"Bob the Brewer" wrote in message
oups.com...
We've had a problem with our garage door opener for a few months now,
and since winter is coming we are using it a lot more. I can't really
afford to call someone out right now, so I've been trying to figure out
what I can do to try to troubleshoot the problem myself. Here is what
I've come up with so far. Does anyone have any suggestions? Might I
be barking up the totally wrong tree? Thanks! -Bob


The problem:

The garage door will not close normally with a single push of the
operation button, or through use of the remote control. To close the
door, we need to hold down the button until the door is completely
closed, otherwise, the door closes a couple of inches and immediately
"bounces" back open.

Sounds like the auto-reverse adjustment is too sensitive. It's supposed to
reverse when it senses some resistance, like that of a car roof, but if it
is automatically reversing without hitting anything, either the adjustment
is out of whack (that you can fix), or the door and springs are way out of
balance (that requires a pro to fix).

To see if the door is out of balance, disconnect it from the opener and pull
it halfway down, then let go. Does it stay there? If so, it's ok. If it
goes up more than a few inches(as I'm guessing it will), the springs need to
be adjusted or replaced. Look at the size of those springs - do you want to
mess with them?