Here’s a simple, step-by-step guide to make sure your garage door opener is working safely and correctly.
Why the Safety Reverse Feature Matters
Garage doors weigh well over 100 pounds, and without a functioning safety reverse system, they can cause serious injury or damage. Modern openers are required to have:
- Mechanical reversal (door reverses when it hits an obstruction)
- Photo-eye sensors (door reverses when the beam is broken)
Testing both systems ensures your opener is compliant and safe.
How Often Should You Test It?
Most manufacturers recommend testing the safety reverse feature once a month. It only takes a few minutes and can prevent accidents.
Step-by-Step: How To Test the Mechanical Safety Reverse
1. Open the garage door fully
Start with the door in the open position so you can safely place an object underneath it.
2. Place a solid object under the door
Use something like a 2×4 piece of wood or a thick block. Avoid anything fragile or valuable.
3. Close the garage door using the wall button or remote
As the door closes, it should touch the object and immediately reverse direction.
If the door does not reverse: stop the opener immediately and schedule a professional inspection. This is a serious safety issue.
How To Test the Photo-Eye Sensors
1. Start with the door open
The sensors are located near the bottom of the tracks on both sides of the door.
2. Press the button to close the door
As the door begins to move, wave your hand or an object through the invisible beam between the sensors.
3. The door should reverse instantly
If the door continues closing, the sensors may be:
- Dirty
- Misaligned
- Disconnected
- Damaged
Clean the lenses and make sure both sensors are aligned with their indicator lights on. If the problem continues, call a technician.
Common Signs Your Safety System Isn’t Working
- The door closes and immediately reopens
- The opener light blinks repeatedly
- The door won’t close unless you hold the wall button
- The sensors have no lights or flickering lights
When To Call a Professional
If your garage door fails either safety test, it’s important to have it inspected right away. Problems with sensors, wiring, or opener force settings can be dangerous if ignored.
We offer full garage door repair, opener repair, and spring replacement services to keep your system safe and reliable.
Need help fast? Call us at (910) 584-6469.
All garage door openers should have a safety reverse feature. If the door hits an obstruction when closing, a sensor in the motor head unit should feel the resistance, stop trying to close the door and reverse the direction of travel and open the door completely.
This safety reverse feature is hidden inside the motor unit and works separately from the safety beam that goes across the bottom of the door.
The beams are easy to test, simply pass your foot in between the two sensors while the door is closing and if the door goes back up you know that they are working properly.
But that’s not what this article is about. This is about testing the internal sensor and that requires actually obstructing the travel of the door by placing something in it’s path and letting the door hit it.
If you have the owners manual you should refer to if for the manufacturers recommendation on testing the reverse, but most of them do it this way anyway.
Testing the reverse (pro-tip)
Get a 2×4 piece of wood and lay it on the ground in the center of the door on it’s edge. Push the button and let the door close down and hit the wood and prey that it doesn’t damage the door. Try not to break the glass in the top section doing this test.
If the door continues to close after contact with the wood, you have a dangerous door and someone could be trapped or killed if the door were to come down on a person.
If the door hits the obstructing, pushes against it with gentile pressure and then reverses, you will know that it’s safe. That’s what it should do.
If you determine that the opener is not reversing properly you will need to adjust (lower) the force settings on the motor head.