Three Common Garage Door Transmitter Issues

If your garage door has broken down and needs servicing, there's a good chance it might not be the door at all—it could be a problem with one of your transmitters. Read on to learn more about what might be causing such an issue and what you can do about it!

#1: The power source for your transmitter is dead or has been interrupted.

There are two halves to the transmitter: one on the wall of your garage near the garage door, and the other in your car. You need to make sure that the power source is working right on both sides!

If the door is completely unresponsive to your signal, it might mean that the transmitter inside your garage needs power. Some door transmitters are mains powered, in which case you should ensure they're still plugged in and the fuse is functioning correctly; many are battery powered, so you'll just need to charge or change your batteries.

If the door will open when you press the button on the transmitter inside your garage but does nothing when you try to open it from inside your car, it probably means that your car transmitter's batteries are dead and need changing or charging ASAP. Car transmitters are pretty much always battery powered.

#2: There's a problem specifically with your in-garage transmitter.

Even if you're sure that your transmitter is properly powered, there are a few things that can go wrong within the transmission process. For starters, you need to make sure the antenna that picks up the signal from the remote is in the right place, not damaged and fully unobstructed. This could be preventing your in-garage transmitter from picking up the signal from your remote!

If your door is behaving totally unpredictably—opening and closing with seeming randomness while nevertheless not always responding to your signal—it's probably not as massive an issue as you might fear; it's likely that either something's pushing the button on your transmitter (has the in-car one fallen under a car seat, or has something fallen over and landed on the in-garage one?) or that your door is running on the same frequency as a neighbour's. Consult the manual or a professional to find out how to change the frequency, but remember that it absolutely can be done!

#3: There's a problem specifically with your in-car transmitter.

Just as with your in-garage transmitter, your in-car transmitter--the remote control you use to operate the garage door with every time you enter or exit--can suffer other issues than a simple battery failure. The most obvious is that you might simply be trying to open your door from too far away: test a few different ranges to see where you need to be for the door to pick up your signal.

Sometimes, transmitters need to be reprogrammed. They'll all have a 'learn' button on them somewhere; press and hold it till the light starts blinking, then while it's blinking press the 'open' button again. If this doesn't seem to work, consult your manual--this is the standard method, but there are a few manufacturers who do things differently.

Still confused? Get your garage door serviced today!

If you've eliminated all the common issues and you're still not sure what's wrong, it's not difficult or costly to have your garage door serviced by a local specialist. Ask your neighbours for recommendations, or check reviews to help you find the right professional for you.