Your garage door should only open and close on your command. A garage door opening by itself is a sign of a problem in its operating mechanism.
Your garage door opening without your command poses a significant security risk for you, your family, and your property. Intruders and animals can access your garage or house through the garage and cause substantial property damage or, even worse, harm you.
Below are some of the reasons why your garage door might open by itself.
A Defective Remote Control
One of the causes of a defective remote control could be old batteries that can remotely send random, signals causing your garage door to open by itself. You can start by replacing your batteries to see if that solves your problem.
Poor storage of your remote may cause the buttons on your remote to stick, leading to your garage door opening by itself. This is usually caused by dust or debris getting in the small spaces around the buttons. For example, when you hide your garage key in a flowerpot or under a rock. Clean your remote control in case of such.
Your remote control’s inner circuit board may also have incurred some damages causing it to send faulty signals caused by liquid spillage onto your remote control. In this case, you should consider replacing your remote control with a new one and sync it with the garage door.
Cross Frequency from Your Neighbor’s Remote Control
Your neighbor’s garage door remote control may have the same code as yours or sync to your garage door opener. Your motor may register your neighbor’s remote-control code when you’re setting it up and cause your garage door to open at the same time as theirs.
You can check with your neighbors to determine if this is the cause of your garage door opening or closing randomly. If this is the case, you should clear your motor’s memory to remove your remote code and that of your neighbor. Wait for a time when there is minimal or no interference in your neighborhood and re-sync your remote control using your garage door manual.
Blocked Safety Door Sensors
In 1993, the Safety Commission published rules for automatic garage door openers. Among them was the addition of the auto-reverse safety feature for your safety and your family members or friends.
Your garage door openings and motor are designed with sensors that detect an object in the closing path or a closing action resistance. This will cause the garage door to open automatically.
Small things such as leaves, dirt, or snow can block the sensors around your garage door. This will cause it not to shut completely. You should check your sensors for blockage and clean them in case of any.
Misalignment of the floor sensors can also cause your garage door to open randomly. A bump or bend in the beam or tracks could be the culprit or a blink in the wall panel can help you detect this.
You should realign your beams to have the sensors in the correct positions and check to see if the blinking has stopped.
Faulty Logic Board
The logic board, also known as the circuit board, controls the garage door’s opening and closing. Any damages it incurs may cause it to randomly send faulty signals to your garage door, causing it to open.
A power surge or lightning strike could be one of the causes of damage to your garage door’s logic board. You can turn the voltage into and out of your logic board in case you know how to. Otherwise, you can get a technician to do it.
Your logic board may also be old, causing it to slow down. Consider replacing it to avoid the security risk of your garage door opening by itself. You can also install a surge protector to help keep your logic board safe.
Conclusion
Apart from the ones mentioned above, you may find other reasons that cause your garage door to open by itself, such as radio interference from police radios or CB radios, faulty wiring, or incorrectly set force limits.
Always check things over to ensure your garage door is and continues to operate in good condition. You should get a maintenance guide for your garage door to help you in doing so.
You can do a DIY garage door repair for simple repairs such as stuck remote buttons. However, if the problem is more significant than you can tackle, you should seek professional help from an expert. The sooner you sort out your garage door problems, the better.