Garage remote not working? Start here
Check the simple things in order. Press the wall button first: if the door runs, the opener is fine and the fault is with the remote. Then change the battery. Dominator's remotes use a CR2032 lithium coin cell.
If a new battery changes nothing, try a second remote if you have one. One remote failing points to that remote, and all of them failing points to the opener, its receiver or something interfering with the signal.
B&D NZ says its Tri-Tran+ remotes are multi-frequency and use 128-bit AES encryption to avoid interference from household wireless devices, and that Trio-Code models reduce interference on 433MHz remote systems. An older opener without that may be more easily upset by nearby devices.
How to program a garage door remote
Programming, or coding, pairs a remote with the opener's receiver. The steps depend on the brand and model, so the owner's manual for your opener is the place to go. Look for the model on the label on the motor, then find that manual on the maker's website.
New Dominator openers come with two Tri-Tran+ Premium remotes and a wall-mounted remote, and Garador's home openers use TrioCode 128 multi-frequency remotes. If you are buying an extra remote, get one made for your opener's system. A door specialist can bring the right one and code it if the manual doesn't help.
How to reset a garage door opener
Resetting usually means clearing the codes stored in the opener, which is also covered in the manual. It is worth doing if a remote has been lost or stolen, or you have just moved into a house and don't know who has one. Afterwards, every remote you keep has to be coded again.
Be careful with the settings next to it. Travel limits and closing force are a different thing: Dominator's service checklist treats them as technician work, and they affect how the door reverses.
Phone apps and gates
Dominator says smartphone control is built into its Smart opener, while its other openers need a Smartphone Control Kit. Its app needs an Android phone on version 11 or later or an iPhone on iOS 14 or later, a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi network, and an internet connection to work away from home.
If you have a Dominator gate opener, it can run from the same remote as your Dominator garage door opener.
If a child may have swallowed a button battery
Go straight to the nearest hospital emergency department. KidsHealth says this applies if you think a child has swallowed a button battery or put one in their nose or ears, because it can cause severe burns and damage within 2 hours. For emergencies call 111.
Changing a remote battery safely
Do it out of children's reach
Use a bench or table where a dropped cell can't roll to the floor.
Put the old battery out of reach straight away
A cell that seems flat is still worth treating with care. Don't leave it on the bench.
Close the cover firmly
Dominator's manual says to stop using any remote whose battery cover won't close securely.
Store spares up high
Dominator's manual warns that a swallowed coin cell can cause severe internal burns and death in as little as 2 hours, so keep spare cells and remotes well away from children.
The button battery rules in New Zealand
Button batteries are not on New Zealand's list of mandatory product safety standards. There is a product safety policy statement instead, which Product Safety says is not mandatory. MBIE reviewed it in 2023, the Minister agreed to continue it, and the next review is due by 2 March 2028.
The statement asks suppliers to consider secure child-resistant battery compartments, child-resistant packaging, and information and warnings, and it names many remote controls among the products that use these batteries. Because it is voluntary, it is worth checking your own remotes. Product Safety tells parents to check items such as car keys and remote controls and make sure the batteries are securely fastened inside.
Useful to tell the door specialist
- The opener's brand and model, from the label on the motor
- How many remotes you have, and whether all of them have stopped
- Whether the wall button still works
- Whether a remote has been lost or the house has changed hands
- Whether you want phone control added
What you can do, and what to leave
You can
- Change the remote battery
- Follow the manual to code a new remote
- Check every remote's battery cover closes securely
- Keep remotes and spare cells away from children
Leave to a door specialist
- Setting the opener's travel limits and force
- A faulty receiver or motor
- Adding a Smartphone Control Kit or safety beams
- Clearing the codes if the manual is lost
What we would do
Gather up every garage remote in the house today, including the old one in the kitchen drawer, and check each battery cover. Any remote with a loose cover goes out of use until it is replaced, and one you no longer need is safer gone than sitting where small hands can reach it.