How to Open Garage Door With No Power

Powered garage door openers are nifty devices for preventing homeowners from prying the doors open in bad weather or having to manually open and close heavy gates every time they enter or leave the house. However, inevitably, these components become ineffective during power cuts. When no electricity flows to the door opener, it can’t oversee the door movement and open. This makes it highly important to learn how to manually open your automated garage door when the lights go out.

What you should know about this situation is how to bypass the system by disconnecting it from the electrical carriage while still sustaining it on the track. And when the electricity is on again, you must reconnect the door for further smooth automated operation.

We asked an expert, an employee of A Plus Garage Doors, for his opinion. The manual door opening process differs depending on whether you have stuck inside the garage or want to drive the car into it from outside. 

Opening the Garage Door from Outside

So, if you have just arrived at your palace and found out there’s no electricity, abide by the following steps to open the garage door manually and drive in:

1. Spot the emergency release lock, and always have the key with you. The lock must be near the garage head. Normally, it is made to blend in the garage, but it is between the middle and close to the top of the door. As for the keys, they are recommended to have with you in the car for such scenarios.
2. Now, insert the key into the lock and remove the tumbler to put the release mechanism to work.
3. Raise the doors with the handle on the lower part of the door til they don’t move upwards anymore. Note that if you open the garage door halfway, it can slide back anytime. 
4. Get into the garage and drive in the vehicle. Now, pull the door shut manually again. The same release key can be used for the inside lock, too.

However, if you don’t have the emergency key and are outside the shut garage, you can still get in using the tool kit you carry in your car for emergencies. Just find a hooked prince of metal and thread it through the small opening in the garage. Feel for the emergency release handle and pull down hard on it.

Opening the Garage Door from Inside

Suppose you have urgent tasks outdoors, but your garage doors have shut down due to a power outage. How can you open it? See a full guideline here:

1. Starts with unplugging the automatic door opener. Look for it at the bottom of the trolley track, right on the ceiling. Unplugging the cord from the mechanism will disengage the door from its automatic track.
2. Pull the emergency cord to separate the door from its automatic opener. It is a red handle with a string on the trolley track. Look for it above the door. Once you find it, pull the handle slowly (an abrupt or forceful pulling may lead to its snapping off) till you hear a clicking sound. If you still can’t pull the cord, there’s a possibility that you haven’t closed the door completely. Check if it’s really securely closed, and try pulling the handle again.
3. Hold the lower edge of the door and raise it upwards vertically. A disengaged automatic opener makes it possible to open the garage door manually. Hold it firmly and raise it straight upward along the trolley track until it is fully open.
4. Don’t leave the opened garage door unattended for long, as it has no safety features that would prevent it from closing suddenly. Even a strong gust of wind can close it automatically.
5. When you have driven the car, slide the door to the floor entirely. For this, lower the door carefully until it contacts the ground and never slam or leave it to fall by itself. Don’t worry about lifting automatically, as its weight will keep the door closed.
6. Finally, lock the door with the manual lock and key. Note that the door’s locking mechanism won’t work when the automatic opener is no longer operating. Instead, there’s a metal lock to use and secure the door. Move the metal bolt sideways, which will be secured to the track rail. If there’s no manual lock, you can tighten the roller and the door with a C-clamp, again preventing it from getting opened.

Wrapping Up

If, in any stage of opening a garage door manually, it gets jammed, it’s essential to call for professional help. Otherwise, if the door is unstuck and suddenly falls because of a garage door pulley or faulty springs, you and your surrounding areas and the door can be exposed to severe damage. Luckily, several reliable companies in Canada can rush to help with closed doors even if the electricity is shut.