Garage door dead and you're already late? Work through these in order — the first four are free, take about five minutes total, and solve a real share of "broken" doors without a service call. Even ours.
The five-minute checklist
1. The lock button on the wall console
Most wall consoles have a lock/vacation button that disables every remote. It gets bumped, a grandkid presses it, and suddenly "the opener is broken." If remotes are dead but the wall button works — this is it. Hold the lock button a few seconds to release.
2. Power to the opener
Is the opener's light on? If not: check the outlet on the ceiling (plug something else in), the GFCI it may share with garage outlets, and the breaker. Storm surges trip garage circuits constantly here.
3. Remote batteries
Obvious, skipped anyway. If the keypad works but the visor remote doesn't — battery.
4. The safety sensor lights
Look at the two little eyes near the floor on each side of the door. Both lights solid: fine. One blinking or dark: they're misaligned or blocked, and the door won't close (it will usually still open). Gently straighten the blinking one until it goes solid, and clear cobwebs — Florida spiders love these.
When it's not you — the mechanical causes
The bang you heard: a broken spring
Opener hums or lifts a few inches and quits; the door feels like a piano to lift by hand; there's a visible gap in the spring above the door. This is the most common real failure and it needs a professional — here's how spring repair works and what it costs. Don't keep cycling the opener against a broken spring; that's how motors die alongside springs.
Motor runs, chain doesn't move
Classic stripped drive gear on chain-drive openers — a $95–$250 repair, or a sign it's time to run the repair-vs-replace math if the unit is 10+.
The door is visibly crooked
Stop. Don't cycle it again. That's an off-track door and every cycle makes it worse and more dangerous.
Frequently asked questions
Why won't my garage door open but the motor runs?
Two usual suspects: a stripped drive gear (motor spins, chain doesn't move) or a broken torsion spring (the opener starts, senses the door is far too heavy, and gives up). A loud bang from the garage at some point confirms the spring.
Why does my garage door only open a few inches then stop?
Usually a broken spring — the opener's force protection halts when the door weighs several times what it should. Occasionally it's a travel-limit or force setting. If you heard a bang or see a gap in the spring coil, it's the spring.
Why won't my garage door open after a power outage?
Check the breaker and any GFCI outlet the opener shares first. If power is fine, the surge may have scrambled the logic board — unplug the opener for 60 seconds and retry. Storm surges are the most common opener-killer in Central Florida; that's why battery backup models exist.
Why do my garage door remotes not work but the wall button does?
The lock/vacation button on the wall console is engaged, remote batteries are dead, or the remotes lost their programming after a power event. Check the lock button first — it's the culprit far more often than people expect.