Garage door opener is completely dead
No light, no sound: check the outlet and the breaker first. Opener repairs from $185.
Updated Oct 2026
Yes, by hand.
With the door down, pull the red release cord and lift it by hand. If it is heavy, stop: a spring may have broken too.
Three things to do now
- 1. Reset the outlet Ceiling outlets are often GFCI. Press reset.
- 2. Check the breaker And that the opener is plugged in.
- 3. Try the wall button If it works, the remotes are the problem.
Opener repair, from $185
Opener repairOpener repair
from $185Gear kit, logic board, limits or sensors
What can raise the price
- A logic board instead of a gear kit
- A part that has to be ordered for an older unit
- Sensor wiring that has to be rerun
Opener installation
from $620New opener with the battery backup California requires, installed and set up
What can raise the price
- Belt drive or a wall-mount unit instead of chain drive
- Wiring for the wall control or the sensors that has to be rerun
- A door out of balance, with the spring work priced separately
Opener questions
Why is my garage door opener completely dead?
Most often the power: a tripped GFCI outlet, a breaker or a loose plug. If the power is fine, the logic board has likely failed, often after a power surge. Chen Garage Door repairs openers in San Rafael and across Marin from $185, and new openers start from $620.
How do I reset a garage door opener?
Unplug it for a minute, or switch off its breaker, then restore power. Most openers restart and keep their settings. If it still does nothing, the logic board or the power supply in the unit has likely failed.
It died right after a power cut. Is that related?
Often. Boards fail after surges, and a power cut followed by reconnection is that kind of event. A new opener installed in California comes with battery backup, so it keeps working in the next outage.
