All My Garage Door Openers Have Stopped Working – What Can Cause This?

Garage door openers not working. A few days ago all of our remote garage door openers stopped working. It has happened all of a sudden, all transmitters stopped working at the same time. Both my handheld garage door opener transmitter and the one that is built into my car do not work. I thought maybe the transmitters needed to be reprogrammed. I reprogrammed the transmitters but that did not work. The garage door opener still works as it opens when I use the button wired directly to it in the garage. I know for sure that the transmitters are programmed correctly but still don’t work. My garage door opener is a Liftmaster 1/2 HP opener.

The most common reason for a garage door remote transmitter to stop working is a dead battery. However, if ALL the garage door openers stop working at the same time, then most likely the garage door antenna is not attached properly or the garage door opener itself needs to be reset. You can try to simply unplug the garage door opener from the wall for 30 seconds and see if that resets it.

Here is what to check when all garage door transmitters stop working at same time:

1. Be sure nothing (such as a tree hanging over the garage) is blocking the transmitter signal from opening the garage door.
2. Test or replace all batteries in handheld remote garage door transmitter(s) and built in car garage door openers.
3. Check that the antenna on your garage door opener is securely attached and working.
4. Try reprogramming/resetting all remote garage door transmitters.
5. If all above test or check good, then reset or reprogram your garage door opener.

Garage Door Opener SMART or LEARN Button Location

Here is how to reset reprogram a garage door opener on LIFTMASTER, CHAMBERLAIN, SEARS:

1. Press and release the SMART or LEARN button on the garage door opener motor. (Located on the actual garage door opener mounted on the ceiling)
2. The SMART or LEARN indicator light will illuminate for 30 seconds. (The LEARN button is on the motor head next to the wire terminal strip)
3. Press and hold the button on the garage door hand held remote control while the SMART or LEARN button is illuminated.
4. When the motor light begins to blink, let go of the button on your garage door hand held remote control.
5. The garage door opener has now been reset and has learned the new code.
6. If your garage door opener does not have light bulbs, you will hear 2 clicks to confirm the opener has been reset.

SMART button on LIFTMASTER garage door opener

NOTE: If your garage door has a keypad you will need to enter a 4 digit PIN number after you press the SMART or LEARN button and the light is illuminated. After entering the 4 digit PIN, press and hold the ENTER button. Let go of the button once you see the garage door motor light blink. The garage door opener has now learned the new code.

How To Easily Reset Your Garage Door Code

Garage Door Opener Parts and Accessories

Need assistance with troubleshooting your garage door opener? Please leave your question below and we will be happy to assist.

Written by Keith Schneerer

Certified Appliance Tech · Founder, RemoveAndReplace.com

Keith has spent 28 years repairing machines, starting as a military mechanic and later maintaining food processing equipment before moving into appliance repair. He founded RemoveAndReplace.com to share field-tested repair advice.

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