Garage door opener won't close
 

The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 24, 10:34*am, Andy wrote:
The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

Maybe the switch is bad.

Does it work with a remote? You could try unhooking the wires from the
switch and tapping them together to simulate the pressing of the
switch.

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 24, 9:34*am, Andy wrote:
The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

That certainty sounds like a sensor problem. Clean the lenses, check
the alignment, check the wires. There are usually LED lights on them
to show they are aligned and working.

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 24, 11:32*am, Eric in North TX wrote:
On Aug 24, 9:34*am, Andy wrote:

The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

That certainty sounds like a sensor problem. Clean the lenses, check
the alignment, check the wires. There are usually LED lights on them
to show they are aligned and working.

Thanks

I will try to see if I can find a repair manual for it.

Andy

Garage door opener won't close
 

"Andy" wrote in message
...
The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

There are sensors that shut off the motor when it reaches a certain point of
travel. These are mechanical switches on top of the track, or an internal
one that adjusts with a + or - symbol over a plastic screw. Get on a
ladder, and work the door. Watch it travel, and look for the limit
switches, as they are called. They are simple metal tabs on top of a box
about one inch square. Once you get up there, if they are there, you will
spot them, just look towards the ends of the track about a foot in. One may
be boogered up. They hold to the track with a simple screw, and that is all
that is necessary to move one to the proper place where it will stop either
the up or down of the door.

Steve

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 24, 3:30*pm, "SteveB" wrote:
"Andy" wrote in message

...

The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

There are sensors that shut off the motor when it reaches a certain point of
travel. *These are mechanical switches on top of the track, or an internal
one that adjusts with a + or - symbol over a plastic screw. *Get on a
ladder, and work the door. *Watch it travel, and look for the limit
switches, as they are called. *They are simple metal tabs on top of a box
about one inch square. *Once you get up there, if they are there, you will
spot them, just look towards the ends of the track about a foot in. *One may
be boogered up. *They hold to the track with a simple screw, and that is all
that is necessary to move one to the proper place where it will stop either
the up or down of the door.

Steve

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Garage door opener won't close
 

"Mint" wrote in message
...
On Aug 24, 3:30 pm, "SteveB" wrote:
"Andy" wrote in message

...

The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

There are sensors that shut off the motor when it reaches a certain point
of
travel. These are mechanical switches on top of the track, or an internal
one that adjusts with a + or - symbol over a plastic screw. Get on a
ladder, and work the door. Watch it travel, and look for the limit
switches, as they are called. They are simple metal tabs on top of a box
about one inch square. Once you get up there, if they are there, you will
spot them, just look towards the ends of the track about a foot in. One
may
be boogered up. They hold to the track with a simple screw, and that is
all
that is necessary to move one to the proper place where it will stop
either
the up or down of the door.

Steve

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.

Steve

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.

Steve


BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor to
be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 24, 7:40*pm, Oren wrote:
On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:



The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. *On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.

Steve

BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor to
be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

I saw in the manual about the effect of sun on the sensers.

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too.

Andy

Garage door opener won't close
 

Mint | 2009-08-25 | 8:20:14 AM wrote:

On Aug 24, 7:40*pm, Oren wrote:
On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. *On mine,
there are certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it
that it will not close but do the up and down thing until you
stand in front of the sun and shade it.

BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor
to be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

I saw in the manual about the effect of sun on the sensers.

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too.

Consider swapping the sender and receiver, so the receiver is in the
shade. If your opener is picky about which one is on which wire, swap
the wires at the screw-downs on the opener.

--
Steve Bell
New Life Home Improvement
Arlington, TX USA

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 25, 9:20*am, Mint wrote:
On Aug 24, 7:40*pm, Oren wrote:





On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. *On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.

Steve

BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor to
be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

I saw in the manual about the effect of sun on the sensers.

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too.

Andy- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too

You mean they don't have sun in the hood?

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 25, 10:39*am, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Aug 25, 9:20*am, Mint wrote:



On Aug 24, 7:40*pm, Oren wrote:

On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.

I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.

Should be a simple repair.

Andy

Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. *On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.

Steve

BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor to
be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

I saw in the manual about the effect of sun on the sensers.

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too.

Andy- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too

You mean they don't have sun in the hood?

Houston, Texas has more than enough sun and humidity. :-)
We could use some full solar eclipses right now.

Andy

Garage door opener won't close
 

"Van Chocstraw" Safety? A kid can hold
the button down and
crush the dog or a baby. The whole thing is idiotic.

Seconded. I was never worried about the cat being dumb enough to be
squished. The moment the door begins to move the cat is sprinting for the
stream in the back 40. A kid, on the other hand, sure it'll just stand
there, but since human larvae are never allowed on my property it's not an
issue.

Garage door opener won't close
 

"Van Chocstraw" wrote in message
...


I put my sensors above the door. That way I don't kick them any more when
walking by in the dark. Safety? A kid can hold the button down and crush
the dog or a baby. The whole thing is idiotic.

I thought of doing something like that also. Then I decided to mount them
about 18 to 24 inches off the floor. High enough that if my car or truck
did not go all the way in the garage maybe the sensors would see them. The
car is not much of a problem,but my truck only has about a foot or so of
space in the front or back..

Garage door opener won't close
 

Ralph Mowery wrote:
"Van Chocstraw" wrote in message
...

I put my sensors above the door. That way I don't kick them any more when
walking by in the dark. Safety? A kid can hold the button down and crush
the dog or a baby. The whole thing is idiotic.

I thought of doing something like that also. Then I decided to mount them
about 18 to 24 inches off the floor. High enough that if my car or truck
did not go all the way in the garage maybe the sensors would see them. The
car is not much of a problem,but my truck only has about a foot or so of
space in the front or back..


I had to buy a short-wheelbase minivan, because the long ones would have
come within 3" of the closed door....

--
aem sends...

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Tue, 25 Aug 2009 18:25:59 -0400, Van Chocstraw
wrote:

I put my sensors above the door. That way I don't kick them any more
when walking by in the dark. Safety? A kid can hold the button down and
crush the dog or a baby. The whole thing is idiotic.

One company has developed sensors in the main unit (opener/operator).
No need for sensors, anywhere on the walls. Dogs and children are
protected.

"When purchased with a new Martin door, openers are automatically
upgraded to Soft-Touch Reverse Technology™ which eliminates the need
for photo eyes.**"

I'm biased about this company, purchased and use the door - with an
old opener. I'm happy!

http://martindoor.com/Garage-Doors-O...r-Openers.aspx

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 25, 5:25*pm, Van Chocstraw
wrote:
Mint wrote:
On Aug 24, 7:40 pm, Oren wrote:
On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:09:02 -0600, "SteveB"
wrote:

The red light in the door sensor is blinking.
I found a manual and found out that the red LED blinks when the
sensors are not aligned.
The LED is supposed to be on all the time.
Should be a simple repair.
Andy
Damn funny what an instruction manual can tell you. *On mine, there are
certain times of the day when sunlight shines on it that it will not close
but do the up and down thing until you stand in front of the sun and shade
it.
Steve
BTDT. From the door rail to the inside wall corners is about 18-20
inches on both of my garage doors. The single door facing west gets
serious sun at triple digits much of the summer.

An installer, suggested placing a wooden block on the wall, same
height, but closer to the corner wall. This would allow the sensor to
be in a shaded location and not have it bothered by the sun.

In my case I had new sensors put in. So far no problem with sun or
heat. We placed them at the original location, but they are better
sensors.

I saw in the manual about the effect of sun on the sensers.

Putting a "hood" around the senser might work too.

Andy

I put my sensors above the door. That way I don't kick them any more
when walking by in the dark. Safety? A kid can hold the button down and
crush the dog or a baby. The whole thing is idiotic.

I would think that the installer would install the switch high enough
so kids can't reach it.

I know a lot of kids with more "snap" than a lot of adults. :-)

Andy

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 07:34:07 -0700 (PDT), Andy
wrote:

The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

Holding the button blocks the sensor. So you have something
wrong with the sensor, something is really blocking it (small spiders
are really good at that) or there is a wiring problem.


The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

Garage door opener won't close
 

On Aug 27, 7:25*am, wrote:
On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 07:34:07 -0700 (PDT), Andy

wrote:
The garage door at my mother's house has an intermittent problem.

Sometimes it won't close. If I hold the button down, the door will go
down but when I let go of the bottom it starts going back up.

There isn't anything blocking the sensor.

* * * * Holding the button blocks the sensor. *So you have something
wrong with the sensor, something is really blocking it (small spiders
are really good at that) or there is a wiring problem.



The garage door opener is a Genie screw drive type that is about 15
years old.

What can I look for to diagnose the problem.

Thanks.

That applies if you are in front of the sensor when you are pressing
the button.
I ended up fixing the problem by realigning the sensors.

The garage did some setting on one side and got them out of alignment.

Andy

Andy