When Things Go Wrong: Opening an Automatic Garage Door Manually

The garage door is one of the most-used machine systems in your home. It is difficult to keep a count of the number of times that the garage door is lifted and lowered in a day.

Therefore, it is not uncommon to encounter issues with the opening of your garage door, once in a while.

With proper techniques, you will be equipped to handle the problem all by yourself. However, it is best to approach Garage door repair Las Vegas if you are not confident enough to tackle the problem by yourself.

When Will You Need to Manually Open Your Automatic Garage Door?

From wild rains to grid overloads, random power cuts can occur at any random time even without notice. For the most part, losing power supply is extremely inconvenient and annoying.

However, a power failure can be deadly serious if it occurs in an emergency situation where you need to take the car out of your garage. While no one can control when the power supply can get cut off, it is always best to be prepared from your side.

Therefore, it is important to know the procedure and have a proper plan in place to manually open your automatic garage door.

All automatic garage door systems always have a bypass that will allow you to open it manually, whenever required. This is especially necessary if unfortunately, you lose the remote of your garage system.

The bypass disconnects the garage door from the powered mechanism of the garage system, making it stay on the track. Once it is disconnected, it can be easily lifted up manually.

You can always lock the bypass and change the settings to use the door as you earlier used to when the power is back or the remote is found.

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Follow the steps below as precisely as you can:

• Place a wooden ladder under the main chain that operates the garage door system. You will notice a cord hanging on that chain itself attached to a bracket.

These cords appear red-colored because of a plastic red knob on the end except one cord. The cord which is not red-colored is the one you must be looking for.

• If you do not find such a cord, look for it close to the garage door. All the family members should be familiar with the red cord’s location and how it should be operated.

• The cord is connected to a lever system. The lever is usually bent at a 15-degrees angle or pointing downwards. Jerk the cord firmly by using the knob.

• Pull the cord. The lever will lock with a clinging sound in the down position. This is because the lever is always spring-loaded.

• Step down carefully from the wooden ladder.

• Grab the door with the help of both the hands. Lift it up.

• You need to pull the cord harder until it locks open itself, in case that the door does not open.

• At times, the door may be too heavy for a person to lift alone. It is best to call a friend or a family member for assistance.

• If you feel that you are still unable to lift the door, don’t hurt yourself. Call for a professional team who would be glad to help you out.

• If you are successful to lift the door, don’t let it go once it is lifted from the ground. Remember that it is free on track and will surely fall if you let it go.

• You need someone to hold the door open while you take your car in or out. When you are done, ease the door slowly by hand and take care not to hurt yourself during this step.

• Pull down the cord as hard as you can. This will lock it in place again after the issue with the garage opening system is resolved.

• The door will get locked into the powered carriage when the cord is pulled and the bracket slips back into the original chain bracket.

Scope of Error

Never attempt to pull the bypass cord when the door is lifted up. The door will come down crashing anything underneath.

The heavy force can damage anything that comes in its way and you can injure yourself seriously if you don’t take the necessary precaution.

Similarly, if your garage door is stuck in the open position itself, do not try to tackle the issue by yourself and seek professional help.

Try the automatic or remote-controlled system after the automatic garage door is repaired. Try to pull the chain and lock the bracket if the door does not open. Test it multiple times until the automatic system starts working.

If you notice the following issues while testing with the automatic garage door system with the remote after you may have manually opened it, you must immediately approach a professional team:

• The noise of loose fasteners, drive gears, loose chain, or broken brackets.
• The door reverses on its own or blocking of safety sensor beams.
• Misalignment of downforce setting.
• Damaged door system.
• Faulty logic control board.
• Bad drive motor.

Reconnecting the Trolley With the Opener

There can be two ways by which you can connect the trolley with the carriage:

1. You can do it manually by sliding. Keep on sliding the door along the track until it is attached.
2. Either way, you can use the garage door’s remote. Most of the remote control units automatically get reconnected.

Wrapping Up

Make sure to follow the above advice as carefully as you can. Read on for the basic information regarding the working mechanism of your garage door system. This will help you when you are stuck.

If you are knowledgeable enough, it must not be difficult for you to open an automatic garage door manually.

At the same time, if you are an amateur, do not try to experiment and follow the steps as precisely as you can. As long as you take all the necessary precautions, you are good to go.