Garage Door Sensor Repair in Worcester, MA
Garage door goes down, then reverses back up? Lights on the opener blinking? The photo-eye safety sensors are the most common reason a garage door won't close. We align, rewire and replace them any hour.
How garage door safety sensors work
Two small photo-eyes sit a few inches off the floor on each side of the door. One sends an invisible beam and the other receives it. If anything breaks the beam while the door is closing, whether a child, a pet or a bike, the opener reverses. They've been required on residential openers since the 1990s and are a critical safety feature.
Common sensor problems
- Misalignment: a bumped bracket knocks one eye off target, often by a car, a bin or a kick
- Dirty lenses or cobwebs blocking the beam
- Direct sunlight hitting the receiving eye at certain times of day
- Damaged low-voltage wire chewed, stapled through or corroded
- Failed sensor after years of moisture and temperature swings
Quick checks you can do
- Look at the small LED on each sensor. Both should be steady, not blinking or off
- Wipe both lenses with a soft cloth
- Make sure nothing is in the beam's path, and the brackets aren't bent
- To close the door in the meantime, press and hold the wall button until it's fully down, and watch it the whole way
What we do
We realign and secure the brackets, test and repair or replace the wiring, replace failed sensors with compatible units, then check the opener's force and travel settings and run a full auto-reverse test. If the opener itself is the problem, see opener repair.