How do garage door safety sensors work?

Safety sensors are part of an automatic garage door system. Safety sensors can prevent automatic garage-door-related accidents, which can result in serious damage to your cars and injury or death to people or animals. Traditionally, garage door sensors were mechanical, with doors reversing due to physical contact with an object; however, now, modern sensors are widely used. But how do garage door safety sensors work?

Here is everything you need to know about garage door safety sensors and how they actually work.                                                                               

What do garage door safety sensors look like?

A garage door safety sensor is a small black box placed a few inches from the floor on either side of a garage door. Garage door safety sensors usually indicate that the units are turned on. 

How do garage door safety sensors work?

Garage door safety sensors are infrared photo-eye sensors placed on either side of the door. These two safety sensors create an invisible line across the garage door that detects when something is in the way, stops the garage door from closing and reverses its direction.

The safety features of garage door safety sensors make them a critical component of a working garage door, and you need to fix them as soon as you notice they’re not working.

How can you tell if your garage door safety sensors aren’t working?

As with any technology, garage door safety sensors can malfunction over time. You can usually tell something is wrong with the safety sensors if the garage door won’t close all the way, even if you can’t see anything in its path. The garage door may also bounce up and down rather than fully opening or closing. 

The light sensors should flash red to alert you to any issues, but it’s best to check your sensors if you notice your door acting strangely. The good news is that you can generally identify the problem yourself. 

Here are some reasons safety sensors stop working:

• Loose sensor wires
• Too much sun exposure
• Misaligned photo-eyes
• Dirty or wet photo-eyes

So, if your safety sensors have these issues and have stopped working, call a professional to repair or replace them.

Are you concerned about your garage door safety sensors? Contact Door Doctor for all your safety sensor problems today!

At Door Doctor, our garage door specialists are trained to address all garage door issues, including safety sensor problems. We are experts in handling garage door safety sensors and can diagnose issues from simple to complex and solve them quickly. If new parts are required, we’ll obtain them for you. 

So, whether you have a garage door problem or you want us to inspect and correct your safety sensors, call Door Doctor today!