Guide

Garage door won't open? Run through this list first

Updated July 21, 2026

A door that won’t open is almost always one of five things. Check them in this order - the first two cost you nothing, and knowing which one you have before you call means a faster, cheaper visit.

1. The opener is disconnected or unpowered

Look at the ceiling unit. No lights at all? Check the outlet (a tripped GFCI in the garage kills it more often than you’d think) and the breaker. Lights on but nothing happens? Look for the red release cord hanging from the trolley - if someone pulled it, the door is disconnected from the opener. With the door down, pull the cord toward the door to re-engage, then run the opener.

2. The remote, keypad, or lock button

Try the wall button. If the wall button works but the remote doesn’t, it’s a battery or programming issue, not a door issue. Check whether the wall console’s lock light is blinking - the vacation lock silences every remote, and it gets bumped more often than anyone admits.

3. The photo-eye sensors

If the door starts to close then springs back up, the little sensors near the floor are arguing. Look for a blinking LED on either sensor: clean the lenses, check that both point at each other, and make sure a rake handle or snow shovel isn’t sitting in the beam. This is a genuinely safe DIY fix.

4. A broken spring

If the opener hums and strains but the door barely moves - or you remember a loud bang from the garage recently - stop. Look at the spring above the door: a broken torsion spring shows a clean gap in the coil. The door is now dead weight, the opener can’t lift it, and forcing it risks burning out the motor on top of the spring bill.

This is the one on the list that is not a DIY job. Wound springs store enough energy to cause serious injury; in January, when cold-brittled springs snap all over Kearney, it’s our most common call.

5. Cables, track, or a frozen seal

A frayed cable or a roller out of its track will bind the door partway - you’ll usually see the door sitting crooked. And on the coldest mornings, check one more thing before assuming the worst: bottom seals genuinely freeze to the concrete here. A gentle push at the bottom edge (from inside, door closed) frees a frozen seal; anything more stuck than that is a service call.

The two-minute version

Power and release cord, then wall button and lock light, then sensor LEDs - those you can fix. A bang, a gap in the spring, a crooked door, or a straining opener - those you can’t, and shouldn’t try.