In this blog entry, the expert Chicago garage door repair service team here at Garage Door Repair Chicago will detail the function of garage door safety sensors, and how to repair misaligned sensors.
What exactly are garage door sensors?
Garage door sensors detect if an object crosses their path, like a car, person, pet, or object. then the system will automatically reopen the garage door. garage door sensors operate using two photo eyes that separate an infrared line across the horizontal opening of the garage a few inches higher than the ground. one of these photo eyes transmit information. injury or car damage caused by a garage door and are actually legally required in the United States.
What are the signs of misaligned garage door sensors?
- If your garage door properly opens but does not close
- If your garage door close regardless of an obstruction under the garage door or between the garage door sensors
- If the garage sensors have visibly dirty sensors
- If there are damaged wires attached to the garage sensors
- If when you press your garage remote there is a red flashing light
What is the process of aligning your garage door sensors?
- First, disconnect the power to your garage and pull the plug for your automatic garage door opener. Look for the garage fuse in your breaker box – and make sure to wear electricity resistant gloves
- Loosen the screws on the mounting brackets holding the garage sensors in place. Don’t remove the screws, just unscrew them enough so that the sensors can be moved – test that it can do so by sliding the mounting brackets up and down
- Slide the garage sensors down as low as they can go without totally loosening the screws so they come out – use your hands to do this, not a wrench, which can damage things
- Attach a string that is a few inches longer than your garage opening width to one sensor and mounting bracket, firmly. Then stretch the string across your garage and tie it to the opposite sensor. Make sure that the string is laying totally level – use a level tool to determine this. If it isn’t move the mounting brackets so that the string is perfectly level
- Tighten the garage screws in the brackets. Test that they are adequately tight by moving the garage sensors out of place – if they don’t move, the screws are tight enough. If they do move, level the sensor string again, and screw them again.
- Then remove the string, reconnect the garage power, and test the garage sensors again. If they still don’t work, contact our expert garage door sensor repair team
