LiftMaster has some of the most reliable garage door openers on the market. They offer quality and represent the best in innovation. Additionally, the openers come with easy-to-install wall-mounted units to get you up and running in no time.
However, like any machine or component, the wall-mounted units can sometimes fail. When this happens, and you find your Liftmaster wall control not working, knowing how to diagnose and fix the problem can save you some headaches and costs.
This article looks at the common causes of Liftmaster wall control units not working. It also provides possible solutions for each problem.
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Why is my Liftmaster wall control not working?
Your Liftmaster wall control unit may not work due to a loose connection at the garage door opener’s motor unit terminal, power issues, damaged cables between the motor unit and the wall control, a problem with the cabling in the wall, or a faulty wall control unit.
Read along to learn how to diagnose the problem for each of these causes and how to fix them.
Power problem
Your garage door opener, like any electronic device in your home, requires power to operate. This means a problem with the power supply system will prevent the unit from functioning.
If the wall control is not working, the problem might be related to a power supply issue. A power problem can occur at various points in the supply system, so you will need to test these various points to determine where the issue is.
If you have a bad power outlet, the entire garage door opener will not receive power, and your Liftmaster wall control device will not work.
What to do
You will need to work backward when diagnosing the power problem in your Liftmaster garage door opener. Here are the steps to follow.
Step 1. Check for power on the wall control
To diagnose the problem at the wall control unit, check for light. The electronic display or LED on the unit should be turned on if it is receiving power.
If you determine that the LED light on the wall control is on, your problem is elsewhere and not related to a power supply issue.
Step 2. Check for power on the motor unit
If the LED light on the wall control is off, proceed and check the motor unit of your garage door opener for power. To do this, press the Learn button on the unit and observe what happens.
The light should come on after you press the Learn button if the motor unit is receiving power.
However, if nothing happens when you press the button, it could mean the circuit breaker needs resetting, or you have a bad power outlet.
Step 3. Reset the circuit breaker
Head over to your home’s circuit breaker box and locate the circuit breaker knob for the electrical outlet supplying your garage door opener with power. Turn it off and on again to reset it.
Sometimes you will find that the breaker is tripped, which will be the most likely cause of your garage door problem. Un-tripping the circuit breaker should restore power to your garage door opener.
However, if the breaker is not tripped, look around your garage for a GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter) outlet. The GFCI outlet is an electrical device typically installed in the home’s power supply system or built into an electrical cord to protect against severe electrical shocks.
You may have to check all the outlets in the garage and utility closets for this component if you are unsure where it is located. Once you locate it, press the reset button. This should restore power to your opener.
Step 4. Test the garage door opener’s power supply outlet
The final place to look if all three steps do not fix your power problem is the outlet itself. Simply unplug the garage door opener from the outlet and plug in a small electrical appliance that you know is working, such as a lamp.
If the outlet has got power, the lamp will light up. The solution, in this case, will depend on whether the test appliance gets power or not.
- Replace the logic board on the garage door opener unit if the power outlet works, lighting up the test lamp.
- Have an electrician repair the outlet if it does not work, failing to light up the test lamp.
2. A loose connection
Sometimes the problem is a simple connection that has come loose. The cables linking the wall control and the opener’s motor unit connect each component at a specific terminal.
If the wires come loose at any of these terminals, signals will not be transmitted between the two coordinating components, and the wall control will not work.
All you have to do in such a case is reconnect the loose connection to fix the problem.
What to do
If your initial diagnosis in the previous step indicated that the motor unit or the wall control has power, a loose connection might be responsible for the malfunction.
Go ahead and inspect the wiring terminals for both the motor unit and the wall control.
- Start by checking the wire connection terminal on the motor unit. The white cable should connect to the white terminal, while the white and red line is connected to the red terminal on the motor unit.
- Touch each wire to ensure it is securely connected to the terminal and that no end has a loose connection.
- Next, go to the wall control unit and check the wires attaching it to the control unit. The all-white cable and the white cable with a red stripe should both be securely attached to the logic board on the wall control component.
- If any screw attaching the wires to the wall control unit has come loose, it may be causing the problem. Reconnect it using its screwdriver or recommended tightening mechanism to secure it back in place.
- If the problem was related to a loose cable connection, your garage should work well after securing the wires in place.
3. Damaged or broken wires
While your Liftmaster garage door opener comes with durable components, physical impact or contact with physical objects can damage or break the wires connecting the wall control to the motor unit.
When this happens, the damage or breakage can unlink the two components. So, if a loose connection is not the culprit, damaged cables might be responsible.
Most installations feature cables with a visible path that you can follow from the motor unit to the wall control.
If your garage door opener has such a connection with a visible path, follow it with your eyes to see if there is noticeable damage in the connecting wires. Check for any worn parts or damaged cables that might affect the wall control.
If you don’t see any visible damage on the visible parts, don’t rule out the possibility of damaged wires until you test them.
The installation should have parts of the wires hidden inside the garage walls or hard-to-reach areas that you cannot visually inspect. If the cables are broken inside the wall, you will not see the damage, but it will still affect your garage door opener.
Your option will be to test the wires in the wall based on whether the wall control has a digital display or an LED light.
Test 1: Wall control with an LED
- Use a screwdriver to remove the wall control unit from the wall.
- Once you access the back of the wall control unit, disconnect the wires using a screwdriver or any tool recommended in your user manual.
- Once the wires are free from the wall control unit, test them by touching their bare ends together. Touching these wires is safe because the unit has a voltage circuit.
- The garage door opener should move if the wires in the wall are okay because touching the wires simulates pushing the door opener’s activation button on your wall control unit.
If the garage door moves upon touching the wires, the cabling in the wall is not damaged, but the wall control unit is bad. Replace it to solve the problem.
If the garage door does not move upon touching the bare ends of the two wall control wires together, you have damaged or broken wires in the wall.
Follow this procedure to check the wiring problem.
- Remove the wires from their corresponding terminals in the motor unit.
- Use a jumper wire to bypass the existing wall control wires. A three-inch strand of insulated cable should be suitable as a jumper wire, so cut a three-inch strand of wire with insulation to use for this purpose.
- Strip half an inch of insulation from each end of your jumper cable.
- Insert one bare end of the three-inch jumper wire into the red terminal on the motor unit and the other bare end into the white terminal.
- Observe to see if the garage door moves once you insert both ends of the jumper wire into the two wall control terminals on the motor unit.
If your garage door moves upon inserting the jumper wire into the terminals, the wall control wiring has a break. Replace the wall control wires in the walls to resolve the problem.
If using the jumper cable does not move the garage door, you probably have a malfunctioning logic board on your garage door opener’s motor unit.
You could replace the logic board on your own or have a technician do it for you.
Test 2: Other wall control types
If your garage door opener has a wall control with a digital display and any other design, follow these steps to test the cables in the walls.
- Start by unscrewing and pulling the wall control unit from the garage wall.
- Once you have access to the back of the unit, use a screwdriver to disconnect the white and white wire with a red strip from the back.
- Head over to the motor unit and disconnect the two wall control wires from their respective red and white terminals on the motor unit.
- Instead of a single strand of three-inch jumper wire, find a short piece of two-strand test wire to connect the wall control unit directly to the motor unit. This will help you bypass the existing wall control wires suspected to be faulty.
- Strip about half an inch of insulation from the ends of each strand of the two-strand test wire.
- Now use the short test cable to connect the white and red terminals on the garage door opener’s wall control unit to the corresponding terminals on the motor unit. Double-check to ensure you have connected the white terminal on the wall control to the white terminal on the motor unit and the red terminal to the corresponding red terminal on the motor unit.
The wall control display should light up and work once you finish connecting the units. This confirms that the wall control is working properly, and the problem is the wiring between the wall control unit and the motor unit.
In this case, replacing the wires in the wall should help fix the problem.
However, if the wall control unit does not light up upon connecting it to the motor unit using the test cable, either the logic board or the wall control unit is defective.
In such a case, we recommend letting a service technician check your garage door opener to diagnose the problem and determine the exact problem.
4. A faulty wall control unit
If your tests determined that the wall control cables are okay for the single LED wall control unit, it is time to replace the faulty wall control unit with a new one.
Replacing this type of wall control unit is fairly straightforward and may not require the help of a professional service technician.
How to replace the wall control
- Check your owner’s manual for the part number. If you no longer have the original manual for reference, consider downloading it from the manufacturer’s online portal.
- Purchase the unit from a local store on order one on amazon. If the manufacturer no longer produces the exact unit you wish to replace, they must have a compatible replacement. Ask for a recommendation from the manufacturer or run a quick Google search for the same unit before settling for a purchase.
- Replace the wall control unit. The replacement wall control unit should come with all the installation instructions you need. Follow these instructions to install the unit and connect it to your garage wall.
Be sure to pay attention to the colors of each cable and where it goes when installing your new wall control unit.
Each wire and terminal is color coded for easy installation and avoidance of mistakes. All you need is to ensure you pay attention to the colors and follow the instructions on where each wire should go.
Often, a white cable with a red strip will go to the red terminal in both the wall control unit and the motor unit. On the other hand, the white cable with no strands will go into the white terminals on the motor unit and wall control.
A video showing how to troubleshoot a wall control not working
Liftmaster Wall Control Not Working After Power Outage
One of the most frustrating moments in the life of a mechanic or a garage owner is when your LiftMaster Wall Control fails to work immediately after a power outage. It could be more daunting when you are not tech-savvy but have an important project that you must execute in your garage.
Often, the aftermath of a power outage can be devastating to a garage owner and could be costly in the long run. For instance, a power outage can damage the circuit board, cause sensor misalignment, or corrupt the wall control settings. If any of these happens, your wall control will fail to work.
As such, you must know what to look for when your Liftmaster wall control is not working after a power outage and the possible troubleshooting tips to get you back on track.
Some associated issues with a failed LiftMaster wall control are described below.
1. Safety Sensors out of Alignment
The modern garage doors are integrated with safety sensors on either side of the door, always 6 inches from the ground, reversing the direction of the door if there is an obstruction on its path. These sensors must be placed at the same height from the ground to communicate through a beam of light or rays from the transmitter to the receiver sensors.
A power outage can cause misalignment or damage your garage door’s safety sensors, interfering with their normal functions.
Damaged sensors cause the wall control not to function. On the other hand, if your garage door sensor starts blinking red, it shows that the sensors are out of alignment.
You can re-align the sensors by adjusting the heights to the same height from the ground and angle. However, if the sensors are damaged, they must be replaced. You can consult an expert for garage door sensor replacements when unsure or not good with electrical wiring.
2. Settings Misconfigured
Your garage door is operated through a wall control panel that can be programmed. The panel should allow you to customize the opening and closing settings.
Any hindrance of the system, especially when there is a power outage, can cause misconfiguration of the settings stopping the control from functioning.
You can solve the problem by re-programming the wall control panel. Again, if you are unsure of the panel configurations, you must consult an expert to ensure that you do not cause more damage to your door system.
3. Dead Battery
If your LiftMaster garage door system has an external battery backup, the wall control may malfunction after a power outage due to a dead battery. Power outages can sometimes be followed by a power surge that can be detrimental and render your battery useless. The battery damage may subsequently translate to the wall control that may fail to work altogether.
If your battery has been damaged or drained by a power surge following a power outage, interfering with the normal functioning of the door’s wall control, replace the batteries.
Battery replacement is straightforward. First, lift the cover and check the status of the battery LED. You must disconnect the power to the opener. Once the connection to the opener is disengaged, remove the battery cover and disconnect the black and red wires that connect the battery to the system.
Remove the battery from its compartment. Ensure you have determined the battery types your system uses before you purchase replacements.
Install the new battery or replacements, guaranteeing that the black and red wires connect to the right color-coded terminals, and take back the battery cover.
Once you have rightly installed the new battery, reconnect the opener to the power outlet. If the power surge had rendered the battery useless, it should now effectively work.
4. Defective Circuit Board
The garage door openers are controlled by either a remote or a keypad. The keypads or remotes have buttons that, when pressed, send instructions to the opener, executed by the garage door openers’ circuit board.
The circuit board can be damaged when a power surge results after a power outage or high voltage. This will impact your wall control unit, causing technical problems.
If your LiftMaster wall control is not working, check the circuit board and examine for chars or whether a pungent smell is coming from the unit. If you realize signs of burning or such a smell, the only solution is to replace the system.
You can execute the replacement process by yourself. First, ensure you have disconnected the door opener from the power source. Using a screwdriver, unscrew the front panel to access the wires and remove them.
Next, unscrew the damaged circuit board, turn it upside down, and remove the remaining connectors holding it to the system. Remove the circuit board and prepare its replacement.
The next step is to flip the replacement circuit board and reinstall the initially removed connectors. Fasten the new circuit board and reconnect the wires. Screw the panel cover and then reprogram the transmitter to the receiver. This will ensure there is effective communication between the transmitter and receiver.
Lastly, test your LiftMaster wall control panel to ensure it works, indicating the problem has been resolved effectively.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. How do I reset my LiftMaster wall controls?
To reset your Liftmaster garage door opener system, push the control button on the garage remote and the button on the motor unit simultaneously. Hold down the buttons until the garage door opener light flashes. This flashing should indicate that you have reprogrammed the system.
Q2. Why is my garage wall button not working?
The garage wall button may not work due to damaged cables between the motor unit and the wall control unit, a loose connection at the wall control or motor unit terminal, power issues, a faulty wall control unit, or a problem with the wiring in the wall.
Q3. Does LiftMaster wall control have a battery?
Yes, your Liftmaster wall control unit uses battery power to operate. But note that these batteries do not have unlimited power, so they can run out over time, preventing the unit from working properly to open the garage door.
Q4. Why is my LiftMaster wall button blinking?
If the screen or LED light on your Liftmaster wall control unit is flashing, the unit is in lock mode. The flashing light can also happen when the internal system of the garage door opener has traveled through a passpoint.
Conclusion on Liftmaster Wall Control Not Working
Most of the problems likely to prevent your Liftmaster wall control unit from properly working are easy and relatively quick to fix if you know the correct troubleshooting method.
This article provided detailed instructions for troubleshooting and diagnosing each problem. If you have a problem with your Liftmaster wall control unit, following this guide should help you establish what the problem is and fix it depending on your wall control type.
We hope this article helped you out. Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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