A remote controlled garage door opener is an extremely handy gadget that allows you to enter and exit your garage without having to get out of your vehicle. Many homes across the USA have garage doors with such openers installed, including numerous houses here in Arvada. If you have one in your home, you will already know how useful they are but do you know what to do when they go wrong? If you don’t, you are sure to find the information in this article of interest. And if you need a local garage door repair expert to come and take a look at your door, please don’t hesitate to call or message us right now. As a well-established overhead door company, we will be able to help you. In the meantime, let’s find out how to tackle an automatic garage door that won’t open.

What to Do When Your Garage Door Refuses to Open

It has been over 90 years since the first remote controlled overhead doors were made, which means manufacturers have had plenty of time to refine their designs. As a result, modern electric door openers are very reliable and seldom go seriously wrong. But it would be untrue to say they never go wrong: there are times, however rare they may be, when a garage door fitted with a remote door opening mechanism will simply refuse to open. If it has never happened to you before, you might not know what to do. Depending on exactly when it happens, you may either be stuck outside your garage unable to get in or stuck inside your garage unable to get out. In each case, there is a simple way out of your predicament but it is only simple if you are aware of it.

How to Open Overhead Doors Manually From the Inside

If your garage door opener stops working when you are inside your garage trying to get out, here’s what you need to do:

• Check All Locks – Before you do anything else, we recommend checking to make sure that no deadbolts or other locks have been left engaged by mistake as this could save you a lot of time and expense.
• Turn the Power Off – Assuming you have no deadbolts fitted or you have made sure they are not engaged, you now need to turn off the power to your garage door opener. If you are not sure where the switch is located, simply follow the power cable from your door opening mechanism and you will find it.
• Pull the Emergency Release Cord – Find the emergency release cord and pull it firmly. If you don’t know what it looks like, it will normally be red, with a red plastic handle of the same color. As it will be hanging down from the center track, the easiest way to find it is to stand in front of your garage door, right in the middle, and look up.
• Open the Door – Grasp the middle of the door at the bottom and pull up until it is over your head and past the halfway stage. If you let go, it should now carry on up until it reaches its normal open position.

Once you have driven out of the garage, you can close the door manually too. Don’t forget to call your local garage door repair team before you leave home though, so you can arrange to have the opener fixed as soon as possible.

How to Open Overhead Doors Manually From the Outside

If you arrive home and can’t get into your garage because the door opener has stopped working, it should be fairly easy to solve the problem by opening it manually as follows:

• Locate the Emergency Release Mechanism – Most modern garage doors have an emergency release fitted to the outside of the door. This release looks just like a lock and will be in the middle of the door, somewhere near the top.
• Unlock the Emergency Release Mechanism – Once you have found the emergency release, simply slide the key inside, turn it and pull the mechanism towards you. A tumbler should come out and attached to it will be an emergency release cord.
• Pull the Emergency Release Cord – Pull the cord to disengage the garage door opener motor.
• Open the Door – Now the motor is disengaged, you can open the door manually, by locating the handle at the bottom of the door and pulling straight up.

If your door is not fitted with an emergency release mechanism on the outside, you will have to find a coat hanger, pull it out of shape and unwind the top part until you are left with a straight piece of wire that has a hook on the end of it. You now need to slide the wire, hook first, in between the top edge of your garage door and the door frame. Move the wire along until you find the emergency release lever on the inside. Once you can feel that you have hooked the lever, pull firmly to release the opening mechanism.

Again, once you have closed your door manually, we recommend calling your local repair experts without delay. In the event your door is beyond repair and you live near us, don’t hesitate to contact our garage door installation Arvada team to ask for help.