Garage Door Opener Repair: Is It Worth the Cost of a Contractor?
Imagine you’re pulling into the driveway after a painfully long, back-breaking, pride-swallowing day at work. You reach for your garage opener remote, click it, but nothing happens. You can feel the beginning stages of a panic attack starting to grip you, as you sit quietly in your car, still idling in the driveway. It’s been ages since you’ve manually opened a garage door and you’re not sure if you have the physical strength to open one anymore. To make matters worse, your son runs out to the car, happy to greet you. He asks, “Why are you crying, Daddy?” Don’t let this happen to you!
What is it?
Garage opener repair is a service aimed at keeping electric garage door openers well and running. While it may seem simple enough, there are actually three components, and therefore three different sources for problems, that allow a garage opener to run properly. First there’s the electric opener, which is generally a decent-sized box that hangs on the ceiling above the garage door. Its main function is to control how far the door opens and closes, as well as the force the garage door exerts.
Next there is the remote control, which is handheld and usually stored within the car so as to easily open the garage door from your vehicle by simply pointing it towards the censor located inside the garage. Nowadays, garage door remotes usually operate on a frequency spectrum range between 300 and 400 MHz. Lastly, let’s not forget about the garage door itself, which is… well, if I need to explain to you what a garage door is then you probably can’t read anyways.
So when a garage opener is malfunctioning, any of the aforementioned three components could be at fault.
Who needs it?
There are many different ways your electric garage door opener can malfunction. Don’t hesitate to consider garage opener repair if you’ve experienced any of the following scenarios: the opener does not respond when the remote is pushed, the opener will only open the door but not close it (or vice versa), the opener may operate with a mind of its own by opening and closing without being told to do so (which sounds like the premise for a really lame Stephen King novel), the garage door may not close all the way, or the garage door may reverse when closing.
Benefits
The biggest benefit from garage door opener repair is that there are many simple solutions to fixing faulty garage door openers. Solutions can be as simple as making sure the electric garage opener is securely plugged into an outlet, making sure that the beam sensors (only in newer models) are lined together properly, making sure that nothing is obstructing the space underneath the garage door, making sure that the remote control has batteries, and checking to make sure that the chain-drive gears on your garage door aren’t worn down. These are all simple things you can do that may solve your problem without having to go through the hassle of finding a contractor. However, this is not always the case.
Risks
Garage doors can weigh up to 400 pounds and are easily the largest moving objects within a home. Therefore, a malfunctioning garage door could potentially be dangerous around children or pets (that Stephen King novel doesn’t sound so implausible any more). So, if none of the simple solutions have solved your garage door woes, it may be time to call a professional. If you have some background in electrical wiring or have dealt with heavy machinery, then you might want to look into the problem more elaborately at your own risk. Be cautious, there is a powerful motor that more or less runs the electrical garage opener, so don’t go sticking your hands up there unless the device is unplugged.
THE BOTTOM LINE
In the end, a busted automatic garage door opener is not worth losing a hand over. If the problems are minor, then you can afford to hold off on calling a contractor and maybe inspect things yourself. However, if you’re experiencing severe garage opener problems, then gee, I don’t know, how about you unplug the device and open the garage door like a man! That is to say, manually. Or at least unplug it and call a contractor.
What is it?
Garage opener repair is a service aimed at keeping electric garage door openers well and running. While it may seem simple enough, there are actually three components, and therefore three different sources for problems, that allow a garage opener to run properly. First there’s the electric opener, which is generally a decent-sized box that hangs on the ceiling above the garage door. Its main function is to control how far the door opens and closes, as well as the force the garage door exerts.
Next there is the remote control, which is handheld and usually stored within the car so as to easily open the garage door from your vehicle by simply pointing it towards the censor located inside the garage. Nowadays, garage door remotes usually operate on a frequency spectrum range between 300 and 400 MHz. Lastly, let’s not forget about the garage door itself, which is… well, if I need to explain to you what a garage door is then you probably can’t read anyways.
So when a garage opener is malfunctioning, any of the aforementioned three components could be at fault.
Who needs it?
There are many different ways your electric garage door opener can malfunction. Don’t hesitate to consider garage opener repair if you’ve experienced any of the following scenarios: the opener does not respond when the remote is pushed, the opener will only open the door but not close it (or vice versa), the opener may operate with a mind of its own by opening and closing without being told to do so (which sounds like the premise for a really lame Stephen King novel), the garage door may not close all the way, or the garage door may reverse when closing.
Benefits
The biggest benefit from garage door opener repair is that there are many simple solutions to fixing faulty garage door openers. Solutions can be as simple as making sure the electric garage opener is securely plugged into an outlet, making sure that the beam sensors (only in newer models) are lined together properly, making sure that nothing is obstructing the space underneath the garage door, making sure that the remote control has batteries, and checking to make sure that the chain-drive gears on your garage door aren’t worn down. These are all simple things you can do that may solve your problem without having to go through the hassle of finding a contractor. However, this is not always the case.
Risks
Garage doors can weigh up to 400 pounds and are easily the largest moving objects within a home. Therefore, a malfunctioning garage door could potentially be dangerous around children or pets (that Stephen King novel doesn’t sound so implausible any more). So, if none of the simple solutions have solved your garage door woes, it may be time to call a professional. If you have some background in electrical wiring or have dealt with heavy machinery, then you might want to look into the problem more elaborately at your own risk. Be cautious, there is a powerful motor that more or less runs the electrical garage opener, so don’t go sticking your hands up there unless the device is unplugged.
THE BOTTOM LINE
In the end, a busted automatic garage door opener is not worth losing a hand over. If the problems are minor, then you can afford to hold off on calling a contractor and maybe inspect things yourself. However, if you’re experiencing severe garage opener problems, then gee, I don’t know, how about you unplug the device and open the garage door like a man! That is to say, manually. Or at least unplug it and call a contractor.
