Inspecting and cleaning the photo-eye sensor on a garage door is like giving your team a little pep talk. Picture the garage door as a team. The opener acts like the brain, guiding the whole operation, while the springs play the muscle, doing the heavy lifting. Each part depends on the other to keep everything running smoothly.
These two are essential in the modern garage door, but remember that a garage door system does not only include these parts.
There is a law that requires homeowners with a garage to install a reverse safety mechanism in some states.
The mechanism will help you when you get trapped on a garage door.
Automatic garage doors have this feature and can be utilized by a sensor or the photo-eye.
Your garage door system must be safe and secure.
If in case, danger and harm occur, it will add stress and frustration to you.
Although the law itself does keep the people secure and safe, there will be fewer expenses since whatever is trapped underneath the garage door will not get harm entirely.
For more information, finish reading this guide.
What Is A Photo Eye?
A sensor or photo eye is 4-6 inches above the ground and can be found on the sides of garage doors.
They look like small boxes, facing each other with the lens, and the two create a beam between them.
When a moving object like a child or a car in between the two small boxes, the invisible beam will break.
Also, when the transmitter button gets pressed, the photo eyes can sense anything and will start to enable the reverse mechanism.
It will anticipate the door from shutting down and open it as the reverse state.
Apart from the fact, photo-eye is one essential part of your garage door system. You also need to maintain or keep its conservation.
Many companies are experts in fixing garage doors.
You can find the best ones in Mississauga, Markham, Newmarket, when it comes to garage door repair and Toronto.
Here is how you can clean and inspect the photo eye to keep them in shape and your garage door system operating efficiently.
How to Inspect and Clean Photo Eyes
Regularly checking the photo-eye and cleaning them when necessary is crucial to keep it operating correctly.
If the photo eyes system is misaligned, your garage door can work adequately, but the door will not close entirely.
It is the perfect habit always to test your photo-eye and make sure they do not have any problems functioning.
You can do this at least once or twice a month, such as checking them every beginning or end of the month.
You can follow this step to check your sensors.
When the garage door is open, try to close the door by hitting your transmitter.
Put an object between the photo eyes to break the invisible beam, and your garage door should be back up as it will reverse.
If the door does not do what it is supposed to do, inspect both the photo eyes as it can be misaligned.
Most commonly, photo eyes include indicator lights, and every sensor must have that.
When you notice that they flashed, it can because they are not correctly aligned.
But, if your photo-eyes does not have light indicators, manually examine the alignment.
You can use a tape measure to ensure that they are both on the same level.
A laser level will also come in handy to check if both sensors are appropriately aligned.
The garage door will not close when photo eyes are not aligned, but your garage door is operating efficiently.
garage door photo-eye Cleaning – Dirty Photo Eyes
Your photo eyes can be dirty when it does not reverse properly and just let the object pass through.
Always inspect if the sensors have dirt or dust.
Use a mild cleaner on a soft cloth to clean the lenses softly.
You can also opt for lens cleaner like a glass cleaner if you have one.
Just be very mindful to work slowly and avoid scratches.
After you finish cleaning, do a test run to see if it works.
If the issue is still going, try to call a garage door renovation technician to help you.
Let them see and inspect what is wrong.
Make sure you get a reliable company that can resolve the issue immediately and will also guide you on how to clean them.