Take It to the Limit

You're probably wondering why I would stand on a stepladder in the garage to read. There is a logical explanation.

The garage door opener had been giving us trouble lately, but only when closing. The door would sometimes go all the way down, pause, and then open. We managed to close it each time, after several attempts, but it was a nuisance, so I dug out the manual today and proceeded to fix it.

First I did a little maintenance -- lubricating the moving parts -- and then I moved on to the techie stuff. It didn't take me long to figure out the problem. The limit switch that shuts off the motor when the door bottom meets the floor is clamped to the overhead rail by a single screw. The screw had vibrated loose and the switch had moved, so the motor wasn't getting the stop signal. When the resistance to movement increases beyond a certain (adjustable) level, the control logic assumes that this is caused by an object or person blocking the door and reverses the motor.

It was a simple job to move the limit switch back to its correct location and tighten the locking screw. Note that I didn't even bother to wear my tool belt for this one!

Take It To The Limit