result of water or damp affecting circuits, often from old leaky roofs. If there is no obvious reason for tripped or blown fuses then you should call a qualified electrician.
Obstructions
Tracks and Rollers
If your manual garage door appears to have become unusually heavy or stiff then one of the first things to check are the tracks and rollers. A clogged up track can cause a door to become stiff or feel ‘gritty’ when opening and closing. We don’t recommend using grease on rollers or tracks as this can collect dust and dirt over time. Check to make sure the tracks are clean and free from any debris that might cause problems for rollers and guides. The tracks can easily be wiped with an old cloth but watch out for any sharp edges and make sure the door will not move while you are cleaning the tracks. A broken roller can often be replaced by anyone that is reasonable competent at DIY but if you are unsure then call an expert.
Garage Door Springs
Torsion springs run across the top of the door frame and have a spindle running through them. They can ‘lose’ tension over time or fail completely which will make your garage door heavier to lift. Springs can be replaced or tension can be added to existing springs but we recommend this is done by a garage door expert.
Extension springs are usually fitted at each side of the garage door frame. If one or both of the springs fail it will make the door very difficult to lift. Extension springs can be replaced and we keep a full range of springs in stock at our warehouse in Leeds for all the major manufacturers. We can also have obsolete and obscure springs custom manufactured. It is often not too difficult to replace extension springs. If you can source the correct replacement springs and are reasonably competent at DIY then it is possibly something you can do yourself. We recommend that the springs at both sides of the garage are replaced at the same time to ensure the door balances correctly. Please be aware, however, that garage door springs can be under a lot of tension and can cause serious injury if they are not fitted correctly, so if you are in any doubt then call an expert.
My door will not open with fob. The power to unit has been turned off for a few weeks while some work was done in other parts of house. Tried new battery in it no different Two Lights are on control unit so there is power. Opens manually ok but when I use fob it buzzes 5 Times then nothing. Any ideas
Hi Gemma, I believe you have an SWS system from our records. Can you confirm what lights are showing, as this will help me identify the possible fault.
The two lights are above the red arrow are constantly lit and if you press the remote it bleeps 5 times but nothing happens
Hi Gemma, could you send a video of the problem to our whatsapp? 07483120159
Hi Gemma, it looks like a safety edge problem. I have replied with some troubleshooting steps on whatsapp.
My crocodile door will not close properly after I knocked it bending the bottom section and pressure rubber down slightly I have to keep pressing the button on controls and fob intermittently to make it close is there any thing I can do.Have been told I my need a new door this one being 3 years old
Hello, I don’t know the extent of the damage, but it would seem unlikely you would need a complete new door, The bottom safety edge can be replaced depending what parts Crocodile use for there roller doors. If there is extensive damage to the slats as well as the bottom safety edge you may need some replacement slats as well. Its difficult to say without understanding the extent of the damage. You are more than welcome to WhatsApp us some photos through of the inside and outside of the garage door and damage over WhatsApp on; 07483120159, I would of thought it would be best to contact Crocodile and arrange for someone to come out and do a full assessment of the damage and parts needed to repair the door and cost. You may have already done this and it may be more cost effective to have a new door rather than repair the current door. But if the door is still opening and closing intermittently, It seems like an electrical fault with the bottom safety edge more than anything else.
Thanks
Hi what causes the batteries in the safety edge on garage door to run out every 2 months
Thanks
Hello Clive,
There should be a magnet at the bottom of the inside of the roller garage door at the side of the door, when the safety edge passes the magnet the light on the bottom safety edge should go off in the closed position (make sure the magnet is aligned properly and the bottom safety edge is passing the magnet). Please make sure this is correct. Also please make sure you are only using the specified batteries for your safety edge, they must be lithium batteries or they won’t last very long. If you are opening and closing the door a lot of times during the day, it may be the case that you are draining the battery life much quicker than the average user if all of the above checks out. The only other problem it could be is that there is a fault with the safety edge and it’s not deactivating the batteries so they are permanently active and constantly draining, again if all of the above checks out, and the lights on the safety edge are turning off in the open and closed positions the batteries should be not active when the light on the safety edge is not displaying. Unlikely but possible you have had a bad batch of batteries.
Thanks
we moved into a property that has a cardale Dc650n III, every since a power cut in November , the unit has been flashing number 3 have no idea how to service this or what i could do to resolve the problem , door has to be opened manually now 🙂
Hi Michael,
Are you sure it is not a fault? Does the door open fully using the buttons on the front of the head unit? If it does and it is just that the hand transmitters are coded into the partial open program then you would need to delete all the hand transmiiters from the operator and recode your hand transmitters into the fully opening program on the operator.
You can download a PDF of the full instructions from the Hormann website that detail how you can do this at the link below.
http://www.hormann.co.uk/fileadmin/_country/hoermann.uk/dok/SupraMatic_Operator_E2_Garage_Door_Operator.pdf
Thanks
Luke
Hi, Supramatic e2 is stuck on H partially open mode. Can you please advise how I can return it to normal setting mode as it won’t open with the remote control. Thank you.