Garage door stuck open or stuck closed
A garage door that will not move can be a simple opener problem or a dangerous spring, cable or track failure. Safe checks first, and when to stay clear.
A stuck door is either an opener or control problem, which is often simple, or a door problem, which can be dangerous. This guide helps you tell them apart from the floor, without moving a door that may be damaged.
Look first, and do not force a damaged door
Stop here if the door looks or sounds damaged
Do not operate the door, by remote, wall button, manual release or by hand, if you heard a bang, if it is crooked, off its track, hanging lower on one side, or if a spring has a gap or a cable is frayed or slack. Do not touch the springs, cables, brackets or the bottom fixtures. Stay clear, keep people and pets away, and have a technician inspect it. A stuck door with any of these signs is not a convenience problem.
Everything below is a look-and-listen check, plus simple opener and control checks that do not move the door by hand. If you cannot answer the first questions below with confidence, treat the door as damaged.
Sort the problem: opener or door?
Ask what happens when you press the wall button inside the garage.
| What you notice | Likely area | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Nothing at all, no light or sound from the opener | Power to the opener | Check the outlet and breaker, then see the power checks below |
| Wall button works, remote does not | Remote battery, lock setting or programming | See remote and keypad batteries |
| Opener lights flash or it beeps, and the door will not close | Safety sensors, an obstruction or a lock setting | See the sensor checks below |
| Motor runs or hums but the door does not move | Opener drive, or door too heavy or stuck | Stop. See opener hums, door will not move |
| A bang, then the door will not lift or lifts unevenly | Broken spring or cable | Stop. Do not operate the door. See signs a spring is broken |
| Door crooked, hanging on one side or out of the track | Off-track or cable failure | Stop. See garage door off its track |
| Door goes partway then reverses or stops | Travel limits, force settings, obstruction, balance | See opener reverses or stops partway |
What you can safely check
Do these only if the door shows none of the damage signs above.
- Look for sign of power. Chamberlain says a work light, diagnostic LED or wall control LED means the opener has power. If there is none, check that the opener is plugged into a working outlet with no switch or timer, and check the breaker. Chamberlain advises contacting a qualified electrician if power cannot be restored.
- Check the wall control for a lock setting. Chamberlain describes a lock mode that makes the opener ignore remotes. Check your model's manual for how to turn it off.
- Check for anything in the path of the safety sensors. Chamberlain says the sensors sit on each side of the door, no more than six inches above the floor. Look for objects, spiderwebs or a sensor that has been knocked out of line. Check your model's manual for what the sensor LEDs mean.
- Look at the sensors for strong sunlight. Chamberlain notes that sunlight hitting the receiving sensor can make the opener act as if the path is blocked.
- Try the wall button and a second remote, and note any lights that flash or beeps. Write down the pattern and your model number, and check your model's manual for what the pattern means.
- Look at the door itself from the floor: is it level, in its tracks, with intact springs and cables? If anything looks wrong, stop.
Chamberlain says that on some openers, lights flashing and a door that will not close come from the safety reversing sensors or the lock button. Realigning sensors is a screwdriver-and-wing-nut job, but the sensors must point at each other and the manual is the guide for your model. If you realign them, stand clear of the door while you test it.
Door stuck closed
A door that will not open can be an opener problem, a control problem or a door problem. If the opener has no power or the controls are ignoring commands, the door itself may be fine. If the motor runs and the door does not lift, or the door is heavy, crooked or noisy, the door is the suspect.
Many people think of the red emergency release cord as the first fix. It is not, until you know the door is undamaged. The release disconnects the opener, which leaves the door held only by its springs and cables. If a spring or cable has failed, a released door can be heavy and can fall. Genie advises pulling the release cord only when the door is in the closed position, and says that if the door is too heavy to lift manually, you should not open it manually and should contact a professional. For the safe order of steps, see how to use the garage door manual release safely.
A door that is stuck closed with a broken spring should not be forced. Lift cables and springs carry the weight, and DASMA calls springs the most important and most dangerous part of the door.
Door stuck open
A door that will not close is most often caught by the safety sensors, an obstruction, a lock setting or a travel or force setting. Chamberlain lists misaligned safety sensors as a common cause of a door not closing, and says an obstruction can make the door reverse, with the opener beeping and flashing its lights. It also says to keep the door in view until it is fully closed.
Do not lower an open door by hand if it feels heavy, drops, moves unevenly or looks crooked. Do not release the opener from an open door, because a door with a broken spring or a cable problem can fall. Do not increase the opener's force setting to push through. Chamberlain says never to increase force beyond the minimum needed to close the door and never to use force settings to compensate for a binding or sticking door.
If the door is stuck open and the opening is exposed, ask a technician to secure it. Do not stand or work under an open door whose springs or cables you have not checked.
When to stop and bring in a technician
- You heard a bang, or a spring has a gap, looks stretched or separated, or a cable is frayed, slack or off its drum.
- The door is crooked, hanging lower on one side, or out of its track.
- The motor runs but the door does not move, or the door is very heavy or drops.
- The door reverses or stops at the same spot every time and the sensors and obstructions are clear.
- You are not sure whether the problem is the opener or the door.
Our technicians inspect the door, confirm the cause first, and repair springs, cables, tracks, rollers, openers and sensors. See garage door repair, spring replacement, off-track door repair, safety sensor repair and opener repair. For a longer list of warning signs, see when a garage door is unsafe to use.
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Need a technician?
If something on your door looks damaged, stay clear and let a technician handle it.
Questions and answers
My garage door will not open. Should I pull the red cord?
Not until you have checked that the door is undamaged. Genie advises pulling the release cord only when the door is closed, and not lifting a door that is too heavy to lift manually. If you heard a bang or the door looks off, leave it alone.
Why won't my garage door close and the lights flash?
Chamberlain says flashing lights with a door that will not close usually come from the safety sensors or the lock button. Check for obstructions and sunlight on the sensors, and check your model's manual for what the flash pattern means.
The opener hums but the door doesn't move. What is wrong?
It can be an opener drive problem, but it can also be a broken spring making the door too heavy. Do not keep running it. See the opener hum guide and have a technician inspect the door.
Is it safe to force a stuck door up by hand?
No. If a spring or cable has failed, the door can be heavy and can fall, and the springs and cables hold dangerous tension. Stay clear and have a technician inspect it.
Can I raise the opener's force setting to get the door closed?
No. Chamberlain says never to increase force beyond the minimum needed to close the door, and not to use force settings to compensate for a binding door.
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