Why Won't My Garage Door Open?
Work through the causes in this order: power and remote batteries, the lock button on the wall console, the disengaged trolley (red cord), then the serious mechanical suspects — a broken spring (loud bang, door too heavy to lift), a stripped opener gear (motor runs, nothing moves), or a snapped cable (door crooked). The first three are safe to check yourself; the last three need a technician.
Check the boring things first (two minutes, no tools)
- Power: is the opener's light on? Garage outlets are often on a GFCI circuit — check for a tripped reset button on nearby outlets, and check the breaker panel.
- Remote batteries: try the wall button. If the wall button works and remotes don't, it's batteries or programming, not the door.
- The lock button: most wall consoles have a lock/vacation button that disables remotes. Toddlers and elbows find it constantly. Hold or toggle it and try again.
- The red cord: if someone pulled the emergency release, the opener runs but the door stays put. With the door DOWN, pull the cord toward the door to re-engage, then run the opener.
The door opens a few inches and stops
This pattern usually means the opener is hitting its force limit against a door that has become too heavy — and the leading reason a door suddenly 'gains weight' is a broken or badly fatigued spring. Look at the spring(s) on the shaft above the door: a clean gap in the coils confirms it. A second possibility is a binding roller or a track obstruction; look for anything wedged in the tracks (brooms and shovels are repeat offenders).
If a spring is broken, stop there — see our guide on what to do when a spring breaks, and don't keep cycling the opener.
The motor runs but the door doesn't move
If the trolley (the shuttle on the rail) moves but the door stays down, the trolley is disengaged — re-engage with the red cord as above. If nothing moves at all while the motor hums, the opener's drive gear has likely stripped: a very common failure on older chain-drive units, often after weeks of straining against a poorly balanced door. Gear kits are a standard, economical repair on most openers; see garage door opener repair.
The door is crooked or jammed
A tilted door means one side has lost its lift — a snapped cable or a failed spring on one side. This is a stop-immediately situation: continuing to run a racked door bends tracks and pops rollers out. Keep everyone clear and call a technician; describe which side sagged and whether you can see a hanging cable.
When it's safe to DIY and when it isn't
Safe: batteries, GFCI resets, the lock button, re-engaging the trolley, clearing debris from tracks, wiping sensor lenses. Not safe: anything touching springs, cables, bottom brackets, or drums, and any attempt to force a jammed or crooked door. The dividing line is tension — if a part is under spring load, it belongs to the technician.
In the Las Vegas Valley, GRC Garage Doors will happily triage by phone at 702-758-4397 — describe what the door is doing and we'll tell you honestly whether it needs a visit.
Related questions
My door won't open only on cold mornings. Why?
Cold stiffens lubricant and contracts metal; a door that's marginal — worn rollers, aging springs, high opener force sensitivity — shows it first on cold mornings. A tune-up usually resolves it, and it's worth doing before the marginal part fails outright.
Power is out and I need to leave. How do I open the door?
With the door fully closed, pull the red release cord and lift the door by hand — a healthy, balanced door lifts easily and stays up. If it's very heavy, stop: that's a spring problem, not a power problem. This is also the argument for battery-backup openers in outage-prone summer weather.
Need this handled? See garage door repair in Las Vegas or call 702-758-4397.