Garage door not opening? Notice what the opener does
Press the button once, then stop and take note. Silence, a hum, a click, a motor that runs while the door sits still, and a light that flashes a set number of times each lead somewhere different, and that one detail saves a lot of guessing later.
Dominator's manual for its Smart Pro, Smart and Secure openers (DSO-4V3, DSO-3V3, DSO-2V3) lists what to have ready before asking for service: anything that happened since the door last worked, such as a storm or a jolt to the door, what the lights are showing, how easily the door moves by hand, and the model, which is printed on the back of the opener.
Safe checks, one at a time
Try the wall button
If the door runs from the wall but not from the remote, the remote is the fault and the remotes guide picks it up. Dominator supplies a wall-mounted remote with its openers, so on those the wall control is a remote as well.
Look at the remote's light
Dominator's quick guide for the Smart Pro, Smart and Secure says their remotes take one CR2032 cell, and the remote's status light shows its condition: steady means the battery is fine, while flashing or dark means it needs replacing.
Check the opener has power
If the opener's light won't come on, see whether anything else in the garage works. Merlin's MR855EVO manual suggests plugging a lamp into the opener's power point, then checking the fuse box if the lamp stays off. A whole street without power is a power cut, and opening the door without power covers the release.
See whether vacation mode is on
Dominator's Smart Pro, Smart and Secure have a vacation mode that locks every remote out. The remote status LED on the opener flashes while it is on, and the manual's troubleshooting table says to switch it off when the opener ignores the remotes.
Check the release cord
If someone has used the release, the opener is no longer driving the door. Reconnect it the way your opener's own manual shows, because the steps differ between models.
A door that is heavy or won't budge by hand: stop
Dominator says a door that is hard to open by hand may have a decompressed spring, a warped track or a loose cable, and its opener manual says a door needing repair must not be used. Stop pressing the button, don't try to heave the door up yourself, and keep everyone out from under it.
Garage door not opening but the motor is running
A motor that runs while the door stays shut can mean a disconnected drive, a lock holding the door, or a door the motor can't lift. The makers spell out the signs model by model.
Merlin's MR855EVO roller door manual says that if the motor hums for a moment and then gives up, check the door isn't in manual release mode, because the springs may be broken or the door may be locked. On Merlin's MT3850EVO, the diagnostic code 1 then 5, shown when the opener clicks without moving or runs about 150 to 200 mm and stops, means contact the service centre.
Dominator's Smart Pro, Smart and Secure flash the main light 5 times when a wireless Auto-Lock is still engaged and holding the door, and 9 times when the motor has overloaded or stalled. For the second, Dominator says to have the dealer service the door, and it is not one to keep retrying.
Garage door won't open after a power outage
If the release was used to get a car out during the cut, the door stays disconnected until someone reconnects it, and Dominator warns that a released door is no longer locked.
Dominator's Excel roller door opener (RDO-1V4) shows rapid green flashes when its mains power was interrupted. Where the stored travel limits may have gone, the Excel manual says to remove every power source, the backup battery included, wait until all the lights are out (10 to 15 seconds) and reconnect. A flashing red LED after that means the limits are not set. Dominator's service checklist puts the opener's travel limits with the technician, so that is a job to send.
Openers with battery backup carry on through a cut until the battery runs low. The Excel manual says a door that stops or crawls may have backup batteries with little charge left, and that recharging on mains power can take 24 to 48 hours. On the Smart Pro, Smart and Secure, 3 flashes at the start of a run and 10 at the end mean the opener is on battery, and the guide says to check the power supply. For clearing codes and other resets, see resetting a garage door opener.
Garage door not opening all the way
A door that stops part way up has either reached the travel limit the opener was given or met more weight or friction than it can handle. Dominator's manual says the open limit should match the height of the opening, and that after mechanical adjustments the opener may need to re-learn the door's travel.
Weight is the other half. Dominator's opener warranty expects a door that can be opened and closed by hand with no more than 20kg of force, and B&D NZ's care guide gives 15kg for a roller door. A door past those figures wears the motor and needs its balance looked at, which means the springs.
Can't open the garage door manually either
If the opener is disconnected and the door still won't lift by hand, the problem is the door, not the motor. B&D NZ's care guide says a door that becomes hard to operate or stops working altogether needs a door professional.
The release itself can be a clue. Dominator's Excel quick guide says disengaging the door with the release cord should take no more than 20kg of force, and to contact the dealer if it takes more. Locked out with no side door? Dominator's opener manual says a garage without another door for people should have an emergency access device, so the door can be opened by hand from outside in a power cut.
What to tell the door specialist
- The opener's brand and model, from the back of the motor
- What happens on a press: nothing, a hum, a click or a flashing light
- How many times the light flashes, if it does
- Whether the door moves by hand once released, and how heavy it feels
- What happened first: a storm, a power cut or a knock from the car
- Who fitted the door and when, if there is a sticker on the back of it
- Whether the car is shut inside
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Try the wall button and a second remote
- Change the remote battery
- Check the opener has power
- Switch off vacation mode, if your opener has it
- Count the flashes on the opener's light
Leave to a door specialist
- A door that is heavy or won't move by hand
- Springs, cables, drums and tracks
- Resetting the opener's travel limits and force
- A motor that hums, clicks or stalls
- New wiring or a new power point, by a licensed electrician
What we would do
Find the label on the back of the opener and take a photo of it before you send the job. Dominator prints the model there, and the model decides which light codes, which reset and which remote apply, so the door specialist can read the right manual before they come out.