GARAGE DOOR OPENS OR CLOSES ON ITS OWN

Have you ever done this? Have you driven home and noticed to your horror that your garage door was open? A thousand thoughts go through your head; did you forget to hit the remote to close it? Is someone home and THEY forget and left it open? Is something wrong with your garage door and it opened on its own? What in the world happened?

As you drive into your garage, your suspicions increase. Is someone (crook, burglar) in your home now? Have they taken your valuables and turned your house inside out? Are your pets ok? As your mind tries to come to grips with your open garage door, you really don’t know what to think. Here at Marietta Garage Door Repair we sometimes get calls describing this type of scenario. Usually, the problem is NOT as dire as it appears. Sometimes garage doors open or close on their own. You always have the choice of calling a local Marietta, GA garage door repair technician but often, the problem is easy to fix and simple to find all on your own.

The culprit…

Take one of our customers for example. He started noticing that every day when he came home for lunch that his garage would automatically open by itself. After first thinking that his wife was had come home and was joining him for a quick sandwich, he soon discovered that he was still alone but that someone or something had opened his garage door! After a few days of this strange garage door behavior he realized that every time his garage door “acted up” that his new neighbor 2 doors down had also come home for her lunch break. They both shared the same manufacturer of garage door opener and as it turned out, she had recently reset her remote’s garage door code.

Do all opener remotes do this?

No! Newer garage door opener models deploy a rolling code sequence that eliminates this anomaly. It is the older garage door opener systems that have a set number of codes built in. Since there are fewer numbers involved, the chances are greater that one might be matched to yours and this can easily result in your garage door opening (or closing) without any assistance from you. By the way, our customer helped his new neighbor adjust her remote so that she had a different code all to her own and all the mysterious garage door activity soon came to an end.

Another possible culprit

Most mysterious garage door openings and closings are the result of matched garage door remote frequencies but sometimes, another culprit is to blame. The transmitter in your opener unit may need to be reset. Don’t worry; this is easy to do and you won’t need to call for a local Marietta, GA garage door repair expert either. You’ll need to find the learn button for your opener unit. Look for it under the light cover or over the antenna wire that hangs over the motor head. Look for the button that is red, yellow, purple or green. This learn button has two functions. One is to clear the opener’s memory, and the other is to program the opener’s accessories. Did you find it? Press down on it and hold it for a few seconds. Soon, you will notice the indicator lights have started to blink. Ok, now press the learn button again and this action will reset the transmitter. Try doing this and see if it doesn’t clear up your problem with those mysterious garage door openings and closings. If you need help, simply refer to your opener’s owner’s manual or look online for videos that show this simple process in more detail.

More possibilities

If your garage door is still opening or closing mysteriously, be sure to check the battery in your remote. A weak or run-down battery can give off random signals that might play havoc with your garage door as well as your neighbors. Check your battery at home if you have a tester. If not, you can go to most any local Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Target, Home Depot or Lowe’s store and have them test it. You are under no obligation to buy a new one from them but if you need one and they were kind enough to test your old one, why not? A new battery tester will run you about $20 so it might be a good investment over the long run. While you have your remote open, be sure to check on a couple of other things. Make sure that your battery is not leaking as battery fluid can also interfere with the signal sent. Loose terminals can prevent your battery from making proper contact so make sure that your remote’s terminals are tight enough to hold the battery in place firmly. If not, gently squeeze them together until they are.

It may be time

If none of these simple measures work, and your garage door is still acting erratically by opening or closing on its own, it may be time to upgrade to a new model. Whether you buy a new garage door opener from us or from another local Marietta, GA garage door repair shop, your purchase will provide you with more updated remote choices that include rolling codes with practically unlimited frequencies. New garage door opener models come in a variety of forms and price ranges. There is sure to be something ideal for your budget and garage door needs.

It might be a good idea to browse some opener models online or in stores. Read reviews and ask questions. Bear in mind that many store clerks will not have answers to all of your questions but you can call the manufacturer’s customer service number which is usually toll free. Local garage door repair shops also offer free estimates and no-cost, no-obligation details on any model that you might be interested in. You will have to upgrade sooner or later so if you are having spotty garage door performance, you should seriously consider doing so now.

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