My garage door opener suddenly stopped working the other day. At first, I thought it might just need new batteries in the remote but replacing them didn’t help. After inspecting the opener unit attached to the ceiling, I noticed the gear that turns the door was making a grinding noise. It seemed like the plastic gear inside had cracked.
Rather than calling a professional for a simple garage door opener repair in Chesapeake, I decided to see if I could fix it myself with some basic tools since I’m fairly handy. After watching a few YouTube videos, I realized replacing the gear is actually quite easy as long as you have the right sized wrenches.
The first step was removing the old gear. I had to detach the chain/belt that connects the motor to the gear using an adjustable wrench. Then I took out a few screws attaching the gear housing cover with a Phillips head screwdriver to expose the cracked gear inside. The old gear popped right out once I wiggled it loose.
I ordered a replacement plastic gear online for about $15 with prime shipping so I could get it fixed quickly. The new gear slides right into place where the old one was. Reattaching the cover and chain was equally straightforward.
The hardest part was figuring out how to reset the motor so it would run properly with the new gear installed. I had to manually rotate the motor shaft a few full revolutions in the right direction to get it calibrated. This involved sticking a flathead screwdriver into a small hole on the side of the motor case and turning carefully.
After putting it all back together, I tested it out and was excited to see the opener working like new! The whole repair took me less than an hour with simple tools I already had at home. I was impressed at how affordable and easy garage door opener repairs can be with a bit of DIY know-how.
For simple issues like replacing broken gears or remotes, I’d recommend giving it a try yourself rather than calling a professional right away. Just follow guides online and take your time. Major problems like a damaged motor or track would still need a technician’s help of course. But for small fixes, having basic tools and ability to tinker can save money versus a service call. Now I know if anything minor ever goes wrong with my garage door opener again, I have the skills to handle it myself.
Clyde is a highly creative and dedicated person with an entrepreneurial spirit. He is always looking for ways to help people, whether it be contributing to their success or just making them laugh. His commitment is demonstrated through the dedication he has put into all of his work so far, which includes writing business blogs for various companies as well as running his own blog on Medium. He loves reading books about how other people became successful entrepreneurs like himself; he finds inspiration from these stories and hopes to make a positive impact on others’ lives too!
