Garage Door Troubleshooting

Questions and Answers

Craftsman garage door opener troubleshooting tips?
I just installed a new gear & sprocket assembly since the old drive gear was totally chewed up. The problem I’m having is that when I run the opener, the sprocket will make a clockwise cycle but will immediately do a counter-clockwise cycle in the same distance. I’ve done it without the chain and with the chain and it’s the exact same thing either way. That is what happened initially before I changed the gear & sprocket assembly; the door was just opened 3/4 of the way and then wouldn’t move at all (because of the chewed up drive gear). Now with the chain attached to the sprocket, the door moves a few inches up and then back down to where it started from. Nothing is obstructing the sensors because the lights don’t blink when this happens and when I deliberately stepped into the sensor, the lights do blink. Any help/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Update: Not sure how to answer to the replies I receive on this, but firstly thank you to all that have replied.

I tried adjusting the force and amount of travel but nothing happens. When I replaced the old drive gear, I also replaced the worm gear and all associated parts (bearings, etc.). I didn’t know until afterward that they sell just that part that I needed; instead I bought the whole assembly and assumed I had to change it all. Nothing was broken or stripped anywhere throughout. All wires were fine & plugged back into their proper spots. After the repair, the door is moving whereas it wasn’t before; it’s stuck in the same position that it broke in. It will move up a few inches & back down to where it was, making the overall movement zero. This will happen w/o the chain attached as well. Obviously the door won’t move since it’s not attached at that point, but the sprocket will go clockwise 1 turn & then immediately counter clockwise.

Posted by Romel

Admin: You mentioned the light sensors that stop the door from closing when something is in the way, but I didn’t read anything about the limit stops on the overhead guide rail. If those are OK, then you need to look in the manual to adjust the travel.

Update – Now that you know the door is sticking, you need to check the rollers, track, hinges, assist springs and any other place it might be binding. That is probably what stripped out your gear assembly to begin with. Get the door working manually before you attache the automatic opener.

 

1/2 hp craftsman garage door opener troubleshooting?
I have a 1/2 hp opener and all the motor will do is hum when the switch is depressed.
All the lights work, the motor just does not lift the door.
Update: Door moves fine with out the motor  motor will not drive chain.

Posted by HD

Admin: Yep. it’s the gears. if you don’t want to wait, many door companies stock the replacement set. we make lots of money replacing those gears. god bless sears lol. one little hint: you don’t have to replace all the gears. just the big one that is stripped. leave the smaller gear on the motor shaft alone. it doesn’t wear out like the bigger flat one. for the bigger flat one, you can just remove the assembly from the top. 3 (5/16″) screws, remove a tiny gear at the bottom of the shaft, and it slides right up and out. try to mark the chain where it sat on the sprocket, use a paper clip or small wire) so you won’t have too much trouble resetting your travel limits. if the unit is more than 5 yrs old, i would actually recommend repairing it rather than replacing. I’m seeing a lot of shoddy work and weak electronics in the latest openers from them. (you just can’t sell the cheapest opener on the market without cutting corners somewhere)